DEARBORN, Mich., June 12, 2003 - When the new Dearborn Truck Plant begins production in 2004, it will be more than the new home to the new Ford F-150. It will signal an expansion of the company's manufacturing vision, as the legendary Ford Rouge Center becomes a manufacturing model for the 21st century.

The plant will be the flagship of Ford's next-generation lean and flexible manufacturing facilities. For example:

• It will be capable of producing up to nine different models from three vehicle platforms, making it Ford's most flexible plant worldwide.
• The 16 standardized work cells that make up the flexible manufacturing body shop are made of fewer than 300 parts. This standardization cuts costs and means quicker product changeovers.
• The number of workstations in final assembly will be reduced by nearly 40 percent.
• Component inventory requirements will be reduced by 40 percent.

The Dearborn Truck Plant is another example of Ford's commitment to establish its new, next-generation flexible manufacturing system in its North American assembly operations. By mid-decade, about half of Ford's body shops, trim and final assembly operations will be flexible. That number will rise to 75 percent by the end of the decade. The system is expected to save the company $1.5 to 2 billion in the coming decade.

Dearborn Truck's flexible features include the ability to: quickly change the plant's production according to customer demand; easily retool and reprogram robots and computers with improved changeover time; reduce initial investment and changeover costs with standardized components and processes.

"With increasing market segmentation, Ford's new flexible assembly system means the company can react more quickly to meet changing customer demand," said Roman Krygier, group vice president, Global Manufacturing and Quality. "We will be able to produce a wider variety of vehicles, change the mix of products and options, and change volumes - faster and with minimal added cost. Those are benefits we can pass along to our customers."

Dearborn Truck is implementing world-class lean manufacturing standards that include synchronous material flow (SMF), In-Line Vehicle Sequencing, waste reduction and team-based processes for problem solving and strict quality control.

Dearborn Truck's SMF is based on a weekly predictive scheduling system, which coordinates with suppliers to provide just-in-time component inventory for vehicle production, minimizing on-site inventories. Using the same schedule, In-Line Vehicle Sequencing produces vehicles in a particular order, so that vehicle bodies match the proper components and arrive at the operator at precisely the right time and place. Both processes help Ford reduce waste, and vehicle and parts storage space, as well as optimize production efficiency.

For example, the plant will have no more than two hours of line-side parts inventory and 10 hours of off-line component inventory. Normal inventory supply for most assembly plants is one to two days or more.

In-station process control will empower plant operators and give them the responsibility of ensuring defect-free products leave their work areas. This will help to eliminate waste and reduce rework.

"The crux of the change is the way people work and the way machinery is organized," said Anne Stevens, vice president, North America Vehicle Operations. "Lean manufacturing is all about people and the way they use technology to eliminate waste."

The company utilized the expertise of its employees at Dearborn Assembly Plant to help design Dearborn Truck's final assembly workstations. Since they know best what it's like to work on the line, selected operators and skilled trades employees teamed with Dearborn Truck's launch team to design and test the standardized work modules and tools. Their goals included enhancing quality, eliminating waste and promoting employee safety in an improved workplace.

Employees will continue to play a pivotal role in the new plant's inverted pyramid management system. Operators will work in small teams, each with a team leader. Supervisors will advise and support the teams.

Another of the guiding design principles for Ford is employee safety and comfort. In the final assembly building, where the majority of a plant's employees work, mezzanine levels and overhead walkways will minimize pedestrian floor traffic. The aisles will be wide (18-21 feet versus the usual 12 feet) and will be clear of parts or components. Forklifts will not be allowed in the production areas.

The building's design provides a clean, quiet and well-lit environment. Inside, an air tempering system, aided by the 10.4-acre living roof planted with sedum, will keep the interior at least 10 degrees cooler than the outside temperature in the summer and reduce energy costs in the winter. Natural light from the 10 roof monitors and 36 skylights will flood the million-square-foot building's interior. An additional 24 skylights are a part of the new body shop.

The final assembly building also includes people-friendly features such as overhead safety walkways and comfortable team workrooms. The body shop also incorporates recessed crossover areas that allow workers to save steps by walking under the production line.

The Dearborn Truck Plant will be quieter because the noise of churning conveyors and the whizzing of pneumatic tools are gone. Instead of unwieldy, pneumatic gear, Dearborn Truck will employ electric-powered tools.

Ford has been a leader in ergonomics, and that continues to play a major role in the design of new job processes and tools. Ergonomists, engineers, and plant product specialists examined the F-150 assembly processes and made improvements in process sequencing, tooling and parts design. As a result, about 400 ergonomic improvements have been made to the new F-150 production process, enhancing production-operator safety and comfort and resulting in better quality.

For example, new tools translate into less stress and strain on the operators' arms and wrists. Very few operators will need to work with their hands above their heads, or stoop to do a job below their knees. On the four lines of final assembly, operators will ride on vehicle skillets as they work. Skillets have individual pallets for every vehicle, and some are capable of adjusting to each operator's height and work activities as the vehicle moves from work area to work area.