Chrysler's temporary 2nd shift to start Nov. 17

By Alex Gary

BusinessRockford.com

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BELVIDERE — Chrysler Group LLC said a temporary second shift will start Nov. 17 as the company tries to boost production of the Dodge Caliber by 10,000 units by the end of the year.

The company planned to add the shift in October but was forced to move it back because of supplier shortages.

Company spokesman Max Gates confirmed that the second shift will begin next week, and production of the 2010 Dodge Caliber, with updated interiors, wheels and color choices, will start Nov. 30.

In October, workers at the plant didn’t build any Calibers because the line was being updated for the 2010 model. Dealers entered the year with a huge backlog of Calibers, and for the year, the plant has turned out 18,798 Calibers compared with 14,678 Compasses and 27,916 Patriots.

The company now has about 1,700 employees in Belvidere on one shift. When the company announced the temporary shift, it said it was adding nearly 1,000 workers. Some will be recalls from this year’s layoffs, but because many Chrysler workers took one of several buyout offers from the company, many will be new hires.

Last week, Fiat CEO and new Chrysler leader Sergio Marchionne said the Caliber would receive a slight upgrade for 2010 and the Jeep Compass and Jeep Patriot, the other two vehicles assembled in Belvidere, would receive major redesigns in 2010 to try and boost sales in those segments.

At a daylong event to unveil Fiat’s five-year business plan for Chrysler, officials confirmed the improvements to the existing vehicles built in Belvidere but also revealed all three models would be discontinued after 2012 as Fiat develops vehicles based on Fiat architecture to replace them.

The company though did not commit to building those vehicles in Belvidere. Analysts are warning unless Fiat can raise Chrysler’s sales and market share, the company will be forced to close more plants.

Assistant Business Editor Alex Gary may be reached at agary@rrstar.com or at 815-987-1339.

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