FORD OVERVIEW
In 1908 Henry Ford began production of the
Model T automobile. Based on his original Model, a design first manufactured in
1903, the Model T took five year to develop. Its creation inaugurated what we
know today as the mass production assembly line. This revolutionary idea was
based on the concept of simply assembling interchangeable component parts.
Prior to this time, coaches and buggies had been hand-built in small numbers by
specialized craftspeople who rarely duplicated any particular unit. Ford’s
innovative design reduced the number of parts needed as well as the number of
skilled fitters who always formed the bulk of the assembly operations, giving
Ford a tremendous advantage over his competition.
Ford’s first venture into automobile
assembly with the Model A involved setting up assembly stands on which the
whole vehicle was built, usually by a single assembler who fit an entire
section of the car together in one place. This person performed the same
activity over and over at this stationary assembly stand. To provide for more
efficiency, Ford had parts delivered as needed to each work station. In this
way each assembly fitter took about 8.5 hours to complete his assembly task. By
the time the Model T was being developed Ford had decided to use multiple
assembly stands with assemblers moving from stand to stand, each performing a
specific function. This process reduced each worker completely familiar with a
specific task
Ford
soon recognized that walking from stand to stand wasted time and created
jam-ups in the production process as faster workers overtook slower ones. In
Detroit in 1913, he solved this problem by introducing the first moving
assembly line, a conveyor that moved the vehicle past a stationary assembler.
By eliminating the need for workers to move between stations, Ford cut the
assembly task for each workers from 2.5 minutes to just under 2 minutes; the
moving assembly conveyor could now place the stationary worker. The first conveyor
line consisted of metal strips to which the vehicle’s wheels were attached. The
metal strips were attached to a belt that rolled the length of the factory and
the, beneath the floor, returned to the beginning area. This reduction in the
amount of human effort required to assemble an automobile caught the attention
of automobile assemblers throughout the world. Ford’s mass production drove the
automobile industry for nearly five decades and was eventually adopted by
almost every other industrial manufacturer. Although technological advancements
have enabled many improvements to modern day automobile assembly operations,
the basic concept of stationary workers installing parts on a vehicle as it
passes their work stations has not changed drastically over the years.
rk station. In this
way each assembly fitter took about 8.5 hours to complete his assembly task. By
the time the Model T was being developed Ford had decided to use multiple
assembly stands with assemblers moving from stand to stand, each performing a
specific function. This process reduced each worker completely familiar with a
specific task
DESIGN:
Introducing a new model of automobile
generally takes three to five years from inception to assembly. Ideas for new
models are developed to respond to unmet public needs and preference. Trying to
predict what the public will want to drive in five years is no small feat, yet
automobile companies have successfully designed automobiles that fit public
tastes. With the help of computer-aided design equipment, designers develop
basic concept drawings that help the visualize the proposed vehicle’s
appearance. Based on this simulation, they then construct clay models that can
be studied by styling experts familiar with what the public is likely to
accept. Aerodynamic engineers also review the models, studying air-flow
parameters and doing feasibility studies on crash tests. Only after all models
have been reviewed and accepted are tool designers permitted to begin building
the tools that will manufacturer the component parts of the new model.
RAW MATERIALS:
Although the bulk of an automobile is
virgin steel, petroleum-based products (plastics and vinyl’s) have come to
represent an increasingly large percentage of automotive components. The
light-weight materials derived from petroleum have helped to lighten some models
by as much as thirty percent. As the price of fossil fuels continues to raise,
the preference for lighter, more fuel efficient vehicles will become more
pronounced.
FORD INDIA
Ford India Private Limited began
production in 1926, but was shut down in 1954 as the company was in loss. Ford
re-entered the market in October 1995 as Mahindra Ford India Limited (MFIL), A
50-50 joint venture with Mahindra & Mahindra Limited. Ford increased its
interest to 72% in march 1998 and renamed the company Ford India Private Limited.
The total investments made by Ford Motor Company since it set shop in1995
stands $2 billion as of April 2012.
MANUFACTURING FACILITIES
FIPL’S main manufacturing plant located in
Maraimalai Nagar, 45 km from Chennai has a capacity to produce 1,50,000 cars on
a two-shift basis and 2,00,000 with three shifts. In 2010-11, the company’s
production crossed the 1,00,000 mark. As its new hatchback Figo was launched in
march 2010, Ford Motor Company has invested $500 million to double capacity of
the plant to 200,000 vehicles annually and setting up a facility to make
250,000 engines annually. The engine plant opened for operations from January
2010. To meet the growing domestic demand and with an eye on engine exports,
the company has invested $72 million to raise engine production capacity to
330,000 units.
