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Vin generation


ncboat

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Just curious as to process to get a vin generated for an ordered truck. It is my impression that until a vin is assigned the truck is not entered into the build schedule. So my question is why do some trucks get vins within days of ordering and others take weeks. In my case the truck was ordered 7/22 order# 1w3b dealer F21354 priority 11 and no vin.

Truck is an F350 CC sb KR pretty much loaded and I see similar trucks in the online spreadsheet ordered after mine with vins.

I am just curious if this ties to allocation or number of trucks my dealer has on order and these are parameters in the decision process.

Thanks ncboat

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I think the vin is assigned when the truck is scheduled which happens when the vehicle is buildable (no material or option holds) and the dealer has allocation.

 

In some cases dealers repurpose/update an existing order which may get the vin faster.

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Ford Dealers can submit vehicle orders via either the traditional CONCEPS ordering system or the newer WBDO (Web Based Dealer Ordering) system. Fleet orders and/or specification changes must be made via CONCEPS. The WBDO system only accepts stock (Dealer Stock, Demonstrator) orders and all variations of retail orders (Retail, A/X/D Plan, Etc.). Both ordering systems generate error notices and will not display pricing information until any errors are corrected.



The CONCEPS ordering system requires the Dealer to manually enter all the order codes… Year, Body Code, Priority Code, Option Codes, etc. The newer WBDO system uses plain language descriptions, etc. and only displays options available for that vehicle’s Model Year, Body Code & Order Code. Retail orders using the WBDO system default to Priority Code “19”.



Dealers assign priority codes to each order based on the Order Type. Stock orders are assigned priority codes 20-80, retail orders are assigned priority codes 10-19. Fleet orders are assigned special alpha numeric codes that represent a requested production week. The priority codes determine the order for which vehicle orders are to be selected and/or considered for scheduling. This overview doesn’t consider commodity issues (model, powertrain or option scheduling restrictions) that may be in place for a scheduling week. Commodity issues and/or restrictions can apply at either or both the regional and national levels.



The highest priority that a Dealer can use for a retail order is 10. An order with a “10” priority code will schedule ahead of an order with an “11” priority code, etc. This allows Dealers to prioritize the order in which vehicles are scheduled, especially when a Dealer may have multiple retail orders in the USOB (Unscheduled Order Bank). With the WBDO ordering system, retail orders default to priority code “19” so it’s important that a Dealer change the priority code to a lower number if they want the order to be considered for scheduling earlier compared to other orders.



Ford provides Dealers with a schedule for vehicle allocation each week on Monday mornings which shows how many vehicles of each model line that the Dealer has allocation for scheduling that week. That same weekly allocation report also includes information on any regional commodity issues or restrictions. On Monday afternoons, the Scheduling Toolbox Report is released which provides more detailed information on commodity issues and scheduling availability on a national basis. On Tuesday mornings, the AM Scheduling Preview Report is available to show Dealers which vehicle orders have been selected or previewed, on an initial basis, to be selected for scheduling that week. The same report is updated and available on Wednesday morning to show any changes based on commodity issues that may have changed.



On Wednesday afternoon, the Regional Scheduler issues a notice informing Dealers of the vehicle specifications available for scheduling for orders not already showing on the AM Preview Report. This provides Dealers with information on what vehicle specifications are available for scheduling should they have orders showing on the AM Preview Report that are not what the Dealer wants.



Ford generates what are called “SIMS Orders” each week which are Ford’s suggested orders based on commodity information available at the time. If a Dealer has vehicle allocation for scheduling that week and has no Dealer orders in the USOB or orders that don’t meet the commodity restrictions in place for that week, the scheduling system will default to trying to schedule SIMS (Smart Inventory Management System) orders if they meet any commodity restrictions in place. The SIMS orders are available to Dealers online Monday mornings and in print form on Tuesday mornings. Dealers can enter their own vehicle orders or change the Ford generated SIMS orders.



Ford Dealers earn vehicle scheduling allocation each month based on reported vehicle sales, current inventory, projected sales, etc. Each month, Dealers usually meet with their Ford Zone Manager to review the allocation offered for scheduling the following month. A Dealer can accept the suggested allocation per vehicle line or change their commitment. Should a Dealer want more allocation than offered for a vehicle line, they can submit a request for supplemental allocation which will be considered based on total allocation available and commitments from other Dealers in their Zone. There are times when Dealers accept less allocation than offered for a vehicle line which makes that allocation available to other Dealers that may be looking for additional inventory. At other times, a Dealer may want more allocation for a vehicle line than Ford has offered. A supplemental allocation request is how Dealers can get allocation for extra inventory.



