NAP's 1 year anniversary closure date today!

[uRfk9AcDfo9Wui]

One year ago today 4/13/2006 NAP employees got the news that the Norfolk Assembly Plant would close. What a way to start your Easter vacation last year.

 

 

 

Just figured I give all the NAP bashers something to bitch, moan, groan, and complain about, since every time something about NAP is posted they like to come out here and cry and whine. Let the bashing begin!!!

[TCAP'er]

One year ago today 4/13/2006 NAP employees got the news that the Norfolk Assembly Plant would close. What a way to start your Easter vacation last year.

 

Just figured I give all the NAP bashers something to bitch, moan, groan, and complain about, since every time something about NAP is posted they like to come out here and cry and whine. Let the bashing begin!!!

 

Man, WTF are U talking about? go to bed and when you wake up get a fucken life. Blah..blah..and more fucken blah...

[uRfk9AcDfo9Wui]

Man, WTF are U talking about? go to bed and when you wake up get a fucken life. Blah..blah..and more fucken blah...

 

 

Got my first basher. Damn took a little longer than I expected.

[Fishon1]

IM with you ! Then FORD has nerve the nerve to come with help us sell more.Build something the people want to buy! FORD

Edited April 14, 2007 by Fishon1

[OAC_Sparky]

I have sympathy for the hard-working employees at NAP and the tough decisions that they face. I have faced the same decisions in the past, having been through a Ford plant closure myself.

 

That said, when my plant closed, there was no golden handshake, no buyout, no early retirement, no paid education program.

 

Just a nice little "See ya, don't call us, we'll call you" salute. I put myself through trade school while on unemployment. And then when Ford did call nearly 2 years later to offer a job at a plant 300 miles away, there was no $25G moving allowance; just coverage for expenses that you could prove that you paid out of pocket, and THAT took 6 months to get.

 

So when you wonder why there's anyone that would bash anyone from NAP, it's because of those few who ( I'm certain are a minority ) that all they do is come on here with the "Cut the check" or "Ford is screwing me" or "That plant doesn't deserve product X like we do" or whatever bullshit whining. If you ask me, in some cases the bashing was brought on by themselves.

 

The bottom line is, the company had to make the cut somewhere. It was a numbers game. The cut was made, not anything personal. Not like some guy in Detroit decided, "Well Fuck NAP, I hate those guys.". When they closed the Windsor plant in 1990, we made 5.0L, that was the overflow from Cleveland. We had just made Q1 (which Cleveland didn't have). So why close the higher quality plant? Well, again, it was a numbers game, and we lost. Tough titties.

 

When I was laid off I didn't lament and whine about how I was getting screwed and how I would somehow pay Ford back. Holy crap, $100G buyout? Please point me in the direction of any other (non-Big 3) company in history that's done that. Sheesh. Wish I got that back then, the world would have been my oyster.

[F250]

OAC_Sparky,

Look at it this way, some call it bitching, or like you said "bullshit whining." If those people really just wanted a big buyout check or one of the other options they wouldn't be complaining because that's what they are getting. But if they thought they were the best at the job they do and thought that earned their plant the right to remain open then they might react as they have.

 

It's obvious these people didn't want a damn buyout check they wanted to keep doing their job. Sure bitching will not change anything but it sure let's off steam.

 

People who care and take pride in their work will not go quietly when told their plant is closing only because it's cheaper to build somewhere else.

 

If you ask me that's the kind of people that I want building my vehicle.

 

How about this, the F-150 has been Ford's best selling, most important vehicle for decades. The P221 launched at NAP during the company's 100 centennial celebration.

The launch was excellent, new all-time sales records were set and F-150 earned J.D.Powers top quality award.

Let's see if the next F-150 can match those three benchmarks.

Like you said nothing personal, just by the numbers. And no excuses accepted.

Edited April 15, 2007 by F250

[OAC_Sparky]

It's obvious these people didn't want a damn buyout check they wanted to keep doing their job. Sure bitching will not change anything but it sure let's off steam.

Like I said, I can sympathize with the situation, I was there once. But there's a difference between letting off steam and what some here do.

[dirtyred2]

OAC_Sparky,

Look at it this way, some call it bitching, or like you said "bullshit whining." If those people really just wanted a big buyout check or one of the other options they wouldn't be complaining because that's what they are getting. But if they thought they were the best at the job they do and thought that earned their plant the right to remain open then they might react as they have.

 

It's obvious these people didn't want a damn buyout check they wanted to keep doing their job. Sure bitching will not change anything but it sure let's off steam.

 

People who care and take pride in their work will not go quietly when told their plant is closing only because it's cheaper to build somewhere else.

