KWMJ-KTP

Expedition & Navigator

The Union will only tell me that the layoff has been canceled indefinately because they are going to keep paint and body on three shifts for another month. Although I have a theory.... We needed 3 shifts in Paint and Body to run the 250,000 to 300,000 units they had planned to build annually of the Super Duty. Due to the weak sales we are currently under 200,000 annualized units at the current sales pace on the Super Duty. For the 2009 Calendar year our plant is planning on building 195,000 Super Duty trucks and 65,000 to 75,000 Expeditions & Navigators, totaling 260,000 to 270,000 units. I was just commenting to some people on Tuesday that shouldn't we need 3 shifts in paint and body to run that number of units between F-Series, Expedition & Navigator, because we were going to have 3 shifts when they were planning on building that many F-Series alone. My guess is that perhaps they have decided to keep the 3 shifts back there for this purpose. I may be wrong, like I said, it is just my theory. Also, I have been wondering if they will move the dies for Expedition & Navigator's body panels to our Stamping Plant or will they leave them at their current location, wherever that is. If they did do this, it would surely add the 3rd shift back to Stamping.

The Union will only tell me that the layoff has been canceled indefinately because they are going to keep paint and body on three shifts for another month. Although I have a theory.... We needed 3 shifts in Paint and Body to run the 250,000 to 300,000 units they had planned to build annually of the Super Duty. Due to the weak sales we are currently under 200,000 annualized units at the current sales pace on the Super Duty. For the 2009 Calendar year our plant is planning on building 195,000 Super Duty trucks and 65,000 to 75,000 Expeditions & Navigators, totaling 260,000 to 270,000 units. I was just commenting to some people on Tuesday that shouldn't we need 3 shifts in paint and body to run that number of units between F-Series, Expedition & Navigator, because we were going to have 3 shifts when they were planning on building that many F-Series alone. My guess is that perhaps they have decided to keep the 3 shifts back there for this purpose. I may be wrong, like I said, it is just my theory. Also, I have been wondering if they will move the dies for Expedition & Navigator's body panels to our Stamping Plant or will they leave them at their current location, wherever that is. If they did do this, it would surely add the 3rd shift back to Stamping.

I don't know the details yet, but the word is that the Layoff at KTP has been cancelled.

Scott put out another letter that answers some of the questions he has been getting concerning the Transfer Options that were posted. See attachment... JSP08_05_08.pdf

I figured everyone who is still on TLO at KTP would like to see the latest. Lowest 230 Laid off on August 25th, Expedition and Navigator launch in January or February. There are voluntary transfer options for everyone open until Wednesday to Chicago, Lima & Buffalo.....click on attachment 1st attachment is the transfer postings 2nd attachment is the New Letter from Scott News_letter_8_4_08.pdf JobPostingOut_of_Zone_NSK_08_04.pdf

Here's the job postings issud this morning. Click on the attachment JobPostingOut_of_Zone_NSK_08_04.pdf

$1.10 for me. Don't spend it all in one place!

Last I had heard, they were being moved to the Offices that are over the Old Trim Shop.

The reason he is being so bitter is because there are a few people on here, mind you not all of them, bragging that they are going to follow their product with the intention of causing people already at KTP to lose their jobs. If there are openings that need to be filled, they are welcome to them, but if they think they are going to displace another worker they can go fuck themselves. If their plant was closing, we might have some sympathy, but they have a new product that will give them more security, so only a complete dickhead would make the comments that have been made here. I bet when the Explorer is moved from Louisville to Chicago, there will not be one person on here from Louisville crying like a bitch that Ford didn't offer them a chance to move to Chicago, as they'll be happy to stay at LAP because they at least have some pride and decency. Given that MTP is getting another product and KTP was on the path to having as many as 700-800 people laid off indefinately by the end of the year, I doubt anybody is going to be going anywhere.

