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Why not three shifts if production constraint?
- Thread starter Matias
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- Tesla Inc.
Because the third shift tends to produced sub-optimal cars. It also costs more because people who work the third shift get paid more. There is also no downtime to fix problems that come up during the day. Equipment like that isn't just set-it-and-forget-it. Constant adjustment is required to keep the items produced inside the tolerance window. When there is no downtime adjustment tend to be further apart because adjustments stop production.
RobStark
Well-Known Member
There are manufacturing plants all over the world that run 24/7 with four shifts with 8 hrs per week for maintenance.
Tesla is a non-union shop. There is no necessary reason why they have to pay more for labor in the potential third shift.
Last time Tesla had a job fair they caused a traffic jam on the local freeways so they decided to shut down the job fair to alleviate traffic. I don't see them having a problem finding workers at standard Tesla labor rates.
I don't see any reason why night owls like myself can't produce as good a quality a car as early birds.
Some people prefer standard shifts, some like the swing shift, while others prefer the graveyard shift.
IMO they can't get the batteries to optimize a potential third shift.
Tesla is a non-union shop. There is no necessary reason why they have to pay more for labor in the potential third shift.
Last time Tesla had a job fair they caused a traffic jam on the local freeways so they decided to shut down the job fair to alleviate traffic. I don't see them having a problem finding workers at standard Tesla labor rates.
I don't see any reason why night owls like myself can't produce as good a quality a car as early birds.
Some people prefer standard shifts, some like the swing shift, while others prefer the graveyard shift.
IMO they can't get the batteries to optimize a potential third shift.
Johan
Ex got M3 in the divorce, waiting for EU Model Y!
... and we have a winner!
(BTW this is also the answer to questions like "Why doesn't Tesla build a second factory?" "Why doesn't Tesla advertise more?" "Why doesn't Tesla open more stores/galleries in the US?")
If they can keep production levels the same as demand levels it gives them the ability to plan appropriately with a good few months buffer. If they ramped up and filled all orders then they would first have to start letting people go as they wouldn't be doing anything, and now they have no idea how to plan finances and accounting etc. By keeping the production rate at just the right levels they can have a constant rate/output/accounting. Steady work and output is better than high rate output and not enough demand.
You have to remember Tesla's business model is build on order, not build as many as you can and sell them to dealerships. There are no dealerships here. Tesla doesn't want to have a lot full of cars as they lose money each month the car is just sitting there. Hence the right model is to have the production line build only just enough to keep a few month buffer of orders. If all the sudden they get 5x more demand, yes then it would be necessary to add another shift or more lines as they also don't want customers waiting a year to get their car. If it wasn't for the fact that my one car died (murano, rod knock), and then my replacement (range rover Evoque) ended up being a lemon in October of 2012 right when tesla was starting to deliver, I probably would have bought a different car if I had to wait 12+ months to get one. I only had to play "musical cars" with my family for a few months but that wouldn't be sustainable and renting a car I thought was too much of a waste. It couldn't have been timed more perfectly for me.
You have to remember Tesla's business model is build on order, not build as many as you can and sell them to dealerships. There are no dealerships here. Tesla doesn't want to have a lot full of cars as they lose money each month the car is just sitting there. Hence the right model is to have the production line build only just enough to keep a few month buffer of orders. If all the sudden they get 5x more demand, yes then it would be necessary to add another shift or more lines as they also don't want customers waiting a year to get their car. If it wasn't for the fact that my one car died (murano, rod knock), and then my replacement (range rover Evoque) ended up being a lemon in October of 2012 right when tesla was starting to deliver, I probably would have bought a different car if I had to wait 12+ months to get one. I only had to play "musical cars" with my family for a few months but that wouldn't be sustainable and renting a car I thought was too much of a waste. It couldn't have been timed more perfectly for me.
Bingo!
Also I believe we've heard of Tesla running a third shift for just certain parts of the line, in order to keep up with the rest of the process. The new line is probably better optimized so that sort of thing won't be necessary.
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