Ford to invest $500 million in Cologne plant
5 Jul 2001
Ford motor company is completely renovating its car plant in Cologne and equipping it to become one of Europe's most modern automotive manufacturing plants. Output capacity will increase by 45% once modernisation work is complete.
New production facilities, a new supplier park, modern logistics systems, revised work arrangements and a novel approach to supplier investment are cited as some of the innovations helping the company to set standards among the leaders of European automobile manufacturing.
More than $500 million is being invested in new presses, robots and the development of new production processes to build the new Ford Fiesta, with production starting at the end of November 2001.
A further $60 million is going into the infrastructure of the new supplier park, which is linked to the Cologne plant by a conveyor system. Around 1,000 jobs will be created at the supplier park.
According to a statement virtual and Internet-based systems will optimise the link between dealers, suppliers and the Cologne plant.
The plant will also expects to set new standards in body production with the introduction of fully flexible equipment, including Europe's quickest sheet metal press and the first fork lift free assembly area in the automotive industry.
A new 'pay on production' concept is being introduced, where equipment suppliers will retain ownership of machinery, which in the past would have been bought by Ford, and will be paid on a unit output basis.
This approach is said to represent a much more efficient utilisation of investment expenditure and assets for Ford.
