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glideslope · Oct 19, 2011, 06:21 PM

Latest news from Asia is that Nikon and Sony plants in Thailand are completely flooded and the prognosis is that there is no prospect for recovery. Roads leading in and out are flooded, equipment left on upper levels are soaked with moisture, no electricity, etc. This looks bleak. This could be the end. The new pro plant in Malasia isn't even up and running yet. Looks like their total capacity to produce has been knocked out. I was so hoping for a D800. Oh, well. I'll just use what I have.

Jawbone54 · Oct 19, 2011, 06:48 PM

AAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

all caps due to panic

jmiddel · Oct 19, 2011, 08:17 PM

Is Nikon's only plant in Thailand?

Sealobo · Oct 19, 2011, 08:37 PM

The answer is no.

glideslope · Oct 19, 2011, 08:45 PM

Originally Posted by jmiddel

Is Nikon's only plant in Thailand?

90% of Body Production is.

turtle777 · Oct 19, 2011, 08:47 PM

Only for DX cameras. You can always buy FX

-t

Big Mac · Oct 20, 2011, 08:10 AM

Too bad Japanese companies don't produce their products in Japan anymore.

OreoCookie · Oct 20, 2011, 08:20 AM

I don't think Nikon as a company is finished, but it'll take quite some time to recover from this disaster.

Jawbone54 · Oct 20, 2011, 09:26 AM

I wonder if it'll drive up the value of existing cameras in the meantime..

Spheric Harlot · Oct 20, 2011, 09:27 AM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Too bad Japanese companies don't produce their products in Japan anymore.

Enough do that those pesky earthquakes make a difference, no?

Big Mac · Oct 20, 2011, 09:33 AM

True, true. I was thinking the whole widget, but you're right. Natural disasters are a bitch.

mattyb · Oct 20, 2011, 10:19 AM

There's some announcement next week (probably the D800) but I was personally looking forward to a D300s replacement sometime this year.

The figures on Thom Hogan's site are just astounding :

It's Probably Worse Than We Think
Oct 19 more updates (commentary)--Two sources have told me that Nikon Thailand is still dealing with water in the manufacturing plant. Workers have not been told when work will resume. Update1: Asia News Network has a report that says the Sony and Nikon plants have "no prospect of recovery." Nikon Thailand produced a news release late last week that says "the first floor of all buildings...are presently submerged." Generally, equipment that is submerged would need to be completely replaced. Update2: as of the moment, 843 factories in Thailand have been damaged by the flood. The Ayutthaya area where Nikon is located is still flooded, and 610 factories in the five business parks that make up that complex are impacted. Seagate and Western Digital produce hard drives in this region, for example. The flood is continuing to surge South towards Bangkok, so it's likely we're going to be hearing about more tech companies being disrupted. To put things in perspective, an area of 5500 square miles--approximately the size of Connecticut--is under water.

Here in the US, it appears that NikonUSA is preparing for the worst. Promotions for Black Friday and beyond appear to be on hold. There seems to be a sense that supplies of things coming out of Thailand that they would normally promote for the Christmas season are going to get very short between now and the end of the year.

So what things are made in the affected plant? D3100, D5100, D7000, D300s bodies, plus the 18-55mm DX, 18-105mm DX, 18-200mm DX, 70-300mm, and I think, 60mm Micro-Nikkor lens are assembled there, as well as the 24-120mm and 28-300mm. That's basically the bulk of Nikon's consumer DSLR sales, plus a large chunk of the low-end FX optics.

As if that weren't enough, slowly but surely we're hearing about other high tech plants and products that were hit by the same problems. Western Digital, a key maker of hard drives, has not only their assembly plant but several component suppliers in the same area as Nikon's plant. I'm also told Sony has stopped production of the A65, A77, and NEX-7.

And yes, the tech cost is nothing compared to the human cost.

hayesk · Oct 20, 2011, 02:11 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Too bad Japanese companies don't produce their products in Japan anymore.

Nikon's FX cameras and several pro lenses are made in Japan.

glideslope · Oct 20, 2011, 02:40 PM

If you want new Nikon gear for the Holidays get it by this weekend. Promotions are being canceled globally today. Once product is gone, it could be gone for a long time.

glideslope · Oct 20, 2011, 02:43 PM

Originally Posted by hayesk

Nikon's FX cameras and several pro lenses are made in Japan.

70% of revenue came from the Thai Facilities.

glideslope · Oct 20, 2011, 02:44 PM

Originally Posted by Jawbone54

I wonder if it'll drive up the value of existing cameras in the meantime..

You have until Monday.