Ford Suspends Production In South Africa, India, Thailand, And Vietnam

Ford has been spending production all around the world amid the coronavirus outbreak. Last week the automaker announced that it was suspending production in South America. That suspension came after production was suspended in North America and Europe. Ford has now announced that it is suspending production in India, South Africa, Thailand, and Vietnam in response to the coronavirus.

Ford says that it is temporarily suspending vehicle and engine production at its International Markets Group (IMG) manufacturing sites. IMG production suspension started on Saturday, March 21^st, and will continue “for several weeks.” How long the suspension lasts depends on the status of the coronavirus outbreak, governmental restrictions, supplier constraints, and dealer stock requirements.

As Ford suspends production it has reiterated that the health and safety of its employees, dealers, customers, partners, and communities is the highest priority. Ford says it will continue to monitor the IMG production schedule with some of the facilities staying open longer than others. Ford says its production suspensions will happen as indicated in the list below:

• March 21: India — Chennai Vehicle Assembly Plant, Sanand Vehicle Assembly Plant, Sanand Engine Plant and Chennai Engine Plant.
• March 26: Vietnam — Ford Vietnam Limited Haiduong Assembly Plant.
• March 27: Thailand — Ford Motor Company (Thailand) Limited.
• March 27: South Africa – Silverton Assembly Plant (Pretoria) and Struandale Engine Plant (Port Elizabeth).

As Ford suspends production it continues to require employees to work remotely unless they are performing business-critical jobs that require them to be on site. Ford still says that the remote work policy will be continued until further notice to help contain the virus. For the small number of employees who are unable to work from home, Ford says that precautionary measures are being taken to protect their safety. It’s unclear exactly what those measures are.

Subscribe to Ford Authority for around-the-clock Ford news coverage.