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The huge flood that devasted some regions in Thailand caused the production stop of the Sony factory in Ayutthaya. The japanese magazine Pen (via Amateur Photographer) today reports: “The factory has stopped operation since 6 Oct and the company said it will stop operation until 14.” and that “Operation may resume on Oct 17 depending on the situation“.
Reminder: On October 10th Bloomberg said that “Sony Corp.’s factory in Ayutthaya, which produces digital cameras and lenses, hasn’t suffered major damage from flooding and is operating as normal, Yasuhiro Okada, a Tokyo-based spokesman for the electronics maker, said earlier this week.”
Acccoring to info I got from my sources there are still some Stocks of [shoplink 8452]NEX-5n[/shoplink], [shoplink 8461]A77[/shoplink] and [shoplink 8459]A65[/shoplink] cameras that have already been shipped to worldwide dealers. But it’s very likely that the [shoplink 8454]NEX-7[/shoplink] shipment will be delayed. I repeat this is an unofficial news based on rumors. I hope to get real “facts” soon.
40 Responses
Instead of whining, I hope all comments are feeling sorry for the people in Thailand and the workers in the factory.
And let’s hope that they can get back on their feet quickly, and production can start again soon. Not so that we can have our expensive toys NOW NOW NOW, but so that people can get back to their houses and that their economy won’t suffer much damage from this.
I expect whining and bitching, but I would be thoroughly impressed if SAR readers showed some class for once.
+1
(You already got some, just see below 🙁
+1
Yes! That is a breath of fresh air!
NOPE! I’m gonna bitch.. But bitch about the crappy luck. Not about the fact these things happen and it’s sad for the people who are having to go thru this (not to mention it’s costing Sony millions a day for sure).
I’m not canceling my camera. I’ll just wait. These things happen…!
In short, before you whine about cancelling your pre-order, just think about YOUR house getting swept away in a flood or losing your job first before you bitch about not getting your $2000 toys straight away.
My thoughts and prayers go out to the people who have to suffer through this.
At the same time this is a Sony Alpha rumors site, plenty of people will comment how this affects them and their preorders. Can’t be surprised about it.
What an obstacle for NEX-7. Oh my, oh my…
i can see it now… demand is 10x as much as supply due to japan earthquake and now thailand flood. shortage will be just in perfect time for the holidays. and they will be selling on ebay for twice as much as retail. hottest camera around that you cant buy.
I hope these factory workers are being taken care of. In Japan I believe workers are entitled to 60% of daily wages for forced furloughs. Being Japanese companies, I hope the likes of Sony and Nikon extend at least the same courtesy to their workers in Thailand.
My wife works for a Japanese company, in Thailand (in Ayuthaya no less) and ‘no’ they don’t get the same treatment as Japanese workers, but they are expected to work to Japanese standards and hours (at times she works 14-18h a day with NO extra compensation). You can expect these workers to get no salary at all. If you think about it: we produce in Thailand (or China) because of the cost advantage, not because we are nice people.
Why I am not sorry for them? Because they treat the Burmese (migrant labor) the same as the Japanese treats them!
Oh booo….!
News about Nex Vg 20? Same problems?!
I was told the situation is getting much better now in Thailand. The major reason of the delay is the “transportation system” impact. Even though many of the factories did manage to keep in good shape, the worker will have a problem to get into the lines and the products in the warehouse will not able to ship out to the airport.
With disaster of such scale, we should not be worrying of having our cameras late.
There are really more to worry than cameras alone. Rice production (as Thailand is the largest supplier of rice) of the entire region will be affected as well and it’s not sure how huge the damage will be.
Disaster after disaster.. this is damaging economies on a big scale. Get back on your feet Thailand!
Certain things in life are well beyond our control. No point whining about it. It’s frustrating, yes, but the real point of concern are the people affected by these natural disasters. Our thoughts go out to them.
I wish them the best.
I don’t think they’re going to be able to resume on October 17, even end of Oct is still highly questionable. I live here and the flood in Ayutthaya is still as high and could be even higher soon. How could anyone expect workers to commute there when the industrial estate is being surrounded by 2-3 meter wall of water? The situation is bad not only for Sony but for Nikon where its D7000 is produced there as well.
Exactly. Flood water may be receeding (on average) but it will take time to get things running again.
Sony NEX VG20 is also produced in the same site?
I’m going to assume that no, that is not the case.
The NEX-VG20 is an E-mount system’s product, but remember it is part of the Handycam family of Sony camcorders, and this plant we are talking about is, from what we now, only dedicated to the manufacturing/assembly of Sony α (Alpha) lines of products.
The previous model, NEX-VG10, was ‘Made in Japan’, although that could change for this one, of course.
you know, i really hope with these recent issues with radiation leaks and floods that these damn companies, eager to pinch pennies at the expense of their customers will realize that this idea of a global economy is bull crap. keep control of your products and by keeping them all in house.
Never. Not when it costs $8 to make an iPhone (this one’s China though not Thailand)
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-technology/mike-daisey-goes-after-apple-the-late-steve-jobs-20111014-1lnj5.html
And of course, Apple’s just a speck out of many that do outsource.
It’s a Sony plant in Thailand. And its not like Japan (ie Sony home turf) is immune to natural disasters…
Same for the US.. hurricanes, earthquakes, wild fires have caused disasters in recent times.
Maybe Europe is the safest from weather and nature, but the labour costs will be far higher.
These are freak storms in Thailand – not exactly common or predictable.
No freak storms my friend, but floods that come year after year, EVERY year. There’s NO surprise here, only mismanagement and corruption.
I kind of agree here. I do feel deeply sorry for the people involved with these natural disasters and my thoughts and prayers go out for those in need, but I feel like seasonal problems, infrastructure issues, and corruption should be taken into consideration for a company’s business model. Going for the cheap location, cheap labor, cheap parts, etc. brings with it higher risk of production interruption. Whether you believe humans have anything to do with it or not, the climate is changing and manufacturing selection needs to figure out a way to deal with it.
Yes but nowhere near this bad. They plan for the rainy season and prepare for it, but this year has exceeded expectations by far.
David, Europe could be more at risk with transportation issues than other countries if all the seismic activity around the word lately causes the Katla volcano in Iceland to errupt.
Europe is not immune to Icelandic volcanoes…
sure… lets keep all the production domestic in house, but the cost will be over 10x as much, now you will have an overpriced product that can not sell. great protectionism arrogance rttew!
They should manufacture the Alpha line here in Texas. We don’t get rain here lol.
True. And the hourly pay rates aren’t much different.
Just wild fires!
I get that it is great to set these discussions up so that people would feel heartless if they, “bit%*, and complain”, but the truth is, everyone is sympathetic to the situation for those in Thailand. Any complaining would not be heartless, because the complaining is not about the people. The whining and complaining would be more likely rooted in the apparent lack of a the COMPANY’S contingency plan.
I don’t know….maybe the earthquake and flooding may cause them to make backup plans in such unlikely (or potentially more likely) events in the future.
You’ll be surprised how many are ‘heartless’.
This world is full of ‘It’s not my problem’ people.
Agree with the rest of your point, still.
Yeah…you are probably right. I am most likely too naive.
Sony USA states the NEX-7 will ship around 11/09/11
It is most definitely going to be delayed: http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/content_page.asp?cid=7-11666-12017
The new Canon EOS 1D X has just been announced for March release. No price yet. 14 FPS in JPEG but with mirror locked up.