DarkSilver

The only way the OIL companies can make so much profit and get away with it is that they sell to oil that the get from their wells to the open market at market prices then they turn around and buy that same oil right back at high prices the higher the more the profit. Then they turn around and refine the oil at substandard refineries that they know have issues, refusing to build new refineries because it would affect profits. Next they pass on all cost to the public crying that they only charge what it is costing them and it is the fault of the government and tree huggers. If our refineries have been running at capacity most of the time wouldn't that say it is time to buils new cleaner more efficient running refineries. this would ease the effort of the current less effiecient dirty refineries? a good question is why do we fund oil companies for research and such if they make so much profit? (now that I am done ranting I feel better till I go to fill up again)

Visteon to invest $35 million in new Highland Park manufacturing plant Visteon article Maybe their customer told them that they have to have a percentage of regional content. just like when you sell overseas. :stats:

It is possible they don't have as many people to pay so they have more money to pay out if they can do the same job with less people they can pay more. Automation help out. Do you have to pay a robot a salary?

Happy Winter Solstice Pumpmaster

Though I am no longer at ACH I heard that none of the market test companies wanted to build the C3 they wanted to supply there own product. I am guessing that it may be the same for the gear.

Lets see now were did we put all those weapons of mass destruction from iraq, lets not forget Page behavior of certain politicians very proper behavior(need a good joke about exfoliating). Clinton acted just like a lawyer and tried to get his client off on a techicality of verbage (it was wrong to do) The better question is when have the politicians not lied to us (lied to us = purjury) even if they claim it is for nation security it is still lying. :blah:

Rumor up at dearborn is that 800-900 people took packages.

Its about time The big 3 have been raping the suppliers for too long. If they want cost reductions work with the suppliers to optimize the process in the begining. were the most flexability to change is.

The Indianapolis Steering plant has begun the process for market test and the result of the market test wil determine if it will be closed also we were told that they are market testing Rawsonville.

Way back when it was only Ford I was told that Ford was doing some work with Chrysler and going to supply them parts and just be fore going into production Ford decided they wanted the capacity and went to Chrysler saying here's your tool we are not going to do it. Since that point in time Chrysler would notr do any buisness with Us. The buyer at that time moved up in ranks and when we did the 2002 ram he was in charge of purchasing. (and he had a good memory) there was also a pricing war with the incumbent supplier TTA and Visteon desperatly wanted to break into the Chrysler business for the rest of the supply base

we bought that business that is how Visteon got back into Chrysler we had to pay for the past mistakes of Ford it was not a profitable venture.

The interesting thing will be if Indy wins the market test they are for sale again somehow

The media is not to take all the blame the Union itself is to blame I am not a union fan but before you get on your high horses and start whining hear me out. The Union is not what it use to be it has become a big business. The union use to be there to help the workers and protect them.Its bad when you see a hard working individual who is working hard and having some trouble doing something and you are not suppose to help because it is not in your job description. That is bs. It is suppose to be a team effort. The union appears to protect the bad workers and do little or nothing for the hard working good workers I don't say line workers are getting too much pay what I do say is there are too many dead beats in the union and too many people on the roles. If you must have a floating work force minimize it and have cover more than one plant. How about 1 chance rule on drugs or Drinking. 1st time seek treatment second time bye. It is against the law (public intoxication, drugs) you can be arrested. Many people who buy the cars are putting their live in your hands trusting you to build their vehicles. If there is a floating work force(gen) why is there overtime. Yes I have worked in a plant. saw too much drinking, drugs, and excuses while the good workers had to work harder because of it. ok I am done for now Whine away.

