Ford also producing face shields for Covid-19 response

Ford – which has retained some engineering and design staff at its Broadmeadows site following the end of its Australian car assembly operations in 2016 – has made 50,000 face shields so far. It intends to produce roughly 100,000.

“Producing face shields is certainly something new for us, but our innovation team and engineers were able to test a number of different designs in hospitals and with their input we have been able to get the face shield right for the people who will be wearing them,” said the company’s Australia and New Zealand president and CEO, Kay Hart, in a statement.

 

“With testing of the prototype shield now complete, we’re quickly ramping up production and working to dispatch the shields to medical workers and other facilities that need them.

 

“It’s great that our team has been able to quickly pivot to put their skills towards producing the face shield while also continuing their global work designing and engineering pick-up trucks and SUVs.”

 

Ford announced in 2013 that it was ending Australian manufacturing, with Holden and Toyota announcing plans to do the same within a year. Toyota was the last to finish, in October 2017. Toyota has also been making face shields to aid Australian healthcare workers, and announced this week that distribution had begun.