Automobile Manufacturing

Automobile Manufacturing

Brief Excerpt from Industry Overview Chapter:

Companies in this industry engage in manufacturing complete automobile and light duty motor vehicles, as well as vehicle chassis only. Major companies include Ford, General Motors, and Tesla (all based in the US); along with Honda and Toyota (both based in Japan); SAIC Motor (China); Stellantis (the Netherlands); and Volkswagen (Germany).

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

The global auto industry is dominated by a small number of US, Western European, and Japanese companies. In the pursuit of sales and market share growth, the major companies have expanded aggressively into emerging markets by setting up local subsidiaries or joint ventures. Domestic manufacturers in emerging markets often enjoy tax benefits or other policies that give them an advantage over foreign competitors. Manufacturers in emerging markets also have global expansion ambitions and are increasingly exporting their products to both established and other developing markets.

PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Major products are passenger vehicles (about 30% of revenue) and light trucks (over 5%). The light truck segment, which includes SUBs, has a higher average price. Cars and trucks are produced on assembly lines, an invention of the auto manufacturing industry of the early 1900s. Many refinements have made the assembly line more efficient. Robotics and other advances in automation have reduced the number of workers on a line.