Photo: ocasio-cortez.house.gov
Last Sunday, American president Donald Trump announced carmakers would be at the frontline of the fight against the coronavirus, as they were given “the go ahead to make ventilators and other metal products.”
Urging Ford, GM and Tesla forward in his unmistakable style, Trump’s tweet continued with “Go for it auto execs, lets see how good you are?” and opened the door to actions that are unprecedented in times of peace: the possible repurposing of manufacturing plants for a common goal.
But what did the presidential nudge forward do to change how things are moving in the U.S?
At least for now, there’s not much happening. None of the three carmakers challenged by Trump actually started making ventilators and other much needed supplies.
GM said even before Trump’s announcement it struck a deal with Ventec Life Systems to manufacture respiratory care products, but no specifics were provided.
Ford keeps to itself on the matter, and so far steered clear of making any official announcement in this respect, while Tesla’s Elon Musk only half-heartedly admitted the company is working on a ventilator, but no specifics were given.
The only American carmaker that seems to be actually doing something is FCA, who said on Tuesday it would be making 1 million protective face masks per month starting next week. All of them will be made in China and will be donated to police, EMTs and firefighters, as well as to workers in hospitals and health care clinics.
All in all, experts believe that hoping for salvation to come right now from the auto industry is in vain, as it’s probably going to take months before auto factories can be repurposed to produce ventilators and other medical supplies that are much more complicated to make than masks.
But what did the presidential nudge forward do to change how things are moving in the U.S?
At least for now, there’s not much happening. None of the three carmakers challenged by Trump actually started making ventilators and other much needed supplies.
GM said even before Trump’s announcement it struck a deal with Ventec Life Systems to manufacture respiratory care products, but no specifics were provided.
Ford keeps to itself on the matter, and so far steered clear of making any official announcement in this respect, while Tesla’s Elon Musk only half-heartedly admitted the company is working on a ventilator, but no specifics were given.
The only American carmaker that seems to be actually doing something is FCA, who said on Tuesday it would be making 1 million protective face masks per month starting next week. All of them will be made in China and will be donated to police, EMTs and firefighters, as well as to workers in hospitals and health care clinics.
All in all, experts believe that hoping for salvation to come right now from the auto industry is in vain, as it’s probably going to take months before auto factories can be repurposed to produce ventilators and other medical supplies that are much more complicated to make than masks.
Ford, General Motors and Tesla are being given the go ahead to make ventilators and other metal products, FAST! @fema Go for it auto execs, lets see how good you are? @RepMarkMeadows @GOPLeader @senatemajldr
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 22, 2020
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