The company is rolling out the urban SUV
Ford Ecosport in June 2013. It had announced a $142-million investment on this.
With Ford Ecosport, the Chennai plant will ramp up to full capacity (200,000
units). Last year, production touched 127,000 units.
The company is going to launch the compact
sedan Ford Figo Aspire within this year 2015( In Process………..)
As part of its plan to launch 8 new
vehicles by 2015, the car maker is pumping in an investment of $1 billion for a
new state-of-the-art manufacturing plant at Sanand, Gujarat. The plant is
coming up on 460 acre site. It will have an Initial installed capacity to
manufacture 2,70,000 engines and 2,40,000 vehicles per year. Coming up
alongside the plant is the supplier park spread across 150 acres and the
company has attracted 19 world-class supplier manufacturers to date. The plant
is expected to commence production by 2014. Once the Sanand plant is fully
operational, Ford India will have a cumulative capacity to make 440,000 cars
and 610,000 engines annually.
Current Models:
1. Ford Classic
(Launched 2005)
2. Ford Figo
(Launched 2010)
3. Ford Fiesta
(Launched 2011)
4. FoedEcosport
(Launched 2013)
5. Ford Figo
Aspire (In Process….. 2015)
Discontinued:
1. Ford
Ikon (1999-2010)
2. Ford
Mondeo (2001-2006)
3. Ford
Fusion (2004-2010)
4. Ford
Endeavour (2003-2014)
SALES AND SERVICES NETWORK:
As of February 2013, FIPL has 260
dealership across 138 cities in 23 states an in 3 union Territories of India.
In the year 2010, FIPL recorded sales of 83,887 vehicles against 29,488
vehicles sold during the year 2009 and registered a sales growth of 172%
EXPORTS
Ford India currently exports 40 percent of
its engine production and 25 percent of its car production to 35 countries,
some of them is South Africa, Italy, Nepal, Mexico, Kenya, Bahrain, Ghana, Iraq,
Liberia, Lebanon, Malawi, Madagascar, Mauritius, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania,
UAE, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY:
Ford India’s CSR activities are focused
primarily in four key areas such as road safety, education, healthcare and
environment.
DRIVING SKILLS FOR LIFE (DSFL)
A
regional initiative to raise awareness about safe, economic and eco-friendly
driving through a free-training program that mixes classroom learning with
practical hands-on sessions. DSFL program was launched in India in August 2009.
In partnership with its dealers, Ford India has also trained 4500 drivers since
launch Ford Motor Company’s successful Driving Skills For Life (DSFL) training
programme that educates new and older licensed drivers of all ages on safe,
economical and eco-friendly driving practices.
FORD ACHIVEMENTS:
Ford India has successfully completed the
on going capacity expansion at its Chennai Engine Plant, ramping up annual
engine production to 340,000 cars. Manufacturing nearly 17 variants of petrol
and diesel engines, nearly 40 percent of which will be exported, the facility
strategically positions Chennai as a regional small engine hub for Ford. With
Chennai;sstate-of-the-art flexi power Train facility rolling out its 400,000th
engine, Ford India is set to deliver on the One Ford Plan. In Chennai, India,
17 July, 2012-Ford India today announced it has completed the expansion of its
engine plant, increasing annual engine production capacity 36 percent to
340,000 helping transform the facility into a regional small engine hub. The
new facility was completed in record time of just over 14 months and creates
capacity in manufacturing over additional 80,000 diesel engines annually. The
additional capacity will feed the surging demand for diesel power trains in
India and growing exports, creating more employment opportunities in the
process. The on going expansion has already led to the hiring of 200 employees.
“We are delighted to see this new addition
to our capacity in the Engine Plant as we gear up to move to the next stage of
growth in India and the region,” said Michael Bone Ham, president and managing
director, Ford India. The facility is the first Ford Plant in the world with
single flexible production line manufacturing petrol and diesel engines. It is
also the first Ford facility to run a flexible crank shaft production line
producing crank shafts, and to have a fully flexible cold test, hot test and
Dyno test facility for petrol and diesel engines.
