PSA Peugeot-Citroen group supplier affiliate Faurecia has begun operations at an interiors plant in Saline, Michigan, after its purchase of the Automotive Components Holdings (ACH) interior trim components business.
The plant supplies cockpits, instrument panels, door panels and centre consoles for 12 vehicle lines assembled at eight Ford plants throughout North America.
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Faurecia also said it would establishing an interior systems customer centre in Southfield, also in Michigan, which would house about 200 employees, including 50 new workers, this year.
The supplier plans an official dedication of the Saline business with a flag-raising ceremony scheduled for 17 July for employees and guests.
The new customer centre will be dedicated to engineering, product development, programme management, sales and marketing in support of Ford and Southfield based staff team will include Ford customer business unit personnel from Faurecia Interior Systems Auburn Hills tech centre and staff formerly with ACH, the Ford holding affiliate formed to spin off non-core component plants once part of a pre-reorganisation Visteon.
The new jobs will be filled by candidates from within southeast Michigan.
“The Southfield customer centre will allow us to bring the former ACH personnel associated with Saline’s operations together with those from Faurecia to work as a closely knit team in support of this transformation and future growth,” said Faurecia Interior Systems North America president Jean-Michel Renaudie.
“We are pleased to be able to retain the skills and knowledge of the ACH personnel who are joining [us], to bring more jobs to the region and to reassert [our] commitment to southeast Michigan.”
Saline will become a technology plant focused on core technologies such as injection moulding, skin manufacturing and foaming operations for interior systems. It currently supplies Ford F-150, Expedition, Explorer, Focus, Mustang, Taurus, Lincoln Navigator and MKS assembly lines.
Cockpit interiors for the Ford Mustang and Expedition and Lincoln Navigator will be the first two programmes manufactured and assembled at the new joint venture between Faurecia and Rush Group, called Detroit Manufacturing Systems (DMS), located in Detroit’s Gateway industrial centre. Operations will begin transferring from Saline to DMS this summer.
Reconfiguration and upgrading of the Saline plant will be completed over the next few years. The operation will feature a smooth progression of components from fabrication to assembly to sequencing and serve as a core for potential future growth.
Faurecia expects to spend at Saline on capital improvements, manufacturing, materials and employee programmes to improve efficiency. The company will implement new policies designed to focus on employee involvement; to train employees in lean manufacturing; and to improve production quality through the ‘Faurecia Excellence System’ (FES), a proven approach promoting continuous progress that capitalises on the best practices from inside and outside the company.