 

If you ask me that's the kind of people that I want building my vehicle.

 

How about this, the F-150 has been Ford's best selling, most important vehicle for decades. The P221 launched at NAP during the company's 100 centennial celebration.

The launch was excellent, new all-time sales records were set and F-150 earned J.D.Powers top quality award.

Let's see if the next F-150 can match those three benchmarks.

Like you said nothing personal, just by the numbers. And no excuses accepted.

 

 

Just getting off work, thought i would add my 2 cent in as well from the Atlanta stand point. Did most of the people want to take the buy out no. NO One on this Board can say that AAP wasnt Ford best plant. Why would Ford get rid of it best plants is beyond me but oh well. After a few months i was bitter even though i took the buyout why you might ask? I cared about what i was doing and enjoyed it even though we knew we were being lied too about our fate even before the shutdown list was told. I talk to a friend today(first time i seen him since Oct 24 06) He ask me why in the hell did i buy another ford, told him i still had A plan

so it was cheaper but if i didnt have would have got a toyota hands down. He laugh and said Fuck ford man never going to buy another car or truck from them. I have to agree with you the places that Ford has closed up shop will never get that business back again. So good luck on trying to get folks in showrooms to buy ford products. I live near the dealship that i brought my truck at and trust me when i say they arent hardly doing anything. On a good note, I love my new Expedition. Anyway just my 2 cent added

[J-150]

Just getting off work, thought i would add my 2 cent in as well from the Atlanta stand point. Did most of the people want to take the buy out no. NO One on this Board can say that AAP wasnt Ford best plant. Why would Ford get rid of it best plants is beyond me but oh well. After a few months i was bitter even though i took the buyout why you might ask? I cared about what i was doing and enjoyed it even though we knew we were being lied too about our fate even before the shutdown list was told. I talk to a friend today(first time i seen him since Oct 24 06) He ask me why in the hell did i buy another ford, told him i still had A plan

so it was cheaper but if i didnt have would have got a toyota hands down. He laugh and said Fuck ford man never going to buy another car or truck from them. I have to agree with you the places that Ford has closed up shop will never get that business back again. So good luck on trying to get folks in showrooms to buy ford products. I live near the dealship that i brought my truck at and trust me when i say they arent hardly doing anything. On a good note, I love my new Expedition. Anyway just my 2 cent added

 

 

define "best".

 

obviously it wasn't. sure it may have high quality... but the numbers were not there.

[hendew_15]

define "best".

 

obviously it wasn't. sure it may have high quality... but the numbers were not there.

AAP did it faster and better with less people than anyone else.Have you ever won the Harbour report?We did dicksnot,now go play with your dolls.

[manufmanager]

AAP did it faster and better with less people than anyone else.Have you ever won the Harbour report?We did dicksnot,now go play with your dolls.

 

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.

[J-150]

AAP did it faster and better with less people than anyone else.Have you ever won the Harbour report?We did dicksnot,now go play with your dolls.

 

 

 

not denying that for a second.

 

what I said was that the numbers were not there. Yes you had high quality and awards... but there is more to keeping a plant open than that. Those were the numbers that must have not been jiving.

[unionj]

One thing I will say from a mental standpoint it is like coming to a funeral every day!

[el norte]

AAP did it faster and better with less people than anyone else.Have you ever won the Harbour report?We did dicksnot,now go play with your dolls.

one of my good fiends was a supervisor at nap, and tells me it was a joke and is glad to be at dtp. i did some time at norfolk in the navy, and considered transfering to nap in 02, glad i didnt! i couldnt imagine being as miserable as some of the people that post here.

[fired at NAP]

I have sympathy for the hard-working employees at NAP and the tough decisions that they face. I have faced the same decisions in the past, having been through a Ford plant closure myself.

 

That said, when my plant closed, there was no golden handshake, no buyout, no early retirement, no paid education program.

 

Just a nice little "See ya, don't call us, we'll call you" salute. I put myself through trade school while on unemployment. And then when Ford did call nearly 2 years later to offer a job at a plant 300 miles away, there was no $25G moving allowance; just coverage for expenses that you could prove that you paid out of pocket, and THAT took 6 months to get.

 

So when you wonder why there's anyone that would bash anyone from NAP, it's because of those few who ( I'm certain are a minority ) that all they do is come on here with the "Cut the check" or "Ford is screwing me" or "That plant doesn't deserve product X like we do" or whatever bullshit whining. If you ask me, in some cases the bashing was brought on by themselves.

