Putting the Jeep Compass into production at Chrysler group’s Belvidere, Illinois assembly plant is expected to cost only 15% of the initial $US419m investment made in upgrading the plant to build the Dodge Caliber according to the automaker’s manufacturing chief Frank Ewasyshyn.
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Four months after employees began building the Caliber in January 2006, they started building the new 2007 Jeep Compass, beginning to benefit from a new manufacturing process that allows three to four vehicle models to be built on a single production line. A third production shift begins in July and building of the 2007 Jeep Patriot begins this autumn.
“We are now starting to see the results of the new flexible manufacturing process that we believe is a competitive advantage for the Chrysler Group,” said Ewasyshyn. “Building three models out of an investment that used to produce one vehicle is clearly a benefit for us.”
At the core of the new manufacturing process is a body shop comprised of robotics instead of the dedicated tooling that was previously used. Only the robots’ end affecters, or “hands,” need to change in order to build different models. That tool change is done automatically, within the time it takes to cycle from one vehicle to the next. In addition, the Belvidere plant is flexible enough to vary the production mix between three products anywhere from 0 to 100% of each model.
“Just as the Compass will only cost a small portion of the amount invested for Caliber, the benefit will be the same when the Jeep Patriot begins to roll off the line later this year,” added Ewasyshyn. “And years from now, a model refresh to any of these three products also will cost a small percentage of the original investment.”
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