manufmanager

I agree, it is a great acomplishment for Ford and I have seen it front page in many nationwide news shows and news papers. The company needs to acclerate any new programs to replace aging vehicles that are keeping the overall company company average lower than it should be.

I don't believe the Expedition is selling enough volume to cover salaries, capital investment (new body shop) and incentives. My mistake on the Super Duty, it is a cash cow. The bottom line is if a vehicle isn't making money, drop it or find a way to turn a profit. It's not rocket science but it does require a drive from the company to get their strategy in order.

3, 5, 7 thousand, it is still a significant loss. Most one time charges were taken care of in the 4th qtr. of 2006. The defecit now is due to the monthly drop in volume but the increase in pensions being paid out to the massive amount of retirees. The only vehicles that make any money are the F-150, Fusion and Econoline and Edge. That isn't enough to sustain the company now that they have to make payments on the loan they took against all of their plants. They need similar increases as their rivals or the cash is going to run out again. UAW or not, the company won't be cutting paychecks.

There is no doubt that this year's negotiations will change the UAW and what it has stood for. The Cerberus deal was signed before the tip off of negotiations for an intentional reason. They have no interest in a bickering match with labor. They want to make money from Chrysler by increasing marketing and image repair. The UAW has only made the Delphi situation worse for everyone involved. There are signs of the union wanting to talk forever but never committing to new conditions. This can only further damage the image of the UAW represented automakers. No doubt, this summer will make history in labor negations.

I really believe that if the union were to strike, you would quickly see replacement workers. There are enough skilled and unskilled people around the plants to at least run a single shift. The company could then work to break the Union. This is a worst-case scenario but these days, I would never doubt anything... Ever see the documentary about how Overnite Trucking on HBO. They successfully stopped the unionization drive by using temporary drivers and giving striking employees one month to cross the line or lose their jobs permanently. It was a good documentary... To the person that still doesn't believe the company is losing money, take an accounting class and look at the annual report. Also, look at volume trends in the last 5 years. All profitable vehicles are down 20 - 50%.

I like #4 too, it shows redneck class... Damm, was that a racist statement?? :-)

I doubt you are a Native American so you are an immigrant too and quite a racist... What company with any sense pays $26 an hour for people to clean the building?? To top it off, most plants had 2 or 3 classifications of cleaners. It is a bad policy that should have never been allowed to start.

They have something we dont't have, momentum. People like them and they market well globally. GM may give away cars to try and regain the crown but they won't keep the 60 year crown.

Well, if they did say that (I don't recall), wouldn't that fire up the leadership and unions of the Big 3 to produce competitive vehicles? Instead, they ignored the threat and put great vehicles out like the Ford 500. Come on, we could have competed...

You bring up good points and yes; I was salaried but left the company six months ago for a different industry. I was with the company for 11 years. I agree in utilizing our plant forces as long as they are capable and available. My experience in the plant I worked in seemed to run into similar problems. Getting in inadequate trades on weekends. We would get electricians who were 80 years old and only changed light bulbs for the last 10 years. The task was to wire a series of PLC's. The result was ugly. By using contractors, we knew we always had XX # of capable electricians on every shift. On very large projects, it worked better. On smaller projects, I would rather have it done in house. My major gripe with management is that the company allowed incapable salaried personnel to remain in the same position for many years. The company I work for now have a very rigorous performance review process. Everyone is held responsible for thier business objectives. When they are missed, you are gone in no time. I would love to see Ford with similar levels of accountability...

This is a real touching story but everyone is so quick to jump behind the union and moan and groan about management. I think I said in another post "Why would talented management stay at Ford??" As a former manager I had a good relationship with the union and it's membership. It was all about trust and communication. This was a rare relationship but most talented managers in Ford eventually become fed up in dealing with their upper management, the union and the small percent of slack asses in the membership. That is why I left and don't regret the decision. There are plenty of other companies outside of automotive that pay well and while we have unions to deal with, they aren't anything like the combative UAW.

I strongly disagree with this strategy. The company doesn't have a choice which tradesman it can work on overtime due to equalization, so many times, the lower level of the skill set end up working and nothing gets done. So the project timeline slips. If the weather is nice, it can be hell to get people to work overtime or even come to work. Union contractors are 100% focused on installation and won't get pulled off to work on downtime issues. I have seen projects get done 30% - 50% quicker by using outside resources. The plants are overstaffed if they have people that can install equipment on straight time. What are they doing if there is no equipment installation in progress?

Apparently you don’t read the Annual Report the company mails to everyone in March/April. Ford no longer owns the plants since they used them for collateral to keep funding the company. The overtime will most likely only last until any back orders are filled.

I have been part of most of the previous stamping launches and never have seen a decent set of dies. It is an ugly business and Ford doesn't have a robust die development process for DT&D or their vendors. I don't care where the dies are built, they still continue to be incomplete or designed wrong.

I thought that was in the 90's?? I believe the quality awards were accurate and well deserved but I don't understand how a Ford plant with 20+ classifications including cleaners and painters can compete with the transplants that outsource that work. Everyone lied to Harbour anyways... Not only Ford but everyone.