 

The bottom line is, the company had to make the cut somewhere. It was a numbers game. The cut was made, not anything personal. Not like some guy in Detroit decided, "Well Fuck NAP, I hate those guys.". When they closed the Windsor plant in 1990, we made 5.0L, that was the overflow from Cleveland. We had just made Q1 (which Cleveland didn't have). So why close the higher quality plant? Well, again, it was a numbers game, and we lost. Tough titties.

 

When I was laid off I didn't lament and whine about how I was getting screwed and how I would somehow pay Ford back. Holy crap, $100G buyout? Please point me in the direction of any other (non-Big 3) company in history that's done that. Sheesh. Wish I got that back then, the world would have been my oyster.

 

OAC Sparky,

 

I am not going to whine or cry or whatever "we" NAPer's "do". I understand why and how with no reasons to "pay Ford back". I still go to work everyday with the same pride I did eleven years ago the day I started.

 

I guess really what I am trying to say is, cut those in the minority who do complain some slack. Not a lot, just a little. We as a whole company are going through this together. This is just a way of getting those feelings, whatever they are, a chance to breathe and find how others around the company are dealing with closures.

 

Do I think we deserve to remain open? Sure, so does Atlanta. But I don't make those decisions.

All we can do is continue to build the best vehicle in the world until we close in June. No remorse and no regrets.

[fired at NAP]

OAC_Sparky,

Look at it this way, some call it bitching, or like you said "bullshit whining." If those people really just wanted a big buyout check or one of the other options they wouldn't be complaining because that's what they are getting. But if they thought they were the best at the job they do and thought that earned their plant the right to remain open then they might react as they have.

 

It's obvious these people didn't want a damn buyout check they wanted to keep doing their job. Sure bitching will not change anything but it sure let's off steam.

 

People who care and take pride in their work will not go quietly when told their plant is closing only because it's cheaper to build somewhere else.

 

If you ask me that's the kind of people that I want building my vehicle.

 

How about this, the F-150 has been Ford's best selling, most important vehicle for decades. The P221 launched at NAP during the company's 100 centennial celebration.

The launch was excellent, new all-time sales records were set and F-150 earned J.D.Powers top quality award.

Let's see if the next F-150 can match those three benchmarks.

Like you said nothing personal, just by the numbers. And no excuses accepted.

 

Thank you brother, that means a lot.

[OAC_Sparky]

I am not going to whine or cry or whatever "we" NAPer's "do". I understand why and how with no reasons to "pay Ford back". I still go to work everyday with the same pride I did eleven years ago the day I started.

And that's commendable. At least when the time comes you can hold your head high knowing that you did your job. If the company as a whole is to survive, we need people to do that; no matter what plant they're at.

 

I guess really what I am trying to say is, cut those in the minority who do complain some slack. Not a lot, just a little. We as a whole company are going through this together. This is just a way of getting those feelings, whatever they are, a chance to breathe and find how others around the company are dealing with closures.

As I said in my post,

I'm certain (they) are a minority.

Slack? Sure, no problem. As I also said, I've been there, I can sympathize. But where I draw the line when those people start slagging other plants, especially mine. Not once did I ever disparage NAP itself or their products, nor Atlanta, nor Edision; even though I know that all plants have at least some problem.

 

Do I think we deserve to remain open? Sure, so does Atlanta. But I don't make those decisions.

In a perfect world, we all would remain working.

 

All we can do is continue to build the best vehicle in the world until we close in June. No remorse and no regrets.

Best of luck.

Edited April 18, 2007 by OAC_Sparky

[FANTASTICFORD]

one of my good fiends was a supervisor at nap, and tells me it was a joke and is glad to be at dtp. i did some time at norfolk in the navy, and considered transfering to nap in 02, glad i didnt! i couldnt imagine being as miserable as some of the people that post here.

I thought NAP and our union was a joke, but now I know that they were hard working men and women who just wanted to build quality F150 trucks. All the titles NAP received were earned, I don't think a plant that was the lead plant, best quality and put out the numbers could have done all those things, if they were a joke and I guess if you are at the top of your game that is a lot to laugh about. I wish all the people that post on this forum the best in your new careers because eventhough I transferred, I still know how you feel and I wouldn't call it miserable.

[unionj]

It's still like attending a funeral everyday!

[fordktpworker]

It's still like attending a funeral everyday!

yet, you still click and read! :shrug:

[chelsea]

I have sympathy for the hard-working employees at NAP and the tough decisions that they face. I have faced the same decisions in the past, having been through a Ford plant closure myself.

 

That said, when my plant closed, there was no golden handshake, no buyout, no early retirement, no paid education program.

