AUTOMOTIVE builds a new path

摘要

While the past year hasn't been normal for anyone, Covid has certainly left its mark on the auto industry. First, sales fell roughly by half in the United States before making a bit of a comeback. But this year, the auto industry says that a Covid-induced chip shortage will shave $60 billion off worldwide sales. Meanwhile, the Boston Consulting Group says sales in Europe and the United States "will not rebound to pre-Covid levels until 2023 at the earliest." At the same time, the industry is making plans for future production of electric vehicles (EV) in large quantities. It's clear that EVs require far fewer parts than internal combustion engine cars, and they can be built with about 60% of the labor hours. That will require a new approach to building vehicles.