Martinrea Worldwide Inc. Chairman Rob Wildeboer mentioned automakers may look into transferring one in all their two yearly scheduled assembly-plant shutdowns ahead as a strategy to sluggish the unfold of the coronavirus.

Automakers usually idle meeting vegetation for weeks through the summer time and winter for retooling.

“I'd assume that if Im an OEM, I'd say Ive obtained a July shutdown anyway, so lets consider doing that,” Wildeboer mentioned. “I dont know in the event that theyre having that dialogue, however it could not be an unwise dialogue. Weve obtained the stock in place, so why dont we do that industry-wide? I've not heard anybody say that, however dont overlook that we do that twice a 12 months. We do it each July, and we do it each Christmas.”

Automakers, suppliers and labor are scrambling to regulate within the wake of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic. Crops are closing in Europe, now the epicenter of the disaster, whereas unions in the US and Canada have known as on automakers to...