Ford is teaming up with GE Health to produce ventilators as the United States faces a shortage of these critical machines.
The automaker revealed that it will be able to produce 50,000 ventilators in the next 100 days. The ventilators' design has been simplified by the private medical company Airon for easy set-up and quick usage in emergency settings.
Jim Baumbick, vice president of enterprise product line management at Ford Motor Company, told Cheddar Wednesday that ford brings its manufacturing acumen to the table in this partnership.
Airon Model A-E Ventilator (Image courtesy of Ford)
"Many of these medical supply companies that make these units operate at much lower volumes … 3,000 to 5,000 a year," Baumbick said. "We know how to do high-volume manufacturing at scale, at quality, and they know how to do medical devices."
Ford will begin using its manufacturing plant in Michigan on April 20 to produce the ventilators. But the automaker is already hard at work producing 3D-printed disposable respirators and has shipped out half a million face shields for medical professionals on the front lines.
Baumbick says Ford is working with 3M to scale up this production.
"In just a matter of days, we've been able to boost production from 30 to 40 percent to get more of this equipment to the people that need it the most," he said.
The assembly lines putting together the personal protective equipment (PPE) are filled with volunteers from the United Auto Workers union.
"We have had a huge amount of volunteers that have come forward," Baumbick said. "Our UAW partners, which are outstanding, are going to actually support us."
While the workers wear a lot of the PPE they're helping to produce, Ford is looking at ways to employ technology to monitor the health and safety of employees as the companies produce at a rapid clip.
"We wanted to move quickly. Time is really the enemy here and the need is so great," the Ford executive added. "We just want to make sure we're doing everything possible to help."
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
