Tesla: May The 4th Be With Gigafactory Nevada As It Reopens
Tesla Gigafactory 1 in Nevada will be reopening on May the 4th, which is also linked to Mark Hamil’s May the 4th series referencing Star Wars (of course)*. It’s pretty iconic, actually. Many Tesla supporters and employees will be eager for the company to get back to work producing vehicles in as safe a manner as possible. The idea of a positive force having your back is encouraging in such times.
Tesla is taking a very similar approach to reopening as it did with Gigafactory Shanghai. This bit of good news comes from Tesmanian, which shared that the President and CEO of the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada, Mike Kazmierski, announced that Tesla’s board of directors was informed that the Sparks, Nevada Gigafactory will be reopening on May the 4th. There will be several new rules introduced to returning employees to ensure safety.
Employees will be required to wear masks at some of the workstations, and to also practice social distancing. Also, Tesla wants to make sure that if an employee feels the need to wear a face mask of their own free will, the company will support that decision. There will also be PPE vending machines for normal work needs that will have gloves. Gloves will also be available in production areas in the cafe. Tesla’s engineering teams have built workstation partitions to protect operators who may have to work within the 6 feet social distancing parameters.
Tesla’s janitorial team will be disinfecting door handles and push bars. They will do this before and after every shift as well as on the hour at the main entrances. Tesla will also provide employees both hand sanitizer and surface sanitizer wipes.
Further, Tesla is screening its employees’ body temperatures as they arrive at the plant. They will be using an infrared non-contact medical thermometer known as AOJ-20F. If a worker has a fever of 100.4°F or higher, they will be asked to go home and self-quarantine.
Tesla’s COVID-19 Action Plan If Someone Tests Positive
Tesla has a special action plan for if one of its employees tests positive for COVID-19. Hopefully this won’t happen, but with many Americans pushing for the reopening up of America as well as attending protests (without wearing masks or taking protective measures of any type), this could certainly come about. Someone’s uncle’s friend’s cousin’s sister’s boyfriend could have gone and gotten exposed. Tesla has a plan, though.
The company will interview the individual and investigate their whereabouts to try to figure out when and where they may have gotten it. Also, Tesla will be working with the individual’s direct managers to see if that person has been around or had contact with any other Tesla employee. The company will also speak with all individuals who have had direct or extended contact with anyone who has COVID-19 and will require those employees to self-quarantine and be on the lookout for symptoms.
*Editor’s note: Incidentally, I decided to rewatch the entire Star Wars series this past week. I’m in the middle of the first movie from the last trilogy right now. (As in, editing this article is interrupting me.)
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