Flat Rock Assembly Plant Explained

Flat Rock Assembly Plant
Classification:Factory
Address:1 International Drive
Location City:Flat Rock, Michigan
Location Country:United States
Opened Date:January 1972
Destruction Date:-->
Owner:Ford Motor Company
Unit Count:-->

Flat Rock Assembly Plant, formerly known as the Michigan Casting Center (1972–1981), Mazda Motor Manufacturing USA (1987–1992) and AutoAlliance International (1992–2012), is a Ford Motor Company assembly plant located at Drive in Flat Rock, Michigan in Metro Detroit.

The plant currently comprises 2900000square feet of production space and employs 3,510 hourly workers and 140 salaried workers. The plant currently manufactures the Ford Mustang.

History

Michigan Casting Center (1972–1981)

Following three years of work and the largest single investment by Ford, the Michigan Casting Center (MCC) opened in January 1972, at the time one of the most technologically advanced casting facilities in the world.[1] Despite the sizable capital investment, frequent union labor problems and work injuries[2] and declining demand for the V8 engine blocks produced there led the facility's closure in 1981.[3] [4]

A worker, Robert Williams, was killed by an industrial robot arm on January 25, 1979. He is the first known human to be killed by a robot.[5]

Mazda Motor Manufacturing USA (1987–1992)

Mazda Motor Corporation started construction of a new building on the site of the Michigan Casting Center in 1985 and cars started production at Mazda Motor Manufacturing USA in September 1987 with the Mazda MX-6 and Ford Probe coupes.[6] In 1991 the plant had 3,600 employees, including 250 Japanese employees.[7]

AutoAlliance International (1992–2012)

Ford repurchased a 50% share in the plant on April 15, 1992, and it officially became a joint-venture and was renamed AutoAlliance International on July 1, 1992.[8] The plant began production of all models of the Mazda 626 sold in America starting in 1993. During this era, Deepak Ahuja was Chief Financial Officer of the joint venture.[9] The Ford Contour-derived Mercury Cougar was produced at the plant from 1998 to 2002. Production of North American Mazda 6 began in the 2003 model year, followed by the Ford Mustang starting in 2005.

The last Mazda 6 rolled off the line on Friday, August 24, 2012, with Mazda discontinuing production on American soil, effectively ending the 20 year joint-venture between Mazda and Ford. Mazda moved production of the Mazda 6 back to the Hofu factory in Japan and opened a new factory in Salamanca, Mexico to build the Mazda 2 and Mazda 3 subcompact and compact cars.

Flat Rock Assembly Plant (since 2012)

On September 10, 2012, Ford Motor Company re-took full management control of the plant, renaming it the Ford Flat Rock Assembly Plant, and confirming $555 million in investments designed to retool the plant for the production of the 2013 Ford Fusion midsize sedan.[10]

On July 15, 2015, Ford confirmed that the new 2017 Lincoln Continental sedan would be produced at the Flat Rock plant starting in 2016.[11]

On January 3, 2017, Ford announced that it will begin manufacturing an electric small SUV by 2020, and a high passenger volume autonomous vehicle designed for commercial ride hailing or ride sharing by 2021, both to be built at Flat Rock.[12]

Ford reduced production of the plant from two shifts to one due to lower demand for the Ford Mustang and especially the Lincoln Continental.[13] Over 1,000 workers were laid off in April 2019, including almost 500 temporary workers.[14] [15]

In March 2019, Ford announced change of its plan, production of battery-electric vehicle would not start until 2023.[16]

Products

Current

Past

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ford Opens a Giant Casting Centre. Schenectady Gazette. April 11, 2013. January 20, 1972.
  2. Web site: Detroit plant. Windsor Star. April 11, 2013. November 1, 1973.
  3. Web site: Ford Will Close Unit in Flat Rock. New York Times. April 11, 2013. September 15, 1981.
  4. Web site: Flat Rock Mayor Hopeful. The Argus-Press. April 11, 2013. December 3, 1984.
  5. News: $10 Million Awarded To Family Of U.S. Plant Worker Killed By Robot . Ottawa Citizen . August 11, 1983 . 14 . June 8, 2018.
  6. Web site: Manji. James F.. Building cars with Mazda quality. (Mazda Motor Manufacturing USA Corp.). https://web.archive.org/web/20131210021509/http://business.highbeam.com/438319/article-1G1-6458174/building-cars-mazda-quality. dead. December 10, 2013. Automation. Penton Business Media, Inc.. April 11, 2013. June 1, 1988.
  7. Cohen, Sharon. "Metamorphosis in Motown." Associated Press at The Ledger. Thursday December 26, 1991. p. 7C. Retrieved from Google News (95 of 121) on November 19, 2013.
  8. Web site: North American All-New Mazda6 Production Begins at AutoAlliance International. Mazda. April 11, 2013. July 23, 2008.
  9. Alumni profile: Deepak Ahuja. McCormick Magazine. Fall 2011. 42. November 11, 2011. September 18, 2018. Leanne. Star. September 2, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160902230003/http://www.mccormick.northwestern.edu/magazine//fall-2011/PDF/alumni-profile-deepak-ahuja.pdf. dead.
  10. Web site: Ford Opens New Era at Flat Rock Assembly Plant, Source of 1,200 New Jobs and U.S. Production Home of All-New Fusion | Ford Motor Company Newsroom . November 25, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121112164832/http://media.ford.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=37067 . November 12, 2012 .
  11. Web site: Lincoln Continental to be made at Ford Flat Rock plant. July 15, 2015.
  12. Web site: Ford Adding Electrified F-150, Mustang, Transit by 2020 in Major EV Push; Expanded U.S. Plant to Add 700 Jobs to Make EVs, Autonomous Cars | Ford Media Center .
  13. Web site: Willems . Steph . Ford Cuts Factory Shifts, Comes Out Looking Like the Golden Child . The Truth About Cars . October 5, 2019 . November 28, 2018.
  14. News: Howard . Phoebe Wall . Flat Rock shift cut leaves more than 400 Ford workers in jeopardy . October 5, 2019 . Detroit Free Press . February 5, 2019 . en.
  15. News: Laing . Keith . Ford: Flat Rock workers to be offered job transfers . October 5, 2019 . Detroit News . February 4, 2019 . en.
  16. News: Thibodeau . Ian . Ford Flat Rock plant shifts to electric vehicles, Mustang . October 5, 2019 . Detroit News . en.
  17. Web site: Henkel. Karl. April 9, 2013. Ford begins hiring 1,400 for Flat Rock plant. April 11, 2013. Detroit News.
  18. News: New Lincoln Continental will be Michigan made. USA Today. July 15, 2015. July 16, 2015.
  19. Web site: Pope. Byron. September 10, 2012. Ford Expects Fusion Output to Exceed Mazda6 at Flat Rock. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20130902094456/http://wardsauto.com/auto-makers/ford-expects-fusion-output-exceed-mazda6-flat-rock. September 2, 2013. April 11, 2013. Wards Auto.

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