On March 31,? Ford and GE Healthcare?30 announced plans to produce a simplified respirator, with a goal of producing 50,000 units by early July and up to 30,000 a month thereafter, to combat the new crown pneumonia epidemic, according to a report on the U.S.-based Chinese website.
The company expects to produce 1,500 ventilators by the end of April, 12,000 by the end of May, and 50,000 by July 4th.
Adrian Price, Ford's director of global manufacturing core engineering, said workers at the Ypsilanti plant will be at a safe distance from each other and will be tested for the new coronavirus before entering the plant. Ford will deploy a full suite of safety systems to keep workers safe, and Ford and the UAW have been making adjustments to production safety measures in preparation for Ford restarting production at other plants.
The ventilator's design is said to have come from Florida-based Airon, licensed for production by GE Healthcare, a small, privately held company that specializes in the development of high-tech life-support equipment, including ventilators. The ventilator, now approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, meets the needs of most patients with new coronary pneumonia and requires no electricity, working only on air pressure.
Also, Ford engineers are assisting GE with production volumes of ventilators made at its Madison, Wisconsin, plant, which differ from the model licensed from Airon. GE expects to double production of ventilators at the Wisconsin plant in the second quarter of this year, said Tom Wistrick, GE Healthcare's vice president for quality.
This comes on the heels of a March 25 tweet from Tesla Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Elon Musk, who said he plans to reopen his New York factory, which produces solar panels and related equipment, for production of ventilators, and to begin production as soon as "manpower conditions allow. In addition, Musk has purchased 1,255 ventilators from China and has arranged for them to be flown to Los Angeles to help treat patients with new coronavirus pneumonia there.
On March 18, Ford had halted production at its assembly plant in Chicago, citing a shortage of parts.
Employees at a nearby Lear plant, which supplies auto parts, were temporarily shut down after two positive COVID-19 tests. Ford's Chicago plant makes the?Explorer and Aviator?crossovers.
The plant is expected to be closed at least Tuesday night and part of Wednesday, local time.
This article originated from the authors of the Motorhome Car Family, and does not represent the views of Motorhome Car Family's position.