Several men are in the locker room of a golf club. A mobile phone on a bench rings and a man engages the hands-free speaker-function and begins to talk. Everyone else in the room stops to listen. MAN: "Hello" WOMAN: "Honey, it's me. Are you at the club?" MAN: "Yes" WOMAN: "I'm at the mall now and found this beautiful leather coat. It's only $1,000. Is it OK if I buy it?" MAN: "Sure, go ahead if you like it that much." WOMAN: "I also stopped by the Mercedes dealership and saw the new 2006 models. I saw one I really liked." MAN: "How much?" WOMAN: "$65,000." MAN: "OK, but for that price I want it with all options." WOMAN: "Great! Oh, and one more thing.... The house we wanted last year is back on the market. They're asking 950,000." MAN: "Well, then go ahead and give them an offer, but just offer $900,000." WOMAN: "OK. I'll see you later! I love you!" MAN: "Bye, I love you, too." The man hangs up. The other men in the locker room are looking at him in astonishment. Then he smiles and asks does anyone know who’s phone this is? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One day, an engineer died and went to heaven. But, St. Peter said "I can't let you in because your name is not on the list." So the engineer went down to Hell and was let in. Well, he stayed there for a couple of days and then decided that, it was too hot and everything was inaccessible. So he built flushing toilets, air conditioning, running water and a lot of other things. One day God calls down and says to Satan, "So Satan, how's it down there in hell?? " and Satan says: "Well, it's great, I've got an engineer down here and he has build air conditioning, running water, flushing toilets, and I don't know what else, he's gonna build next. Then God asks, "You've got an engineer down there?" "That's a big mistake, send him up here right now!" and Satan replies, "No way this is the best thing that's ever happened to hell." and God says, "send him up or I'll sue!!" and Satan says smirking, "Now just where are you gonna get a lawyer??" ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Some hockey coaches went to a coaches' retreat. To save money they had to room together. No one wanted to room with Coach Daryl because he snored so bad. They decided it wasn't fair to make one of them stay with him the whole time, so they voted to take turns. The first coach slept with Daryl and comes to breakfast next morning with his hair a mess, eyes all bloodshot. They asked, "Man, what happened to you?" He said, "Daryl snored so loud, I just sat up and watched him all night." The next night it was a different coach's turn. In the morning, same thing--hair all standing up, eyes all bloodshot. They asked the same question, "Man, what happened to you? You look awful!" He said, "Man, that Daryl shakes the roof. I watched him all night." The third night was Frank's turn. Frank was a big burly ex-football player-looking type of man's man. Next morning, he came to breakfast bright eyed and bushy tailed. "Good morning." They couldn't believe it! They said, "Man, what happened?" His reply? "Well, we got ready for bed. I went and tucked Daryl into bed and kissed him good night. He watched me all night long."

Now I will go out on a limb and I expect I will get bashed for this But. if the plant is so concerned about staying in business why is it so difficult to get changes made to save money at the plant. 99.9 % of the time Changes are either shot down or costs are so high it is unfeasable. There has to be some cooperation you can't continue on with business as usual attitude, changes have to be made if the process is not changed the cost don't change. It may even cost a few jobs but what is the value of the plants survival. Do you put 100s out of work to save maybe 5 jobs. Bash away it might make you feel better...

In the Free press today Auto news TEMP WORKERS WANTED: Thousands line up for Delphi jobs Work pays 50% less with no benefits http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006606280303 Any thoughts on what this will affect the plants? Are temp workers part of the uaw?

Here is a question If company X a UAW company figures out a way to run more efficiently but they need 20 less people what happens to those people? are they just reassigned, let go, or put in a job bank? Since I am not UAW I am not sure how that works?

