“Have you ever seen a car factory in India? Been explained, in the highest detail, the entire production process by Heads of Manufacturing? Right from the time that sheets of steel come in, to the car actually rolling out? I’ve been to other factories before, but no one allowed a camera inside. I was pleasantly surprised when Ford accepted my request to click pictures inside their production facility. And why not? Ford has a facility that’s worthy of showing off.” This is what Rush Parekh of Team BHP had to say about his visit to Ford India’s world-class facility at Maraimalai Nagar, near Chennai.

Ford India took a select group of auto bloggers on an exclusive tour of its state-of-the-art facility on 19 May, 2010. The facility that sprawls over 350 acres has a capacity to produce up to 200,000 vehicles a year and 250,000 engines.

For the invited bloggers, it was a rare opportunity to see a car take shape from a coil of steel. Their tour began at the Blanking, where the coils are cut into flat sections called ‘blanks’. These blanks are then sent to the Stamping, where they are ‘stamped’ into the different parts of the car, such as the roof, side body panels, etc. through both automatic and semi-automatic press lines.

The action then continued at the Body Shop, where the parts of the car are assembled together. The bloggers were fascinated by the sight of 66 robots going about their jobs in their own relentlessly robotic way, carrying out critical processes like spot welding and door hemming.

The Ford India facility uses a hi-tech painting process that’s a first of its kind in India. Called the Three-Wet, High-Solids Painting process, it helps to reduce VOCs emitted while painting the car by 20%. The secret behind this process lies in an increase in the proportion of resins used in the paint versus the solvent, in other words, to increase the ‘solids’ within a given paint sample. As a next step, Ford India’s Paint Shop eliminates the need to ‘bake’, or heat, the car after each coat of paint – the base coat, top coat and the clear coat, thus further reducing emissions. As a result for the consumer get a better paint finish and more scratch resistance on their car!

Next stop was  the Trim, Chassis and Finish (TCF), where the car’s interiors and electrical fittings are installed. This is the area where highly trained Ford India technicians use high-power tools to fit in all the components of the car, from the hand break to steering column and the seats to the exhaust pipes.  At the final stages, the engine, which is manufactured at the Ford India’s New Engine Plant on site, is fitted into the car, the front suspension is fixed and, once the nuts and bolts are tightened, the car get its wheels. Finally, after a quick process of filling the various fluids, the car is rolled at end of the line for its robust validation and quality checks.

“The mechanisms used at every stage of Ford car’s production took our breaths away,” Charu Kishnani of CarDekho wrote on her website after the visit. “The facility is widely spread and has designed a customized robotic mechanism for every phase of manufacturing except the assembling of glasses (front and rear windscreens). Having had a close peep at Ford’s manufacturing utility at Chennai, it becomes clear on why and how the company has been able to deliver outstanding results and great customer satisfaction.”

Part 2 of this exciting visit coming soon!

February 5, 2010 was an exciting and memorable day for everybody at Ford India. It was a day when we achieved not one, but two milestones – a day of double celebrations!

Firstly, it was a proud moment as our Figo’s first production model was driven off the assembly line at the Maraimalai Nagar plant in Chennai. What made it all the more special was the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Dr. M Karunanidhi and Deputy Chief Minister Dr. M K Stalin. Michael Boneham, president and managing director, Ford India; Raj Nair, vice president of operations, Asia Pacific and Africa; Sandip Sanyal, executive director of operations, Ford India and nearly three thousand employees of the newly expanded Chennai facilities were all on hand to join in the Job 1 ceremony.

“Michael Boneham (Michael Boneham, president and managing director, Ford India), Raj Nair (VP, operations- Ford APA), sitting in white CM Dr. M Karunanidhi, standing in white is Deputy CM Dr. M K Stalin.”

“Figo is a great example of the role Ford will play in the future of India,” Dr. Karunanidhi said during the ceremony.

Michael restated the vision for Ford in India, saying, “Less than six months ago, Ford Motor Company reaffirmed its commitment to transform the plant located here outside Chennai into a regional manufacturing centre of excellence.”

“It’s a great honour to have you with us as our projects and investments are turning to reality and the completion of our first Ford Figo off this assembly line,” he told our special guests.

Secondly, the Job 1 ceremony was followed by the inauguration of the new engine facility that manufactures the exclusive 1.2L petrol engine for Figo. Dr. M K Stalin congratulated the Ford India team for the new engine plant facility and wished us all the best for the Figo launch.

“Left to right: Dr M.K Stalin (standing in white) Deputy Chief Minister; Sandip Sanyal President & MD, Ford India Ltd,; Tom Chackalackal, VP, Vehicle operation, Ford; Michael Boneham, President & MD, Ford India Ltd; Raj Nair-VP, Operations-APAC, Ford Motor Company”

It was difficult to contain our joy at seeing years of hard work coming to fruition. “It’s exciting to see the first Figo coming to life,” Raj said. “We’re confident that the Figo will be extremely attractive to Indian buyers,” he added.