A Dealer needs allocation each week for scheduling for each vehicle line. Even without allocation for a vehicle line, Ford is pretty good at trying to schedule retail orders even when a Dealer doesn’t have allocation that week. When a Dealer knows that they don’t have scheduling allocation, it’s always a good idea for them to provide the retail order information (Body Code & Order Number) to their Ford Zone Manager and the Regional Scheduler. The Regional Scheduler can reprioritize the retail order to priority code “01” which basically forces the Ford scheduling system to schedule the unit ASAP unless extreme commodity restrictions prevent the scheduling. When a Dealer doesn’t have allocation, the Ford Zone Manager may try to get the allocation from another Dealer that is willing to give up their allocation.



Ford scheduling is done on Thursday’s but at times scheduling may be carried over to Friday’s due to scheduling, commodity or other issues. Vehicle scheduling confirmations are available on Friday mornings for allocation scheduled on Thursday.



With only a few exceptions (Focus RS, EcoSport, Transit Connect) VIN numbers are generated at the time that an order is “Submitted to Plant” for scheduling. The initial scheduling information will show an order scheduled for a production week. Afterwards, the information will be updated to show production for a particular date. Along the process, the vehicle order status information will be updated along with the ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) at the dealership.



Years ago, the ordering process was much easier, with few or limited commodity issues to deal with. Ford’s vehicle scheduling was mostly driven by scheduling and building vehicles based on Dealer orders to meet Market demands. For a number of years now, the ordering process has become more complex and time consuming based on the constantly changing commodity issues and restrictions. It is now not uncommon for allocation to roll over to the following week because manufacturing can’t accurately forecast how many vehicles can be scheduled for production. In many cases, it seems that either because of vendor supply issues or other factors that Ford skews vehicle scheduling to higher content models in order to maximize corporate profits rather than scheduling vehicle production to meet Dealers orders or Market demand.



The overall vehicle order process, scheduling and status updates is listed below for reference.



· Dealer places order into the USOB (Unscheduled Order Bank)


· When Dealer has vehicle allocation for scheduling, orders are scheduled based on Order Type, Priority Code and commodity restrictions.


o Scheduled vehicle orders display as “Submitted to Plant” on the Dealer’s daily schedule status report.


o Vehicle orders are assigned a VIN number when scheduled except for certain vehicle lines (EcoSport, Focus RS, Transit Connect)


o The initial vehicle scheduling notice will include information for the scheduled week of production. The initial ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) is usually provided within a few days of the scheduling notice.


o Dealers can change vehicle specifications for a scheduled vehicle up until the vehicle is “locked in” for production or about two weeks prior to the scheduled build date. Specifications for certain vehicle lines (EcoSport, Focus RS, etc.) cannot be changed once scheduled.


§ Dealers are limited to making 6 changes to scheduled orders.


§ Dealers cannot change Order Type, Body Code, Order Code (Package/Trim Level)



· Vehicle order is next updated with a scheduled production date.


· Vehicle goes into production and shows as “Sent to Plant” on the Dealer’s daily status report.


o Vehicle invoices and window stickers are generated and available to Dealers at about this time.


· Dealer’s daily status report shows updates on production status.


· Vehicle status updated to “Produced”


· Vehicle status updated to “Released” meaning that the vehicle has been released for shipment.


· Vehicle is loaded on rail car. Dealer is provided with carrier information (Canadian National, Norfolk Sothern, etc.) along with the actual rail car number.


· Vehicle status is updated to show arrival at the final rail destination (Ramp 41/Newark, NJ)


· Vehicle is received by the car carrier (Fleet Car, Diversified Automotive, etc.) for delivery to the dealership.


· Vehicle is delivered to the dealership.



Dealers have access to the “Vehicle Visibility” application which provides status updates on a 24/7 basis for any vehicle order.



This information is provided to answer the most often asked questions about the vehicle ordering process by the Ford enthusiasts that are members of the Blue Oval Forums. I’ll update this information as conditions warrant.

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Edited by ice-capades
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Thank you for the great insight and a wonderful explanation.

 

My take away is that in my case late July order my dealer may have already used half his allocations for August. The scheduling system would find his next available, check commodities and schedule. He thinks we should be scheduled this week, week three. Printout of order shows priority 99 so must be the new system and he says it is now priority 11. I know it would not let him order deployable running boards without the KR Ulimate pkg even though the order guide showed it. Thanks again, and Ice-Capades I think your write up should be a sticky for everyone to see.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Ok. Assuming you ordered from Capital Ford, W3B is not part of your order number. That is the body style code.

 

There is an order 0001 in their system. It was ordered on July 22nd.

It's a Crew Cab 6.7 350.

 

If that sounds like yours, it's still unscheduled. It has a priority of 01, so somebody above the dealership level intervened.

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That has to be mine, got a text message from the salesman just now saying they have no idea why the truck is not getting scheduled and were making calls. If a truck gets a priority 1 what does that infer since it wouldn't appear to be an allocation issue. Does it mean some one "walks" it through scheduling. Since scheduling is basically complete for this week I guess next week is my best bet. I am happy to see my dealer and Ford taking care of my order. I did wonder if the Bronze Fire color was the issue since they seem to be sunsetting it.