The old trim department has been heavily modified, but I think it was done as an attempt to keep the floorspace tied up and the equipment in our plant. The areas where lines 3, 4 & 5 were are just surge lines coming out of the stacker & pre-trim before the trucks go up the elevator and travel across the plant to new trim. I think that surge holds 200-300 trucks now. There have also been some surge lines added for the box line in that area as well. Lines 1 & 2, better known as the old A-Side, is currently running as Pre-Trim for the new shop, so it's already being utilized. The way I see it, the surge lines aren't really needed. From the beginning I've always thought it was just a way to keep the floorspace tied up and keep all the assembly line equipment on site until they could utilize it on another product. But the big question is going to be, are we gonna build the Expedition / Navigator on the same Body, Paint and Trim lines the Super Duty runs down or will they make a new area for them, like we did when we built the Excursion? Also, consider that the Box Line Body shop went were the old Excursion Paint and Body Shops were located, and the new Cab-side Body shop is going mostly in the area of the old Box Line Body Shop. This means we will actually have two different body shops that can construct cabs here shortly, so I am curious if they will tear out the old bodyshop or leave it sitting in an attempt to capture a new product. Ford themselves said that the old Body Shop could run the Super Duty as it is through the end of the 2012 model year, so they could always keep the Super Duty over there and put all new product in the flexible shop. Gives us a big advantage on getting new products beyond the Expedition.

KTP was running about 400,000 on one line a couple years ago, and we have room for at least 2 assembly lines. 750,000 is possible but 1,000,000 would be a stretch. In reality, I think they will target this plant for 500,000 units give or take about 100,000. KCAP has less floor space and they built around 550,000 a year or two ago. I was hoping that KTP may get the Econoline when Ohio gets the Transit, but all indications are Ford will cancel the Econoline when they pick up the Transit here in the U.S.. The Transit ranges from 1/2 ton up to full 1 ton set-ups just like the Econoline, so I don't think there is going to be a need for 2 of the same thing. Although, I would like to be wrong about that.

Ford doesn't actually build the F-650 and F-750 anymore. A couple of years ago International started building them for us in their Escabedo, Mexico plant, along with the Ford LCF, so the changes at Cautitlan won't affect it. However, Ford and International seem to be cutting ties. If International stops building them for Ford, and Ford decides to stick with building Class 6 & Class 7 trucks, it would be a good chance KTP could build them once again, but that is probably at least 3 years away if they did it -- but it's possible. The only down side is that the F-650 and F-750 are low volume, but I guess a thousand units a month is still a thousand units a month. I'm not sure how these sell outside of the U.S., but here are their sales numbers within the U.S.. In 2006 Ford sold 14,451, in 2007 it dropped down to 11,282. This year they are down over 46%, so they might sell 6,000 of them.

Nobody in Louisville is interested in Detroit, now or then. But there seems to be an avalanche of people dying to leave Detroit for Louisville. By the way, since you are talking out of your ass, it's apparent you are unaware Ford has had assembly plants in Louisville for over 95 years -- before the $5 Days ever came along. And something else you're wrong about -- During the Civil War, Louisville was in the Union, not the Confederacy. Are you right about anything?

The only active employee a transfer can bump is a probationary employee, KTP has none. In the event your home plant was KTP, then you could bump low seniority, but I don't believe anyone from KTP is at MTP If there are job openings, they will be filled by homeplant layoffs, then RTBU, and then by either In-Zone Transfers or people following a product, I'm not sure which of those two are first. Giving that MTP is getting a new product(s), I seriously doubt Ford is going to pay out any moving allowances when they are going to need people at that plant anyways. If they do allow you to transfer, it will probably be out of your own pocket, just ask the Wixom to KTP transfers.... Ford didn't give them a nickel to move. HERE IS A QUOTE FROM THE CONTRACT: Volume 1, Page 86, Section 24b "The foregoing rule shall also apply in the event of a partial transfer of an operation to a new plant from an old plant which may be closed or continued on a reduced employment basis. It shall not apply, however, to partial transfers of operations incident to adjustments in production schedules or changes in the products at any location." I take it to mean if your plant is closing or having a reduction in manpower you can leave, but if they are simply changing what product you build, you can't follow it, since there will be work available at your own plant with the new product. However it can be interpreted in more than just one way, so don't put too much faith in the contract because Ford will ultimately do whatever they want, as someone said before this post, they will make the contract "read" the way they want it too to benefit whatever goal they are trying to accomplish.