New Engine Plant

Our new engine plant, with a capacity of 250,000 engines a year, will lead the way in transforming Chennai into a major hub for diesel and petrol engine exports in the coming decade. The plant will quadruple production capacity of the engine manufacturing facility.

Explaining the story behind the plant, Michael stated, “This engine plant was created with a ‘best of the best’ approach. We benchmarked against other competitive facilities globally, as well as the current volume manufacturers in India for quality and production efficiency.”

Initially, the plant will focus on the assembly of both the common rail 1.4L diesel engine and the new 1.2L petrol engine—both to be fitted in the Figo. What’s more, the new line is completely flexible and will have the ability to handle both diesel and petrol engines simultaneously.

With this red-letter day behind us, we’re looking forward to the Figo launch! Stay tuned.

The robots at our Maraimalai plant are quite versatile. In an earlier post, we told you how they paint a Ford car. In this post, we will tell you how the robots put your vehicle together at the plant’s body shop.

The new state of the art facility has an array of high-tech robotics – a total of 92 new robots have been installed in the body shop, paint shop and final assembly.

The all-new body shop

Sixty-six robots are used in the body shop for critical processes like spot welding, sealer application and door hemming. The robots have increased the automation level at the expanded facility gearing for volume production to 30 percent.

Automated underbody framing robots build the lower and upper body structure of the vehicle. This operation requires absolute precision, as large metal structures are assembled and spot-welded into vehicle floorpans.

The body shop has also become “flexible”, with a framing line designed for handling up to six different models simultaneously in a single line.

Other features of the body shop include:

• Portable measuring machine: to measure jigs and fixtures for build precision.
• Part checking fixture: to measure all major subassemblies, body, front-end and rear-end fit and finish.
• Real-time seal gap measuring equipment: a step up over measuring seal gaps with hand-held calipers.

Why these robots are special
Once we program a robot, it can perform complex and repetitive tasks quickly and precisely. The body shop welding robots are equipped with new servo motor welding guns. These are quieter than the older welding-gun technology, and deliver high-quality welds that are cleaner, with reduced expulsion and burring. Servo motors allow the welding tips to be brought smoothly into place, which helps to eliminate distortion of the metal and ensure stable weld pressure.

Why robots? “A modern automobile plant needs robotics to get the precision that’s essential to a well-constructed vehicle,” says Tom Chackalackal, Vice-President, Manufacturing, Ford India.

Big impact
The robots have made processes speedier. Our body shop capacity has more than doubled, from 15 to 34 jobs an hour. The new line is “future engineered” – flexible enough to build different vehicles one after the other. The new body shop line will build vehicles in Ford India’s current product portfolio as well as the Figo.

With enhanced production efficiency and quantum leap in quality, the plant is now geared to deliver even higher quality cars to consumers that will be not only be great products but competitive in the market.

As Mr. Chackalackal puts it, “This huge conversion will make us very competitive with Indian manufacturers and give Indian customers a better product than ever. Much of our investment is centred on quality and our desire to be the best in class in India.”

What do you think of the robots in our new body shop? What else do you think robots could do in an automobile plant? Tell us!

Green is a favourite colour at Ford’s Maraimalai plant near Chennai, where the Figo is being produced. The plant has almost 50 acres of green cover that includes well-tended lawns and a green belt. This is just one aspect of Ford’s commitment to the environment and the community.

Across the plant, Ford has also put in place initiatives to reduce energy consumption and emissions. “The biggest user of energy and fuel in a manufacturing plant is the paint shop,” says Tom Chackalackal, vice president, Manufacturing, Ford India.

Ford’s revamped paint shop incorporates the three-wet high solids process, which has reduced carbon dioxide emission by 15 percent and Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) emission by 20 percent. We call this the next-generation environment-friendly technology.

In addition, the paint shop uses energy-efficient ovens and equipment. “By introducing this new technology, we’re cutting energy use and fuel consumption significantly, and that’s good for the environment and the community,” adds Chackalackal.

Ford has also installed a zero-discharge wastewater treatment facility for the plant complex. As a result, all the wastewater is treated and reused – saving plenty of water.

The company’s environmentally-aware practices do not end here. Manufacturing units often dump their solid waste in landfills, creating hazards for the environment. Ford has completely eliminated the need for landfills by building a zero solid waste facility. All the solid waste that is generated at the plant is recycled or co-processed in the cement industry.

Finally, Ford has also improved internal processes to reduce consumption of important resources. Here’s a tiny indicator: in the past three years, we have reduced water consumption by 30 percent per car, and electricity consumption by 10 percent per car.

What do you think of these green initiatives? How do you live a green life? Tell us!

- By the Ford Figo Team