Auto supplier based in Cadillac was ready for UAW strike, expects minimal impact on their business - for now

A Cadillac automotive supplier said they expect to be impacted by the UAW strike that took effect early Friday.

Fiamm Technologies, which employs 140 people at its Cadillac facility, said though the company is not union, 80 percent of their business comes from being an automotive supplier of the Big three automakers. They also said they were ready for a strike.

“Over the past few weeks and just seeing how aggressive they were, I felt for sure they were going to go on strike. I didn’t think that GM or Ford or Stellantis was going to open up the checkbook and say okay,” said Mike Tiihonen, plant manager at Fiamm.

Tiihonen has worked for Fiamm for 31 years, the past three as plant manager. He says this is a historic time.

“I can’t remember a Ford strike or a Stellantis strike, but GM was the last one. So this is the first time they hit all three of them, which is unusual,” Tiihonen sad.

Nobody at Fiamm is hitting the panic button, though, and the worst-case scenario would be if they “have to maybe go down to four days or something like that.”

He said that Fiamm is set up differently than other automotive suppliers.

“We do supply all of the plants, so we don’t have a single contract with a particular plant,” he said.

Tiihonen said because of this, they won’t have to shut down completely if the strike drags on.

But Tiihonen believes the auto workers union will be able to make a deal, it’s just a matter of time.

“Both sides are not going to get what they are seeking, but they will come to an agreement,” he said.