Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) said today it is investing $550 million to transform its Michigan Assembly Plant to build a new battery-electric version of its small Focus vehicle for the North American market, as well as "next-generation" gasoline versions.
The plant, formerly the production site for Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigators SUVs, is one of three North American light truck plants Ford is retooling to build fuel-efficient "global small cars" in the coming years.
The new Focus will begin rolling off the line next year and the battery-electric version of the Focus–Ford’s first all-electric passenger car–is expected to debut in 2011.
As part of the retooling, Ford will consolidate its operations from Wayne Assembly Plant. When production launches in 2010, approximately 3,200 employees will be building the new Focus at Michigan Assembly Plant.
At the plant, Ford and United Auto Workers are developing modern new operating practices to ensure high quality and even greater efficiency, according to a statement.
"The transformation of Michigan Assembly Plant embodies the larger transformation under way at Ford," said Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally. "This is about investing in modern, efficient and flexible American manufacturing. It is about fuel economy and the electrification of vehicles."
The reinvention of Michigan Assembly, once one of the world’s most profitable auto plants during the SUV boom of the late 1990s, is rooted in the fundamental strategic shift by Ford to leverage its global assets to bring six world-class small cars to the American market by the end of 2012. To produce the vehicles, Ford is converting three truck and SUV plants to car plants–Michigan Assembly, Cuautitlan Assembly in Mexico, which begins building the new Fiesta subcompact early next year; and Louisville (Ky.) Assembly, which will be converted to produce small vehicles from Ford’s Focus platform beginning in 2011.
The zero-emission Focus battery-electric vehicle, which is being developed in partnership with Magna International, features a high-voltage electric motor powered by a high capacity Lithium Ion battery pack and charged by plugging in to a 110-volt or 220-volt outlet.
In addition to the Focus battery electric vehicle, Ford is collaborating with Smith Electric to sell a Transit Connect battery electric commercial vehicle for North America in 2010. Ford’s product plans also include a next-generation hybrid vehicle in 2012 and a plug-in hybrid vehicle in 2012.
"We’re changing from a company focused mainly on trucks and SUVs to a company with a balanced product lineup that includes even more high-quality, fuel-efficient small cars, hybrids and all-electric vehicles," said Mark Fields, Ford’s president of The Americas.
The $550 million investment in Michigan Assembly includes more than $430 million in manufacturing investment at the site, as well as $120 million for launch and engineering costs. In addition, Ford will be making significant investment in supplier tooling to support the plant.
The state of Michigan, Wayne County and the city of Wayne contributed more than $160 million in tax credits and grants to support Ford’s expansion opportunities.
At the heart of the plant’s manufacturing transformation is a flexible body shop operation, which uses reprogrammable tooling, standardized equipment and a common-build sequence in final assembly, enabling production of multiple models in the same plant.
Along with the physical transformation at Michigan Assembly Plant, the UAW and Ford are working on a framework of new operating practices based on teamwork, joint problem solving and continuous improvement, according to a release.
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