Cooper Announces Strategies to Counter Raw Materials Shortage

Raw material shortages and ‘soft demand’ in the North American market are the factors behind Cooper Tire & Rubber’s October 1 announcement that it would ‘adjust’ production facilities at its US facilities. The company says hurricanes in the Gulf Coast areas have affected its suppliers’ ability to provide sufficient raw materials to maintain full production at all US facilities, and thus materials will be directed to those plants currently producing items demanded by customers.

Labour schedules will be ‘flexed’ at all plants as long as it remains necessary to allocate raw materials, says Cooper. “By flexing work schedules and sharing time off, Cooper is attempting to avoid layoffs at any of the plants,” the company said in a statement. “This situation is dynamic and may change depending upon whether the availability of materials improves or diminishes. Employees are informed of work schedules as appropriate.”

Cooper estimates the impact of production adjustments during its third quarter to be somewhere between US$9million to $11 million.