The Parts Paradox Why are America's struggling auto suppliers booming overseas--while foreign suppliers are flocking stateside? Forbes 05/08/06 author: Jonathan Fahey Copyright 2006 Forbes Inc What's more American than the Ford Mustang? The Toyota Sienna, for one. The Mustang is assembled in Michigan. But 65% (by value) of the parts that compose it come from the U.S. and Canada. The Sienna, built in Princeton, Ind., contains 90% North American content. This contrast says plenty about the state of automaking in the U.S. these days. Struggling American parts suppliers, such as Delphi, Visteon and Dana, are in the midst of a sweeping migration to greener pastures overseas. While shutting plants in the U.S., they are adding to plants overseas. With those, they either supply foreign automakers in their home countries or make low-cost parts to ship stateside. Meanwhile, foreign suppliers like Bosch of Germany and Denso of Japan have followed European and Asian automakers to the U.S. as the those firms build more vehicles here. In 1994, 109 of the 150 biggest suppliers to North American factories were in the U.S., according to James Rubenstein, a geography professor at Miami University in Ohio. By 2004 only 68 were. It's just a big role reversal, says James Gillette, an auto- supplier analyst with CSM Worldwide. Look at Delphi, the former General Motors unit now in bankruptcy. From 2002 through 2004 Delphi's revenues abroad grew 45% to $9 billion, while North American revenues fell 9% to $20 billion. Much of Delphi's U.S. business is unprofitable, since its factories here are old, their labor costs high and their operations labor intensive. And its biggest customer, GM, is shrinking. Delphi's fast-growing international operations lend some hope to creditors awaiting a reorg. Delphi Chief Robert (Steve) Miller's recently announced restructuring plan would close or sell most of its U.S. factories, leaving the company with just 8 here and 130 abroad. The Visteon story is the same. Overseas revenue grew 32% over the past three years to $7 billion, while North American revenue fell 19% to $10 billion. Last fall Visteon transferred 14 of its 34 U.S. factories to Ford Motor, its former parent, which is looking to dispose of them. This left Visteon with 20 factories in the U.S. and 94 overseas. It plans to close 23 more, but it declines to say where. Visteon's 38 Asian plants are probably safe. Dana Chief Michael Burns' plan for pulling his troubled company out of bankruptcy: Move operations to Mexico, China, India, eastern Europe and South America. Labor costs in the Czech Republic are 77% lower than in the U.S. In the early 1990s a sun visor for a small GM pickup cost $11. Now the cost is $6 for one made in China, making it nearly impossible for U.S. companies to make them profitably in the U.S. General Motors has for the past few years encouraged its suppliers to source parts in low-cost countries. The foreign-owned supplier giants are joining their main European and Asian customers in the U.S. Last year these companies built 4 million cars in the U.S., up from 3.2 million in 2002. The foreign suppliers choose to move here to dodge tariffs, currency swings and transportation costs. But they also mitigate the higher labor costs, often by setting up in the South, where unions aren't always welcome. Smaller overseas suppliers gain cheap entrée by buying struggling U.S. factories. Spain's Corporaciñn Gestamp bought an Alabama factory in 2004 that the now-failed Oxford Automotive built to supply a nearby Mercedes-Benz plant. Last year India's Bharat Forge bought Federal Forge of Lansing, Mich. China's Asimco bought a Livonia, Mich. maker of engine mounts. By and large, the phoenixes rising from these ashes are nonunion.

Ok here is a question that was brought up in our office that I thought would be interesting to see what the response is. I believe the Union does layoffs by seniority, so with the plants closing, how many of those with seniority will try to get jobs in other plants to replace lower seniority workers? Is this really an option for some workers who's plants are going to close?

Do you really think engineers control the design. I would suggest more managment and marketing they are the ones that give direction to engineering and tell them what to do. You give too much credit to the power of an engineer. Just because you have not seen new ideas does not mean they have not been there. Many ideas never get past the book shelf. Do you have anyidea how long it takes to develop a car design? especially if there are new elements(testing, supplier development, supplier testing,tooling, ect.). You are usually looking at 2 to 3 years to launch.As the old joke goes do you really want a microsoft car, To market quick, Needs updates constantly, and can crash 2 - 3 times a day. The concept cars are the testing block to see what public reaction to different designs are. I do agree they a better market study team is needed to better understand what the public wants and Plants and managment have to be acceptable to change. I have seen plants kill new ideas because they did not want to change.

GM told: Cut every salary http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2005601110463 If GM does it Ford may try to next. Do you think it will save them? I have my doubts unless they may major changes to the way they do bussiness. what are other opinions/

Not meaning to pick on anyone. The numbers don't add up you either skipped a grade or skipped math. They don't start Kindergarten at age 3. K-12 = 13 years 16-13=3. please clarify. :huh:

I would guess a lot of people live paycheck to paycheck. I expect there will be a lot of toys and vacation property up for sale in the future.

Does that mean that since there is so much overtime that there is no gen pool at your location? Also is the gen pool plant specific or is the gen pool for all the plants and people in gen can work at any plant? It just seams that it would be better to have someone who is in gen working that having overtime. Sounds like a lack of cooperation with managment and plant.

This may be a foolish question but why is there people working overtime when there are people basicly being paid not to work? This does not make sense. I am not picking on anyone just trying to understand why? does it cost money to get that person in gen to come in and work? or what?