French auto giant PSA Peugeot Citroen has been forced to put the brakes on production at several of its factories due to a lack of screws, the company and union representatives said  on Sept. 8.

"We have a major supplier of screws which had major operational problems this summer," a company spokeswoman said.

The screws produced by the Italian company Agrati are used to mount shock absorbers, bumpers and other parts on a number of models, according to a representative of the CGT labor union at the company.

The lack of the screws has affected the company's factories in France and the rest of Europe, the union representative said, with only two facilities able to continue normal production thanks to deliveries by helicopter.

Agrati said the problems stemmed from a switch to a new logistical system that centralized deliveries from all the factories.

"A crisis cell has been set up with representatives of clients and everyone is mobilized," said the spokesman, adding that some urgent pieces had been delivered by "taxi or helicopter."

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2011