Using its expansive footprint of manufacturing plants and research centers across North America, Honda quickly sprung into action to temporarily repurpose those facilities in the fight against the coronavirus.
Eric Walli, regional planning leader for Honda North America, led the early efforts to evaluate dozens of possible activities to respond to the pandemic.
In March, Honda turned to the desperate need for personal protective equipment by using its network of 3D printers at five manufacturing plants to make the frames used to produce face shields for health workers.
Demand was so great that Honda's engineering team in Marysville, Ohio, devised a faster production method by using high-speed injection molding normally used to make vehicle components.
"We make a car about every 50 seconds, and that's the same type of approach that we're taking for these face shields," said Hugo Beltran, associate chief engineer for Honda Engineering North America.
Beltran led the effort to produce about 170,000 face shields.
In April, hearing of early concerns that U.S. hospitals could face a shortage of medical ventilators, Honda also began making a critical component for the devices. Honda transformed a technical center in Marysville into an assembly area for diaphragm vacuum compressors developed by Dynaflo Inc. Dynaflo partnered with Honda to meet skyrocketing demand.
"The compressor is a key component of critically needed medical ventilators that provide a constant source of air to stricken patients," said Rick Schostek, executive vice president at Honda North America.
July 20, 2020 at 06:00AM
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US managers helped Honda quickly shift production - Automotive News
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