German carmakers Daimler and Audi announced on April 28 they have restarted production at their bases in Hungary, where they turned out 365,000 vehicles last year.

Daimler began with production at its passenger car plant in Kecskemet with a single shift. The second shift will be started at the plant later. Production was suspended on March 20 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

More than safety 120 measures have been introduced at the plant to ensure compliance with social distancing rules. Workers are required to wear masks or face shields, work areas are being disinfected regularly and break areas have been reorganised. 

When a second shift starts at the plant, shifts will operate in the morning and the evening, ensuring there is no contact between shift workers, it said. The plant turned out 190,000 cars last year, launching production of three new models.

Sector peer Audi Hungaria announced on Tuesday that it has restarted vehicle production in a single shift at its base in Gyor after a five-week shutdown. Audi is one of the largest companies in Hungary with a turnover of HUF3 trillion (€8.5bn) in 2019. Its local unit turned out almost 2mn engines and close to 165,000 vehicles in 2019.

Two weeks earlier the company restarted production at its engine plant, which is the largest in the VW group. It makes four- and six-cylinder engines. Including workers in the engine plant, some 5,000 of Audi Hungaria's 12,800 employees are back on the job, said communication director Monika Czechmeister

At the car plant, about 250 vehicles are rolling off the lines daily, but production will be ramped up in the coming weeks. Production of all models the plant makes, the Q3, Q3 Sportback, A3 Cabriolet, TT Coupe and TT Roadster, have been restarted.

Vehicle production is a significant sector of the Hungarian economy, accounting for more than 25% of industrial production and 5% of the country's GDP. 15 of the top Tier1 suppliers have manufacturing capacities in Hungary.