F Ford Motor Company

By Mike Colias 

Ford Motor Co. closed its Chicago assembly plant for several hours on Tuesday after two employees tested positive for Covid-19, an early indication of the challenges the auto industry faces as production resumes after a two-month shutdown.

Ford idled the factory twice for several hours Tuesday after separately confirming the two positive cases, a company spokeswoman said. The plant, which makes Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator sport-utility vehicles, was operating again Wednesday morning after parts of the facility were disinfected.

"Due to incubation time, we know these employees did not contract Covid-19 while at work," the spokeswoman said. "Our protocols are in place to help stop the spread of the virus."

The closure came the day after Detroit's auto makers began restarting their U.S. factories, which were idled around March 20 as the coronavirus pandemic took hold. The companies have spent several weeks preparing measures to ensure a safe work environment. They include temperature checks, plastic barriers between work stations and even electronic bracelets that beep if an employee violates social-distancing rules.

Executives and analysts have warned that the industry's restart will be slow and complex, including the risk of infections popping up at auto makers' factories and at those of suppliers.

The car companies have resumed operations with far fewer workers making vehicles in extremely small volumes as they gradually resume operations. Executives have said production will start slowly as workers familiarize themselves with safety measures, parts trickle in from suppliers and machinery is tested after the long idle period.

The two Ford employees had passed an initial temperature check when they arrived for their shifts on Tuesday, the company spokeswoman said. It was unclear how they later tested positive during their work shifts, she said. Employees who had close contact with the workers were asked to self-quarantine for two weeks.

Ford experienced a troubled rollout last year of a redesigned Explorer and the Aviator, a new SUV model, after a major overhaul of the Chicago factory. Executives cited the problematic launch as a major reason that Ford fell short of its profit target in 2019, but have said the factory now is operating smoothly.

Write to Mike Colias at Mike.Colias@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 20, 2020 13:36 ET (17:36 GMT)

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