German Fire Could Mean Problems For U.S. Car Plants

DETROIT (WWJ) - A chemical fire in Germany could lead to production disruptions at auto plants in the U.S.

The fire occurred at a plant owned by chemical maker Evonic, and destroyed supplies of a resin used in most fuel and brake-line coatings.

"These are very, very specialized components," said Michael Robinet, managing director at IHS Automotive Consulting. "Therefore, if this chemical that's used in the production of these components is not available, some quick substitutions will have to be found. Sometimes, they're just not available.'

Bloomberg News quoted auto suppliers as saying the shortage was real and immediate. The suppliers are warning auto companies that there's a high possibility of production interruptions at auto plants in the next few weeks.

Major automakers say they are aware of the situation, and monitoring it. No problems have been reported at this point.

Robinet says while it could be difficult for companies to line up new supplies of this chemical on such short notice, those companies did learn a lot from last year's earthquake in Japan.

"The extend of how this would effect the North American industry is really wide open at this point."