So far the moves that our area businesses have been making are in the positive direction.  It certainly helps that Michigan is one of if not the best state in combating the coronavirus.

We are finding, as we look around the country at other states, that in order to stay open we have to follow the mask/distance guidelines or there will be spikes that might force businesses to close.  We've already seen it happen at some manufacturing plants.  it only takes one positive worker and the whole place has to shut down at least to mitigate the problem.

Now the Michigan success is allowing Ford to ramp up production at several manufacturing facilities including several outside the state.  this is good news for workers able to return to work, manufacturing companies that supply Ford Motor company and, of course, Ford dealerships that are thriving and need inventory.

This is evident in the fact the the push is focused on the F-150s and SUVs.  the plan is to actually go back to pre-coronavirus production levels to meet the demand.  This then trickles down to the parts suppliers like those in the Kalamazoo area.  Perhaps "trickle" isn't the right word.  Maybe we should be saying flood.

It seems this is what Ford is anticipating because they are bringing in additional UAW workers and adding shifts.  Despite what looks like full speed ahead, Ford is not getting complacent and will be ever vigilant putting strict safety protocol in place to prevent having to push pause due to a worker or workers testing positive at one of their locations.  We're all keeping our fingers crossed.

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READ MORE: See how some companies are changing their businesses to combat COVID-19

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