| |
Ford Edge's Delivery, Derailed
By Joe Ratzkin
Ford Motor Co. will delay the scheduled delivery of the new Edge. According to Ford officials, it intends to iron out manufacturing problem in its Oakville plant, where said model together with the Lincoln MKX crossover is assembled.
It can be recollected that Ford announced the delivery of Edge to dealerships this month. Since the derailment occurred, it is now expected to be delivered in the month of December this year. "Several thousand of the vehicles have been built and all meet Ford's quality standards, but Ford wants to make sure all of its manufacturing processes are working correctly before delivering the vehicles," said Joseph R. Hinrichs, vice president of North American manufacturing.
Hinrichs added, "The product's ready. We want to make sure that our process is equally ready to deliver, on a consistent basis, the quality and the timeliness of the deliveries that our dealers and our customers expect."
According to Hinrichs, Ford has to do some critical check points on the assembly line work stations to ensure the quality of Ford car parts used in Edge. "We're not yet to the level where the consistency is where we want it to be to launch the vehicles," he added.
It was also divulged that the automaker experienced inventory shortages from auto parts supplying companies. Ford's decision in delaying delivery was supported by auto analysts. "The delay is the correct decision for Ford because quality is so important in today's competitive auto market," said Kevin Reale, research director for Boston-based AMR Research.
"For them to be able to detect this is good. If there's quality issues associated with either their current assembly process or parts, it's better for them to have the detection in the manufacturing process than have the detection occur out in the field," Reale further noted.
Catherine Madden, auto industry analyst at the consulting company Global Insight Inc. said, "Ford clearly has a quality problem at the plant; fixing it has to be balanced against getting the product to dealers when every sales day counts. I think it is prudent to meet those quality standards. Ford is under such a microscope now."
About the Author
Joe Ratzkin is an avid fan of anything automotive. This 34-year old bachelor wanted to be a mechanic when he was a kid but changed his mind and became a freelance writer and researcher instead. He is currently based in Chicago, Illinois.
Article Source: http://www.simplysearch4it.com/article/43323.html
| If you wish to add the above article to your website or newsletters then please include the "Article Source: http://www.simplysearch4it.com/article/43323.html" as shown above and make it hyperlinked. |
| Some other articles by Joe Ratzkin | When Stars And Cars Shine
Do you love cars? Do you love stars? Then perhaps the upcoming 2007 North American International Auto Show which will be held in Detroit would be the best time to ...
Ford Escape For 2008
A couple of weeks before the Los Angeles Auto Show, some car fanatics have been able to spot the newly revamped Ford Escape which was made ready for the 2008 model year. Although ...
Ford, Slashing Explorer's Production
Ford Motor Co. is one of the automakers that has been greatly affected by the shift in preference of auto enthusiasts. If at all the automaker wants to recover from its losses and ...
Auto & Technology Exhibition Coming Next Spring
Opening this April 22nd up until the 28th next year, 2007, an exhibition of automobile and manufacturing technology would be held. This is according ...
10 Worst Autos Of The Year
Earlier, The Truth About Cars (TTAC) conducted a survey having its faithful and candid readers as respondents. The survey is all about ...
Who Owns Best Of What's New Award?
Wild guess. Who (or what) is the recipient of the Best of What's New award for Popular Science Magazine's automotive category?
Are you thinking Ford? Are you thinking Jaguar? Are you thinking General Motors? Or ...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
