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As part of an industry-wide effort to help alleviate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Honda and General Motors (GM) are producing nearly 12,000 gallons of hand sanitizer through their Fuel Cell System Manufacturing (FCSM) partnership. The hand sanitizer will be used by both companies at their facilities throughout the region and Honda is donating 3,750 bottles to health care facilities in Ohio and Michigan this week.
The hand sanitizer is being made at the Brownstown, Michigan facility where the FCSM team has been working on the development of fuel-cell fuel stacks for the next generation of hydrogen-powered cars. Using an apparatus designed to manufacture the electrodes used in the fuel cells, the team developed a process to re-purpose the equipment to produce a hand sanitizer that would allow employees and health care professionals to work more safely.
Honda will donate nearly 75 percent of its allocation of the hand sanitizer, packaging the product in easy-to-use nine-ounce bottles for health care facilities. On Monday, June 22, Honda made the first such donation of 1,250 bottles each to ProMedica Toledo Hospital in Toledo, Ohio, Memorial Health in Marysville, Ohio, and the DMC Children’s Hospital of Michigan in Detroit, Mich.
“It is inspiring to see how the automotive industry continues to find new and innovative ways to help society during this crisis,” said Cathy McEvilly, senior vice president & general counsel of Honda North America, Inc. “The commitment shown by Honda associates and their counterparts at GM is a source of pride to us and we are happy to provide something to help the brave health care professionals fighting this pandemic every day.”
Packaging Corporation of America donated the packaging needed to ship the product, and the FCSM team worked with other companies to handle the bottling. In addition to donating hand sanitizer to health care facilities, Honda will provide 1,500 gallons of the product for use in its manufacturing plants, as part of the effort to provide a clean and safe environment for its associates.