Thank you for the good news Pioneer

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Scheduling is usually done on Thursday's so the VIN should be available Friday morning if it's been scheduled. With an "01" priority code, as long as the Dealer has allocation, it would be pretty rare for it not to schedule today.

Thank you that would match with my salesman telling me we should know something Friday. I have to say it really shows me that Ford has the ability to "step up" when needed. From what I gather it was probably a Zone call. I was hoping to have the truck for a trip the first of October so it will be interesting to see what week of production they are scheduling this week.

thanks for everyone's help.

I will update when I get my vin.

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I don't know what week they are currently scheduling to, but yours is scheduled to the week of September 4th. You may get it before October 1st after all.

 

1FT8W3BT7HEE78067

 

Shoot. You're in North Carolina? You should definitely have it in time.

Edited by Pioneer
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2017 F-Series Super Duty orders being scheduled today will be scheduled for production the weeks of 09/04/2017 & 09/11/2017. The initial scheduling notice will be for the production week and then will be narrowed down to a specific day. Once produced, the average transit time is 2 weeks for delivery to the dealership.

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Exciting 24 hours and I can't thank you two enough for all the information and insight. I hope everyone at the plant comes back rested and pumped after the Labor day weekend. Seeing that they have dropped Bronze Fire for the 2018 year I am really glad I ordered when I did. Thanks again for the support.

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Exciting 24 hours and I can't thank you two enough for all the information and insight. I hope everyone at the plant comes back rested and pumped after the Labor day weekend. Seeing that they have dropped Bronze Fire for the 2018 year I am really glad I ordered when I did. Thanks again for the support.

 

I may be a bit biased, but I think Bronze Fire is an awesome color. Love it on my Super Duty!

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I totally agree and that was a requisite since my 2015 platinum is Bronze Fire and I get all kinds of compliments. Heck people flag me at traffic lights and give me thumbs up. I went in to order

a 2017 Platinum in Bronze Fire only to find out it wasn't available. New truck is 350 King Ranch Ultimate in monotone Bronze Fire which I think ought to be gorgeous. I doubt my 2015 will sit on the lot for

long since it only has 34000 miles on it and stands out. My salesman told me Bronze Fire had not been a big seller even though when you saw one it really stood out. They sell a lot of black and white platinum's but the one KR they had was shadow black with caribou which I don't think I would have ordered but it is actually a really good look

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Mine is a Lariat bronze fire with caribou accent. I really love the black over caribou, but I just couldn't bring myself to buy a black vehicle. If it was tuxedo black I probably would, but the non-metallic black I feel would show every scratch and be impossible to keep clean. It does look sharp when shined up though!

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It will be interesting to see how it looks on a superduty. I suspect in certain light it might look similar if they were not side by side. Bronze Fire can have many looks depending on the light and how it is paired sometimes being very brown. The caribou and Bronze fire play off each other really well but look different than a monotone BF . I think the Magma will look good but will have to wait and see. I like the fact that a 2017 truck in BF is a one year truck and readily identifiable.

Fordmantpw when they two toned yours did you get the wheel well lips or is it from the style line down. Would love a picture.

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Bronze Fire isn't anywhere near close to Magma Red.

 

Yeah I just looked at them side by side on the 2018 F150 and 2017 SD. Bronzefire is much more orange whereas the magma red is a really dark red.

 

I still really like the Magma Red on a Lariat sport with the body color grill bar.

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It will be interesting to see how it looks on a superduty. I suspect in certain light it might look similar if they were not side by side. Bronze Fire can have many looks depending on the light and how it is paired sometimes being very brown. The caribou and Bronze fire play off each other really well but look different than a monotone BF . I think the Magma will look good but will have to wait and see. I like the fact that a 2017 truck in BF is a one year truck and readily identifiable.

Fordmantpw when they two toned yours did you get the wheel well lips or is it from the style line down. Would love a picture.

 

The wheel well lips are Caribou as well. Here is a link to my post on when I got it (plus a few more pics below): http://www.blueovalforums.com/forums/index.php?/topic/63170-im-back-with-my-2017-super-duty/&do=findComment&comment=999291

 

Personally, I think the bronze fire looks best with the Caribou accent...much better than a solid BF truck, but that's just me.

 

 

Yeah I just looked at them side by side on the 2018 F150 and 2017 SD. Bronzefire is much more orange whereas the magma red is a really dark red.

 

I still really like the Magma Red on a Lariat sport with the body color grill bar.

 

BF looks orangish is bright sun, brownish when it's less sunny. I think it is similar to the Dark Toreador Red which was one of my favorites for years.

 

Here are a few pics showing the differences after a fresh wax job.

 

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