Understanding the Global Chip Shortage

Erik Martin
Erik Martin

Semiconductors help power everything from your phone to your car. Here’s what to know about the major supply chain problem.

There are chips in nearly everything electric you own, from your phone to your computer to your car. There are even chips in items you wouldn’t expect, such as your washing machine, electric toothbrush, and refrigerator. But these tiny parts that power so much of our lives are now in critically short supply.

“Right now we have a global supply chain in crisis,” says Patrick Penfield, a professor of supply chain practice at Syracuse University. “We’ve just never ever seen anything of this magnitude impact us before.”

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Hyundai Doosan Infracore Plans Hydrogen Engine

FAR EAST: SOUTH KOREA REPORT

Hyundai Doosan Infracore announced that it has been selected as the lead company for the national project “Development of Hydrogen Engine System and Storage and Supply System for Construction Machinery and Commercial Vehicles” by the Industrial Technology Evaluation and Management Agency.

Through this project, the company plans to develop a 300kW, 11-liter class hydrogen engine and hydrogen tank system with zero carbon emissions, which will be installed in commercial vehicles such as trucks and large buses, and construction equipment such as excavators by 2024. After verification, the company aims to begin full-scale mass production in 2025.

“Although hydrogen engines have high energy density, they are expensive and require technological maturity to ensure durability under adverse operating conditions,” said a company official. “For this reason, the engine system is more suitable for construction machinery and medium- to large-sized commercial vehicles than for passenger cars.”

Source: Wow! Korea

PSR Analysis: Hydrogen products in Korea are still far from practical at this point. Hydrogen can be classified as green, blue, or gray depending on the cleanliness of the production process, and the hydrogen fuel cell power plant in Korea that began operating in June emits 10 tons of carbon for every ton of hydrogen it produces. At this point, Korea’s hydrogen industry is still in the gray stage, but I do not think it is time to discuss whether the technology is good or bad, as it will take time for the technology to become more advanced.

The idea that hydrogen is better suited for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles than for passenger cars makes a lot of sense. However, mass production of a commercial model by 2024 is certainly a very high goal. With the lithium-ion battery industry currently thriving in South Korea, I will keep a close eye on the future development of hydrogen in the country. PSR

Gen-Set Sales Start Slow in Q1 2017

SUMMARY: Considering sales across all power ranges, gen-set sales were off to a slower start in Q1 2017, down 5.5% compared to Q4 2016 levels.  This decrease follows Q4 2016 where overall dealer reported sales were flat relative to Q3 2016 levels.

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Global Lawn and Garden Equipment Market

GLOBAL REPORT
Michael Aistrup

The global lawn and Garden Equipment Market, which includes commercial and residential equipment, is projected by Power Systems Research to reach sales of $46.16 billion by 2030. This is a projected increase of $15.96 billion dollars from 2023 to 2030, an increase of 52.8%.

The global impact of COVID-19 is stating to wane and the market is returning to a normal growth rate. Individual homeowners are still interested in lawn and garden care, just not as much as during COVID-19. More people are returning to recreational activities.

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Can EV Enthusiasm Trigger Global Growth?

Consumer adoption of EVs has gathered momentum this year, spurred by higher global oil prices. The Russia-Ukraine war has made EVs suddenly more appealing to many car buyers, accelerating adoption globally. The higher oil prices are driving EVs closer to cost parity with internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. In Bloomberg New Energy Finance’s most recent Electric Vehicles Outlook 2022 report, it projected EV sales to hit 20.6 million units by 2025.

On Tesla’s most recent earnings call, Elon Musk admitted, “We do not have a demand problem but a production problem.” Other car manufacturers such as Ford, for instance, says it can build its F150 Lightning and the Mustang Mach E fast enough to keep up with demand

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Global Motorcycle Market Grows at 5.48% Rate

GLOBAL REPORT
Michael Aistrup
Michael Aistrup

The global motorcycle market is growing at a healthy CAGR of 5.48%, according to Power Systems Research. Revenue for 2021 was approximately $107.1 Billion and projected to be $146.6 Billion by 2030.

Growth during this period is primarily due to increasing demand from China, India, and ASEAN countries. In addition, growth in traditional markets such as Europe and North America is also anticipated.

The growth of drivers for the Motorcycle industry come from the requirement for cost-effective private transportation among people around the world.

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COVID-19 and Lockdown Have Major Impact on Engine-Driven Applications

Even before the COVID-19 crisis, the Indian automotive sector was facing a severe downturn, but the problems were amplified by the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdowns across India and the rest of the world. The situation was compounded because India was transitioning from BS-IV to the BS-VI era.

Aditya Kondejkar

These are challenging times for the Indian automotive sector because of slow economic growth, negative consumer sentiment, axle load norms, a liquidity crunch, low capacity utilization and potential bankruptcies. The current lockdown has  severely affected the entire ecosystem of engine driven applications in India.

For the first time, automobile OEMs reported zero domestic sales and very limited exports in April.  According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the industry is losing more than $300 million per day.

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