Moving all of American Axle & Manufacturing Inc.'s production from four striking U.S. plants to sites outside the country -- one option posed by the company's CEO -- is easier said than done, at least in the short term, analysts say.

American Axle executives say the company's factories in Mexico and overseas have the ability to absorb work from the striking Michigan and New York plants, and CEO Dick Dauch has said the supplier would shift the work out of the country if a wage agreement cannot be reached with the United Auto Workers union.

Analysts said moving production to lower-cost counties will save on wages but also increase transportation costs, require equipment to be moved and complicate just-in-time delivery to plants in the Midwest and Canada.

"It's not something that can be done overnight," said Greg Gardner, an analyst at the Oliver Wyman Group, a manufacturing consultant that publishes the Harbour Report, which measures auto factory performance. "It depends on how much excess capacity they have in Mexico -- and they've already taken on additional work there (because of the strike)."

American Axle is providing parts to General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC from its Guanajuato, Mexico, facility. Some of the parts, including axles, were previously made in the United States and are used in GM trucks and SUVs.

Labor costs account for 12 percent to 14 percent of a part's price, Gardner said. American Axle will have to determine if lower labor costs offset increased transportation costs, including fuel, and logistical problems.

"It's harder to deliver just in time when you're going from Mexico to Oshawa, Ontario, or Fort Wayne, Ind.," he said. Automakers often expect components only hours before they'll be used to save on warehousing costs.

Some 3,600 United Auto Workers members struck Detroit-based American Axle on Feb. 26 after rejecting the company's demand to accept deep cuts to pay and benefits. The company wants to lower hourly wages for production workers from $28.15 to $14.50.

Brett Hoselton, an analyst with KeyBanc Capital Markets in Cleveland, said in a report Friday that American Axle, with $350 million in cash and the ability to keep making axles for GM, can afford to be patient in the negotiations and will eventually benefit from lower labor costs, according to Bloomberg News.

To date, the strike has partially shut down or idled 29 GM plants in North America as well as those of several suppliers.

While moving more production outside the United States is an option, it's not a first choice, said American Axle spokeswoman Renee Rogers. "We have the capacity, we do not have the desire to do so," she said. "Dick Dauch is hugely passionate about American manufacturing."

Still, union members are taking the CEO's words seriously.

"We don't know if it's a hollow threat -- he said it many times before," said Dana Edwards, shop chairman at UAW Local 235, which represents workers at the Detroit plant.

American Axle has manufacturing sites in Mexico, China, Brazil, Poland and the United Kingdom. Those outside North America serve assembly plants only in the regions where they are located.

The weight, size and complexity of axles make Mexico the only real option to ship to American plants, said Fred Hubacker, a consultant at Birmingham-based Conway, MacKenzie & Dunleavy. Shipping parts from China would be costly and require significant expansion. "Axles are obviously an integral part of the vehicle, so the question is: How fast could this be done without impacting quality?" he said.

While foreign plants can't immediately replace the halted production in the United States, it's a real option if "push comes to shove" and American Axle doesn't achieve U.S. wage rates on par with rivals such as Dana Corp., said Mike Wall, suppliers' analyst at Northville-based CSM Worldwide.

"Longer term, it's absolutely a threat because at this point they are at a competitive disadvantage," he said. "If they don't have competitive wages here, they have to look for a location where they can achieve those wages."