• $500 million Changan Ford Engine Plant (CAFEP) officially opens in Chongqing; raises Changan Ford engine production capacity by 400,000 units per year
• CAFEP will initially produce Ford’s 1.0-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost and 1.5-liter four-cylinder engines; EcoBoost engines to be available in 20 vehicles in Asia Pacific by mid-decade, a fivefold increase from 2012
• Advanced manufacturing processes like Minimal Quantity Lubrication reduce resource requirements and waste; create safer, healthier working environment
Ford took the latest step in its historic industrial expansion in Asia Pacific today with the official opening of a US$500 million new engine plant in Chongqing at its joint venture in China Changan Ford Automobile (CAF).
With an initial capacity of 400,000 units, the new Changan Ford Engine Plant (CAFEP) more than doubles Changan Ford’s engine production capacity of 350,000 units, helping to meet rapidly growing demand for its vehicles in China. As one of Ford’s largest and most advanced engine plants in the world, it employs technologies to minimize environmental impact by reducing water, chemical and electricity usage, and significantly cutting carbon dioxide emissions.
“This new engine plant is world class,” said said Alan Mulally, president and chief executive officer of Ford. “The engines produced here and the process by which they are manufactured represent the latest in sustainable and green manufacturing processes. The 1.5 and 1.0 liter engines produced will help power Ford’s continued growth here in the world’s largest automotive market.”
Ford will initially manufacture two engines at CAFEP: a 1.5-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder, and Ford’s award-winning 1.0-liter three-cylider EcoBoost engine, recently named International Engine of the Year for the second year running. Producing engines for vehicles including the the Ford EcoSport and Fiesta, CAFEP will help to support Ford’s plan to introduce 15 new vehicles in China by 2015.
Regional expansion
A key part of Ford’s largest expansion in more than half-a-century, CAFEP is the second of seven new plants opening across the Asia Pacific region this decade, and the second of five new plants in China.
“This kind of expansion is nearly unprecedented, and it really reflects the level of commitment we have to this region,” said Mulally. “CAFEP and the other plants we’re building in Asia Pacific represent long-term investments over decades.”
Advanced, green manufacturing
To help maximize this positive impact, CAFEP makes use of advanced manufacturing processes that reduce waste and resource requirements. Thanks to Ford’s Minimal Quantity Lubrication process, the plant eliminates the need for coolant systems across most of the engine production line, reducing energy use and creating a safer and healthier work environment by reducing airborne mist.
As well as being greener, safer and healthier, CAFEP also incorporates Ford’s single manufacturing operating system to boost efficiency and lower overall production costs.
Located in Lijia, in Chongqing’s New Northern Zone, the plant site covers an area of more than 400,000 square meters, of which nearly 165,000 square meters is taken up by the engine plant itself.
Editor’s note: All sales figures quoted are based on wholesale numbers.