 

Just a nice little "See ya, don't call us, we'll call you" salute. I put myself through trade school while on unemployment. And then when Ford did call nearly 2 years later to offer a job at a plant 300 miles away, there was no $25G moving allowance; just coverage for expenses that you could prove that you paid out of pocket, and THAT took 6 months to get.

 

So when you wonder why there's anyone that would bash anyone from NAP, it's because of those few who ( I'm certain are a minority ) that all they do is come on here with the "Cut the check" or "Ford is screwing me" or "That plant doesn't deserve product X like we do" or whatever bullshit whining. If you ask me, in some cases the bashing was brought on by themselves.

 

The bottom line is, the company had to make the cut somewhere. It was a numbers game. The cut was made, not anything personal. Not like some guy in Detroit decided, "Well Fuck NAP, I hate those guys.". When they closed the Windsor plant in 1990, we made 5.0L, that was the overflow from Cleveland. We had just made Q1 (which Cleveland didn't have). So why close the higher quality plant? Well, again, it was a numbers game, and we lost. Tough titties.

 

When I was laid off I didn't lament and whine about how I was getting screwed and how I would somehow pay Ford back. Holy crap, $100G buyout? Please point me in the direction of any other (non-Big 3) company in history that's done that. Sheesh. Wish I got that back then, the world would have been my oyster.

 

The way I see it, the company has closed the plants that have strong locals. They also had an eight million+ environmental clean up of the elizabeth river that the libs in the state of VA would not back off of. There are a few other things like the local would not acept a 4 day work schedule and a COA aggrement etc... The local and the state shot themselves in the foot and paid for it with everyones jobs.

[DSenstad]

I guess with TCAP being the most efficent truck plant including the imports and having a couple of J.D. Power awards floating around along with being able to produce our own power making us a green plant that Ford likes to talk so much about I think we would have the right to questions as too why we were added to the chopping block.

 

It was politics people... nothing more, just politics as usual.

 

The truth is Norfolk, Alanta, and Twin Cities produced some of the best vehicles without the aid of superior engineering. The products being turned out today are engineered correctly for the most part right out of the gate, imagine what we could have done with vehicles that we didn't/don't have to mask the built-in mistakes.

[F250]

The way I see it, the company has closed the plants that have strong locals. They also had an eight million+ environmental clean up of the elizabeth river that the libs in the state of VA would not back off of. There are a few other things like the local would not acept a 4 day work schedule and a COA aggrement etc... The local and the state shot themselves in the foot and paid for it with everyones jobs.

 

The Ford plant is one of the cleanest heavy industry operations on the Elizabeth River, I was not aware of an $8-million demand from Ford for the river or any enviromental problem.

 

The Elizabeth River's problems are from all of the shipyards which sand blast and paint entire vessels in the open with almost no controls except for some tarps and booms to try and contain the bulk of contamination. The three sites on the Elizabeth River that have been placed on the National Priorities List are the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, the St. Juliens Creek Annex (US Navy) and the old Atlantic Wood Industries site, all of which are located miles away down the southern branch of the river. NAP sits at the farthest navigable part of the eastern branch.

[BenFranklin]

There are a few other things like the local would not acept a 4 day work schedule and a COA aggrement etc... The local and the state shot themselves in the foot and paid for it with everyones jobs.

 

 

If the local union refused 4 day work weeks and a COA then it is the local union that caused Norfolk to be shut down.

 

Remember the Governor and Norfolk Mayor made a special trip to Detroit to save this plant, they were willing to negotiate the UAW was not.

[uRfk9AcDfo9Wui]

If the local union refused 4 day work weeks and a COA then it is the local union that caused Norfolk to be shut down.

 

Remember the Governor and Norfolk Mayor made a special trip to Detroit to save this plant, they were willing to negotiate the UAW was not.

 

 

I believe it was a combination of the local and regional and/or international that told our local DO NOT agree to a 4 day work week. They said it would start a pissing matching between the plants and they didn't want that. So that was a BIG strike against NAP!!! And I believe over 75% of the plant union members voted for a 4 day work week. But our GRAND fucking local would not stand up for the rank & file at NAP and instead listened to the bigger boys and put another nail in NAP's coffin!!! And you people thought the members were the UAW??? WAKE UP assholes!!! As far as the COA's, NAP was already on the closure list when they started talking about COA's so that was never a topic, not that they really needed one the company pretty much run wild and did what the wanted, when the wanted and the local let them. The only time they would stand up to the company was when a family member of the local or a total worthless peice of trash need help. You people keep on thinking the union is some fucking grand organization that serves your best interest and is looking out for you!!! If you’re that fucking stupid, I got some prime ocean front real estate in South Dakota I want to sell you!

Edited April 23, 2007 by uRfk9AcDfo9Wui