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Ford's Michigan Assembly Plant tracks the industry's shifting winds


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Do you think you can infer anything about the Ranger being aluminum based on their confidence in the process of converting the plant to the new production being only four weeks based on their prior experience.

It won't be. Joe Hinrichs said so in one of his weekly in plant Q&A videos.
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That four week time frame was stated a couple of months ago.

 

Quote from a March 28th Ford Media article:

 

 

The work to transform Michigan Assembly Plant begins next May. Following the same pattern used during vehicle changeover at Dearborn Truck Plant in 2014, Michigan Assembly will take just four weeks to remove and reinstall the tooling necessary to build the all-new Ford Ranger and Ford Bronco.

 

https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2017/03/28/ford-investing-one-point-two-billion-in-three-michigan-facilities.pdf

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That four week time frame was stated a couple of months ago.

 

Quote from a March 28th Ford Media article:

 

 

https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2017/03/28/ford-investing-one-point-two-billion-in-three-michigan-facilities.pdf

I think I had the same response then too.

 

As slow as Ford's decision making has been in recent years, it's been even slower at MAP, partly because they keep firing plant managers.

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I think I had the same response then too.

 

As slow as Ford's decision making has been in recent years, it's been even slower at MAP, partly because they keep firing plant managers.

 

Stuff like that happens in all businesses when the economy and/or market preferences change. It may have nothing to do with how well the manager performed but more do with showing the "stakeholders" that "we are responding to market demands". Just wait 'till the price of gas goes back up and somebody else will get canned.

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I think I had the same response then too.

 

As slow as Ford's decision making has been in recent years, it's been even slower at MAP, partly because they keep firing plant managers.

 

Haven't you said none of them have been good anyway? Or don't communicate well? Though maybe that comes from above them?

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Haven't you said none of them have been good anyway? Or don't communicate well? Though maybe that comes from above them?

There was only 1 I was glad to see go. The rest I don't know a damn thing about. The most recent one I wouldn't have know he was moved on until I saw the announcement on the marquee.

 

This plant has had a communication problem that's been going on forever. People that I talk to that came from next door (Old Wayne Assembly) say that plant was way better. Same with Wixom.

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Ford has said it expects a four-week changeover, a process that it has perfected thanks to its 2014 overhaul of the Dearborn Truck Plant to convert to aluminum-bodied pickup production.

 

 

 

That's interesting.

 

I'll believe it when it happens

Yeah, I call BS on Ford's claim of one month changeover at Dearborn, a quick check of production figures form 2014

shows zero production or September and October and only 1300 units in November. Just about everything there had

to be changed, including the presses.

 

I do believe that the changeover at Kansas City went quicker because that plant relies on pressings that come from DTP...

Edited by jpd80
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It won't be. Joe Hinrichs said so in one of his weekly in plant Q&A videos.

And the a Focus was supposed to go to Mexico.

 

DSP is bidding on Ranger work. They are only allowed to run aluminum. If the Ranger isn't all aluminum like the F-150, it will have significant amounts of it.

 

Bet on it.

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Yeah, I call BS on Ford's claim of one month changeover at Dearborn, a quick check of production figures form 2014

shows zero production or September and October and only 1300 units in November. Just about everything there had

to be changed, including the presses.

 

I do believe that the changeover at Kansas City went quicker because that plant relies on pressings that come from DTP...

 

They didn't say Dearborn only took 4 weeks - they said MAP would take 4 weeks based on what they learned from the (longer) Dearborn changeover.

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Is it possible that there will be some changes to the schedule for MAP once Hackett completes his 100 day company review? When is that review expected to be finished?

 

A lot of us are hoping so. I'd guess after 100 days....

 

 

 

 

....sorry couldn't help it.

 

Well we first heard of his 100-day review on June 17th or thereabouts. I don't know when he took over (was trying to find it, but couldn't), so that'd be rougly mid October using that mid June timeframe?

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Whoops didn't scroll down.

 

I knew they announced it May 22nd, but didn't recall if it was effective immediately. I think Hackett becoming CEO was effective immediately, but I think Fields remained "with the company" until a certain point after that until he "retired".....that may've been what I was thinking off.

 

So that would bump up the timeline by a month to mid September.

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