Kumho Tire's Domestic Factories Closed for Two Days Due to Impact of New Coronavirus

[Asia Economy Reporter Su-yeon Woo] Due to the aftermath of the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia), Kumho Tire's three domestic factories will shut down for two days over the upcoming weekend. This decision comes as the 16th confirmed case was reported in Gwangju, near the factories, and the domestic complete vehicle industry temporarily halted production due to parts supply issues, prompting Kumho Tire to decide on a self-imposed shutdown.

On the 5th, Kumho Tire announced that considering the spread prevention of the novel coronavirus and the supply situation in the complete vehicle industry, its three domestic factories?Gwangju Plant, Gokseong Plant in Jeonnam, and Pyeongtaek Plant in Gyeonggi?will be closed for two days on the 8th and 9th.

Primarily, this decision appears to have been made to prevent the spread of infection following the occurrence of the 16th confirmed patient in Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, where the Gwangju Plant is located. Additionally, the temporary production halt by the domestic complete vehicle industry due to difficulties in sourcing Chinese parts was also taken into account.

Kumho Tire is making efforts to prevent the spread of the infectious disease by placing hand sanitizers throughout the factories and installing thermal imaging cameras and thermometers. They have provided dust masks to all employees and made mask-wearing mandatory even for external freight vehicle drivers.

Although Kumho Tire decided to close the factories over the weekend, whether the shutdown will be extended further will depend on the future trend of coronavirus spread and the supply situation in the complete vehicle industry.

A Kumho Tire official stated, "We decided on the shutdown to review the overall parts situation in the domestic complete vehicle industry and the supply status of Chinese parts for Kumho Tire's second- and third-tier suppliers. For now, we have decided on a two-day shutdown within the usual annual shutdown schedule, and whether to extend it further will need to be observed."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.