Automotive OEMs Global Manufacturing Facility Investment Strategies, 2010-2022

6 OEMs Target Nearly $275 Billion Investments Globally by 2022, Including 26% Share in North American Manufacturing Facilities

The need to optimize manufacturing investments, better utilization of production facilities, and improving production plant performance are becoming paramount, as they enable manufacturers to start delivering high volumes of vehicles with a variety of models that are preferred in the market and they will also open the door to lucrative revenue streams. Focused regional investment, effective utilization of production facilities and significant spending on next-generation technologies will play a key role in Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) achieving their present objective of building cars that can change the form and function, compared with what is being offered now.

A majority of  spending by OEMs is expected in manufacturing and assembly with minor spending increases on technologies. Further, increased investment on technologies would help auto makers transform the processes and systems of factories, which will result in improved plant productivity to compete against rivals and also help maintain an edge with customers.

However, identifying the right technology, assessing the value potential and risk of investing in the technologies become crucial for return on investment. Apart from this, auto manufacturers are also focusing on rightsizing their existing production plants to bring down the capital cost in operating their facilities.

In the current scenario, automakers are spending higher on manufacturing and assembly to increase capacity and assemble higher volumes of existing products, while replacing old equipment continues to be a priority for the manufacturers and the same industry trend can be expected to continue in the coming years.

With an objective to channelize the investments in the regions that provide higher capital gains and with a clear long-term strategy to strengthen the North American operations, leading OEMs have started to limit their investments outside North America and a notable number of manufacturers are planning to increase US-based production significantly in the next two years.

Key Issues Addressed

• What technologies are the primary focus for original equipment manufacturers while investing in manufacturing plants?
• Why have the selected OEMs pledged $275 billion for manufacturing investments between 2010 and 2022
• What is the correlation between the manufacturing investments targeted and growth expectations?
• Why are future facility investments divergent among the benchmarked OEMs, with Ford and GM being the only automakers forecasting a similar investment strategy as 2010–2014?
• Mexico was one of the key regions for many OEMs to invest for the long term. Where does it stand today?