EcoSport was the One Millionth Ford Vehicle rolled out from the assembly line of the company’s global manufacturing hub in Chennai
Ford embarked on its Indian journey in 1999 by establishing a US$ 1 billion manufacturing and later in 2008 an engine assembly facility at Chennai, Poonamalle. Over the years, it has emerged as the centre of excellence for Ford’s production ambitions and acted as a cornerstone for the American company’s success in India.
The vehicle assembly line in Chennai has been responsible for the production of Ford EcoSport, Ford Fiesta and Ford Endeavour which are not only sold in India but also shipped abroad and has the muscle to assemble up to 200,000 vehicles every year.
The integrated facility that distributed over 350 acres also houses the versatile engine assembly unit where both petrol and diesel power plants are built concurrently at a capacity of 340,000 engines annually. With such resources, no wonder how Ford manufactured one million engines as well in tandem with the millionth EcoSport.
At the Chennai plant, Ford has enforced eco-friendly measures to ascertain the hazardous waste generated by the factory either to be recycled or used as a raw material in energy intensive cement industries, thus making the facility one of Ford’s five zero-landfill manufacturing units in the Asia-Pacific region.
The company has improved the production processes carried out and made them highly efficient since 2009. Therefore, energy consumption at Chennai plant has been reduced by 16% whilst water consumption by an incredible 30% amidst being reprocessed and reused entirely.
The Vehicles and engines manufactured at the Ford’s Chennai facility are exported to more than 40 markets globally including parts of South East Asia, Middle-East, Africa and countries in Europe.
Speaking on the occasion of rolling out the one millionth vehicle and engine, Balasundaram Radhakrishnan, executive director of manufacturing at Ford Chennai Vehicle Assembly & Engine Plant, said:
“Apart from being a global manufacturing hub for Ford, the facility has set new benchmarks in adopting processes that not only ensure global quality but significantly reduce our carbon footprint.”
He continued by applauding the company’s tireless employees:
“The millionth vehicle and engine production milestone stands as a testament to the passion and dedication of more than 6,000 hardworking men and women at Chennai.”
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