A worker at FCA's Sevel plant in Italy uses a newly installed hand sanitizing station.
FCAThe auto industry, like so many other industries, hit the pause button in March. Companies around the world halted car production and sent workers home to stop the spread of the coronavirus, which causes COVID-19. Now, as the world begins to get a handle on the virus, automakers have begun to restart production.
Just as we saw in our coronavirus plant shutdown list, the first automakers to restart production are in Europe. We'll update this list as more automakers return to work and start building cars.
Kia
After shutting down on March 30, the South Korean automaker restarted production in limited volumes at its manufacturing facility in Georgia. The company is one of the first automakers in the US to come back online.
Hyundai
Hyundai joined corporate cousin Kia in restarting production on May 4 at its Alabama-based plant. After shutting down on March 18, the automaker started a phased approach with extensive safety measures, including temperature checks and staggered shifts to enhance social distancing.
Ford
The Blue Oval has gradually restarted production in Europe, beginning with facilities in Germany and Romania on Monday, May 4. Plant shutdown over one month ago in Europe.
It's still unclear when production will restart in the UK, however. Although manufacturing is back online, the gradual restart will cover sold customer vehicle orders from dealers. Full production won't ramp up for a few months yet as the automaker takes all necessary precautions to protect workers.
Ferrari
On May 4, the Italian marque slowly began bringing workers back to its plant in Maranello to restart production. Full production will resume on May 8. The company said all restarts are in accordance with government orders and the firm developed its "Back on Track" program to aggressively screen workers for COVID-19. The plan includes voluntary blood tests and an app to notify when workers may have come in contact with someone positive for the virus.
Bugatti
On May 4, French supercar maker Bugatti restarted production at its facility with strict protocols in place to protect workers. Each employee receives a new mask at the start of the day and must wear it on the premises at all times while practicing social distancing. Nevertheless, hand-built Bugattis are back in business. The firm shut down its operations in March.
Rolls-Royce
The British carmaker tells Roadshow production restarted on May 4 and says, "We've taken this decision because we are receiving orders from our customers and we are heeding the British government's call to resume production and support the British economy." The company closed down its manufacturing facility back in March to slow the virus' spread.
Daimler
The automaker overseeing the Mercedes-Benz brand started ramp up production at its plant in Alabama on April 27, a spokesperson tells Roadshow. Production will gradually increase in the weeks to come. In Europe, German plants started to come back online starting April 30 with numerous safety protocols put in place. Daimler was one of the first major European automaker to shutter operations.
Porsche
As of April 29, Porsche began the process of ramping up to restart production on May 4. The automaker said after weeks of supply chain bottlenecks, it's now possible to build cars again, though it originally shut its two factories down to slow the spread of COVID-19.
In the weeks to come, Porsche will gradually increase production to full capacity. As production begins, work will focus on "task-specific jobs" to start. Workers will be required to keep a safe distance from one another and wear face masks in certain areas of the plants.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
On April 28, FCA announced work restarted at its Sevel factory in Atessa, Italy, a joint venture with the company's soon-to-be merger partner, PSA Group. The plant's responsible for building commercial vehicles in Europe and it's a positive sign overall. Italy quickly became the European epicenter for the coronavirus pandemic. Every worker will receive a new mask and gloves daily and the plant is equipped with numerous disinfecting stations and new elements to enforce social distancing.
Volkswagen
The German automaker said on April 27 it had restarted production at its plant in Wolfsburg, Germany. There, the automaker began a slow ramp up of production at about 15% of its capacity. Next week, production will increase to 40% capacity. VW added that some 2,600 suppliers also restarted production to support the plant. VW originally halted production in early March.
Renault
After shutting down all operations on March 16, Renault restarted production at a factory in Slovenia on April 28, Automotive News Europe reports. For now, the factory will run a single day shift and full production will begin on May 11.
Volvo
The Swedish luxury carmaker said it had restarted production on April 20. Its plant in Torslanda remains operational and the company installed modifications to work stations to adhere to social distancing guidelines.
First published April 28.
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