Car production in Europe and the United States has come to a halt due to the spread of the corona virus, supply problems and declining demand. There are opportunities for manufacturers to provide a different service; by fighting against the corona virus.
Last Friday, Prime Minister Mark Rutte once again underlined the need for sufficient equipment: “It is now difficult to obtain protection and respiratory equipment anywhere in the world. The cabinet’s measures must ensure that it remains sustainable.” The Dutch government is not alone in this endeavor.
Last week, Honda and Ford announced that they had been approached by the British government, as had construction machine manufacturer JCB. The chief executive of JCB said that the government was mainly looking for parties that could help with the production of respiratory equipment. McLaren, who normally builds sports cars, also said he would like to help and devote himself to developing respirators, leaving the production to others.
Engineering consortia have now been created in the UK to steer the ventilator development process and production. McLaren is part of one, while Nissan heads another. A prototype should be ready this week. The government has also called on car manufacturers in Germany. Volkswagen is investigating whether it can use its 3D printers.
Ferrari and Fiat help home country
In hard-hit Italy, Ferrari and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) are talking to the largest ventilator manufacturer, Siare Engineering, to see how they can help. The Italian government has asked Siare to increase the production of respirators from 160 to 500 units per month. Ferrari and FCA may be able to advise Siare on how to scale up as quickly as possible, a source at the sports car manufacturer told Reuters. In any case, it should be easier for Siare to acquire parts on the world market with the strength of both companies, especially as every country is looking for ways to make more respirators.
United States
Finally, in the United States, General Motors contacted the White House last week about the potential to assist in the production of respirators. Ford has also indicated its willingness to do so and has now announced that it will be working with 3M to manufacture mouth masks. Based on a design by General Electric, it will make a simplified version of GE’s ventilator. In addition, many people, including New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, have called on Tesla CEO Elon Musk to assist via Twitter. Musk said he will do that as soon as there are shortages. Commenting on De Blasio’s tweet, Musk said he would contact local authorities.
Netherlands: VDL
A spokesman for the VDL Groep, which also includes the VDL Nedcar car factory, has doubts about the feasibility of converting production lines of car factories, such as some media reports, so that respirators can be made. “First, it is not the case that car factories are completely closed and therefore empty. In addition, the available space is not suitable for the production of respirators. It is very unlikely that brands will actually convert their production line for this,” said the spokesperson. VDL is itself investigating how the company can make a contribution. “We have so many different disciplines under one roof that it is easy for us to let certain divisions work together. We can switch quickly.”