Ford opens Sanand plant, Figo Aspire compact sedan to roll out first

Exactly three years after Ford India laid the foundation stone for its $1 billion integrated manufacturing facility in Sanand, Gujarat on March 22, 2012, the company has opened the state-of-the-art plant.  

Earlier today, Mark Fields, CEO, Ford Motor Co, and Anandiben Patel, chief minister of Gujarat, inaugurated the plant.

Spread across 460 acres, it will produce 240,000 cars and 270,000 engines a year. With the new plant, Ford India’s combined annual manufacturing capacity (Chennai and Sanand) stands doubled to 610,000 engines and 440,000 vehicles.  

The first car to roll out of the new plant will be the sub-4-metre Figo Aspire compact sedan, powered by a 1.2-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre DV5 turbo-diesel. The Figo Aspire, which will go on sale later this year, will also come with a 1.5-litre petrol motor mated to a six-speed twin-clutch automatic gearbox. Production of the car, which was showcased in concept form at the Auto Expo 2014, has commenced.

Striking the right note, Mark Fields commenced his speech with, “Kem cho, Gujarat?” He said, “India will be a centre of excellence for small cars for Ford. Ford in India will make high-quality cars that will be a part of India’s export plan and leverage the Make in India programme. This sedan is part of the One Ford plan and we are committed to growth in India.”

In her address, Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel said Gujarat will be the global gateway to India in the future. She added that production of automobiles and automotive parts in the state will increase to 10 percent by the year 2020, up from 3.7 percent at the moment.

The Sanand plant will give a fillip to the company’s export strategy. Fields said that Ford India is looking to triple its exports from India in five years with its Chennai and Sanand plants. The company will export variants of the Figo Aspire globally but there is no timeline for that yet. Also, no decision has been arrived yet on engine exports.

At present, Ford India's exports are on a high. in the April 2014-February 2015 period, the carmaker shipped 71,181 units, recording a 66 percent year-on-year increase. In the domestic market, the company has sold 69,885 units in the same period, down 10 percent year on year. 

Operations at the Sanand plant, which has 2,500 employees, have begun with a single shift. It will also generate jobs for over 7,500 people across the component supply chain. A good number of suppliers have set up shop near the Ford India plant for just-in-time supplies.

The new assembly plant is fully integrated to support stamping, body assembly, paint, trim and final assembly. The paint shop will utilise Ford’s environmentally friendly rotational dip technology and 3-Wet technology paint processes, substantially improving paint quality, depth and durability, as well as significantly reducing Volatile Organic Compounds, CO2 emissions and waste.