In Michigan, Ford Motor Company and General Electric will produce 50,000 ventilators over the next 100 days to help fulfill the dire need for the life-saving device at hospitals across the country. The companies say they can produce 30,000 units per month as long as hospitals need them.

The announcement came as GE workers in Massachusetts staged a protest to demand the facility where they work — which normally manufactures jet engines — start producing ventilators and rehire thousands of recently laid-off workers. GE announced last week it was firing 10% of its domestic aviation workforce due to staggering losses experienced by the airline industry because of the coronavirus pandemic.