The Ford Production System
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Case Details:
Case Code : OPER040
Case Length : 15 Pages
Period : 1991 - 2004
Organization : Ford Motor Company
Pub Date : 2004
Teaching Note :Not Available
Countries : USA
Industry : Automobile
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Please note:
This case study was compiled from published sources, and is intended to be used as a basis for class discussion. It is not intended to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a management situation. Nor is it a primary information source.
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"The crux of the change is the way people work and the way
machinery is organized. Lean manufacturing is all about people and the way they
use technology to eliminate waste."1
- Anne Stevens, Vice-president, North America Vehicle
Operations, Ford Motor Company.
"With increasing market segmentation, Ford's new flexible
assembly system means the company can react more quickly to shifting customer
demand. The company will be able to produce a wider variety of vehicles, change
the mix of products and options, and change volumes - all with minimal
investment and changeover loss."2
- Al Ver, Vice-president, Ford Advanced and Manufacturing
Engineering.
Introduction
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In 2002, 17 manufacturing plants across the world received the Shingo Price for
Excellence in Manufacturing3, termed by
BusinessWeek as the 'Nobel Prize of Manufacturing.' Three plants of Ford Motor
Company (Ford) found a place in the list. The plants included Ford Assembly
Plant, Chicago III; Ford Engine Plant, Romeo, Michigan and Ford Engine Plant,
Chihuahua, Mexico (Refer Exhibit I).
The award was given in recognition of Ford's efforts to streamline its
manufacturing operations. By using lean manufacturing principles, Ford had
significantly improved the quality of automobiles it produced.
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Jim Padilla, Ford's group Vice-president of Global Manufacturing said, "Ford is
aggressively implementing lean manufacturing principles through the Ford
Production System at all of its manufacturing operations. This is key to our
success in an increasing competitive vehicle market."4
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Ever since
it began operations in 1903, Ford has been recognized as a manufacturing
process innovator in the automobile industry. For instance, in 1907,
Ford introduced the mass production system, which produced cars of
uniform quality and features in bulk, and sold them at an affordable
price to customers.
In 1913, Ford introduced assembly line manufacturing, a totally new
approach in automobile making (Refer Exhibit II). Ford also became the
first automobile maker to adopt 3D visualization tools like CAD, CAM in
its manufacturing operations in the 1970s. In the mid-1990s, Ford
revamped its operations, to induce greater flexibility and enhance the
efficiency of its manufacturing processes. |
The Ford Production System
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