Tesla Reopens New York Factory to Produce Critical Ventilators
Tesla plans to quickly reopen Gigafactory New York to manufacture ventilators amid the COVID-19 crisis. The automaker is also partnering with Medtronic to build the medical devices at its Fremont facility.
Tesla announces plans to reopen Gigafactory New York as soon as possible to manufacture ventilators for COVID-19 patients. CEO Elon Musk states that the company will do anything in its power to help the citizens of New York, which currently faces the worst outbreak in the United States. This decision comes just days after Tesla closes the Buffalo factory due to regional lockdown orders.
The automaker also partners with Medtronic, a major medical equipment company, to establish ventilator production capacity at its Fremont factory. This new initiative follows a recent successful effort by Tesla's Chinese team to secure and deliver 1,000 surplus ventilators from China to hospitals in California. Tesla intends to use these factory shutdowns to both upgrade its automotive production lines and produce life-saving medical equipment.
Despite his previous skepticism about the need for additional ventilators, Musk now shifts Tesla's resources toward addressing the urgent medical shortage. The pivot affects Gigafactory New York's normal operations, which typically focus on producing solar roof tiles and Supercharger components. It remains unclear how this urgent medical manufacturing impacts Tesla's previously scheduled April product announcements at the facility.