“We are at an interesting phase of growth
with the markets demanding swift responses from manufacturers, and I’m proud to
say that with this plant’s amazingly flexible production lines of both petrol
and diesel engines, we’re well-poised to move quickly,” Bone ham added. Bone
ham recently joined the Engine plant’s chief, BalasundaramRadhakrishnan,
Vice-president, power train Operations, Ford India, in cutting a ribbon to mark
the roll-out of the 400,000th engine from the plant. “This is a
special occasion for all of us at the Chennai Engine Plant. Commissioning this
facility in record time is a tremendous milestone and just adds to the many
significant achievements this plant has in terms of Quality, Safe, Smart and
Green,” said Radhakrishnan.
“To be rolling out the 400,000th
engine from the Chennai plant in just under four years is an outstanding
achievements, and one that everyone involved should be extremely proud,” said
Gary Johnson , Vice president, Manufacturing, Ford Asia Pacific and Africa,
“Ford is currently building seven new plants across Asia Pacific and Africa,
and we are making a significant commitment in India, which will see it become a
regional hub for law-displacement engine production. “The Chennai Engine plant
has delivered several achievements in terms of Ford’s four pillars of Quality,
Green, Safe and Smart.
QUALITY ASSURANCE OF FORD
Ford Motor Company total quality
management or TQM practices started in the 1980’s when “Quality Is Job 1” was
their slogan. How did TQM work at ford and are they still standing behind this
process? Jean Scheid, a Ford Dealer talks with Ford management along with some
insight of her own.
TQM AT FORD MOTOR COMPANY:
Today at Ford Motor Company, their most
popular slogan is “Ford Has a Better Idea”. Back in the 1980’s when Ford Motor
Company total quality management practices were vast, the slogan of “Quality Is
Job 1” made more sense. In a conversation with Dan Dobbs, a Six Sigma Master
Black Belt at for, it was noted that TQM may have worked in the 1980’s, but Six
Sigma is the project management methodology of choice these days.
When TQM, a process improvement
methodology based on a customer satisfaction quality-driven process with
guidelines set by management was first utilised, it started through a joint
venture. Through a partnership with Chemfil, a division of PPG Industries, Ford
wanted to produce better quality products, a stable work environment for the
workforce, effective management, and profitability; all by the 1990’s “Quality
People, Quality Products. “ Through this partnership with paint supplier
Chemfil, paint process were developed to ensure that a “quality product that
meets customer’s needs translates into financial success.” According to an
insider press release obtained from the Ford Media Room. TQM was forefront in
their painting design as the process of preparation (based on customer quality
standards) was implemented by Chemfil with Ford management and workers informed
of all steps needed to follow the application of paint to a quality outcome.
Gone were the days of guessing, and TQM meant processes at all levels of
production were strictly followed, constantly developed upon, and improved mostly
through customer quality satisfaction surveys.
TQM IS REVISITED:
In 1999, Terry Chenault joined Ford, a
risk management specialist who along with phongVU, helped to further the TQM
methodology through a consumer Driven Six Sigma process. Says Dan Dabbs today
of TQM and Ford, “ It may have been
newsworthy in the 1980’s nut Ford Motor Company Total Quality Management practices
really began with Henry Ford. “ That’s true if you look at Toyota’s 5S Best
Practices in the production of their cehicles, a methodology decided upon after
visiting Henry Ford’s assembly lines. While TQM at the Ford assembly lines
looked good to Toyota, they found too much waste and went on to develop their
own quality process or 5S.
WHAT CHANGED TQM AT FORD?
According to Dan Dobbs, the Six Sigma
Master Black Belt who runs Six Sigma practices at Ford, “Waste and lack of
quality on many levels.” This is true especially when you look at the far
superior Ford Warranty claim system. As of 2008, the warranty repaire rate for
Ford by utilizing Six Sigma decreased by 60% Ford Chief Engineer Art Hyde takes
the now implemented Six Sigma a step further saying, “ the design and engineering
analysis process makes it possible for problems that previously may not have
surfaced until (product) launch, to be caught and corrected in the virtual
world through the DMAIC process.”
The DMAIC process, or define, measure,
analyse, improve, and control has “built an overall strategy for consistency in
our teams,” continues Hyde of their Six Sigma implementation for 2010 product
launches, Dobbs told me, “ The Company’s Quality Operating System or(QOS) is
crucial for identifying and correcting problems within the manufacturing
facilities.” He goes on to say, “ Six Sigma and QOS implemented in each plant
includes cross-functional groups of engineers, plant management, and production
specialist-all skilled problem solvers who’ve been trained through Six Sigma.”
