Allenparkpete gave me the idea for this BLOG and provided the source material too. He and I have exchanged emails and he started feeding me story ideas. Well I am going to do this one for him but I warned him: he better start writing too. I would be happy to accept proposed BLOGs from any of my readers who have something to say.
I am sure that it would be a great idea to get a different perspective from mine here and on subjects that I have not written about because of my lack of knowledge. So keep those ideas coming.
I did not know that the former Dodgers' baseball manager was now running Chrysler. I know, I am kidding but the two men have one thing in common...they know how to get improvements quickly and to get into better shape!
According to the Star, "the layoff list at DaimlerChrysler Canada's Windsor Assembly Plant has reached 753 people...there has been no indication Chrysler's layoff list would shrink in the near future...The Chrysler layoffs...are considered "indefinite."
Should a Chrysler worker be comforted when Ken Lewenza tells his members that the situation is just not as bad as they might think right now.
Well Allenparkpete says: This article appeared in the Detroit News...of significance is that this is what will happen to Windsor Assembly and if you read between the lines, the system is set up to take 2 or 3 cars...more likely 3 which means besides the new mini-van and the Pacifica replacement (CT), possibly...possibly..although I do not know this...a 3rd vehicle could come in. I have some friends on this launch right now at Belvidere (100 miles from Chicago) and for the most part they are not complaining so things must be going well...
DCX plant shows way of future
Changes at Ill. factory offer glimpse into how Chrysler plans to catch up with Asian rivals.
Josee Valcourt / The Detroit News
I am sure that it would be a great idea to get a different perspective from mine here and on subjects that I have not written about because of my lack of knowledge. So keep those ideas coming.
I did not know that the former Dodgers' baseball manager was now running Chrysler. I know, I am kidding but the two men have one thing in common...they know how to get improvements quickly and to get into better shape!
According to the Star, "the layoff list at DaimlerChrysler Canada's Windsor Assembly Plant has reached 753 people...there has been no indication Chrysler's layoff list would shrink in the near future...The Chrysler layoffs...are considered "indefinite."
Should a Chrysler worker be comforted when Ken Lewenza tells his members that the situation is just not as bad as they might think right now.
Well Allenparkpete says: This article appeared in the Detroit News...of significance is that this is what will happen to Windsor Assembly and if you read between the lines, the system is set up to take 2 or 3 cars...more likely 3 which means besides the new mini-van and the Pacifica replacement (CT), possibly...possibly..although I do not know this...a 3rd vehicle could come in. I have some friends on this launch right now at Belvidere (100 miles from Chicago) and for the most part they are not complaining so things must be going well...
DCX plant shows way of future
Changes at Ill. factory offer glimpse into how Chrysler plans to catch up with Asian rivals.
Josee Valcourt / The Detroit News
BELVIDERE, Ill. -- Giant presses at Chrysler's assembly plant here produced just one steel door panel at a time when the defunct Dodge Neon was built. And changing robotic welding guns to assemble a different part took weeks.
Today, four door panels can be built at once and tooling changes take just hours.
After a $419 million makeover, Chrysler's Belvidere factory is embarking on a new era of flexibility, efficiency and team-oriented work practices. Built 40 years ago in this rust-belt town, the factory provides a glimpse into Chrysler's strategy to catch up to Toyota Motor Corp. and others in manufacturing efficiency by 2007.
The plant's 1,650 workers are now grouped in teams of six -- rotating between jobs and troubleshooting problems that arise while building the new Dodge Caliber five-door hatchback. In the past, rigid job classifications restricted workers to specific duties.
Newly installed robots -- 780 to be exact -- can automatically make tool changes within 45 seconds, allowing Chrysler to quickly shift production in response to market demands. In addition to the Caliber, the plant will assemble the new Jeep Compass compact SUV and is expected to begin building the new Jeep Patriot later this year.
The new equipment and work rules reflect Chrysler's effort to install more flexible manufacturing processes, reduce production time and increase the number of vehicles built at one site, while also reshaping the way workers interact with the vehicles and with one another.
"It's a cultural change. They're used to doing a certain job every day, all day," said Alan Schwandt, a Belvidere worker who's a team leader. He's worked at the plant for seven years.
"With the change now, they're rotating on six jobs on a daily basis. It makes it easier on the body. It utilizes everyone's potential. You're not limited to one particular job all day and that's where the quality comes in."
Plant manager Kurt Kavajecz said the new approach allows him to work closely with teams to constantly improve their performance.
"My focus is more on what I can do from a leadership standpoint to support team members building a car," Kavajecz said. "Part of the way my job has changed is I spend an hour a day on the floor doing nothing but reviewing team boards with teams leaders and team members."
During these meetings, Kavajecz and workers work through problems and discuss solutions for maintenance, quality, product or material issues that can crop up.
Chrysler invested $419 million in new equipment at the Belvidere plant, made the body shop completely robotic, and is working with the United Auto Workers to whittle a roster of job classifications down to further improve flexibility. Kavajecz said a new labor agreement is expected to be completed this year.
UAW Vice President Nate Gooden, who oversees the union's Chrysler department, said he doesn't foresee any problems ironing out the agreement on work rules. The union agreed last year to implement the team concept at the factory.
While the some union members have resisted efforts to reduce job classifications, Gooden said workers support actions that would improve plant productivity and take "waste out of the system."
"They're willing to give it a chance because they want to see this plant survive," Gooden said. "They know in order for this plant to survive, there are certain things that they have to do and they have to make changes. They're willing to make the changes."
He said workers that aren't willing to change with the times could be left behind.
"I always tell them all the time that the train is leaving," Gooden said. "If you want to be at the caboose and get left at the station, then you'll be left at the station."
The Belvidere plant will add 1,000 workers, including 400 laid-off workers, in March when a second production shift is added. A third production shift may be added later this year, said Frank Ewasyshyn, Chrysler's vice president of manufacturing.
Chrysler next plans to install similar flexible robotic body shops at its Sterling Heights assembly plant, which makes the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Stratus; and the St. Louis South assembly plant in Fenton, Mo., which builds the Chrysler and Dodge minivans
Today, four door panels can be built at once and tooling changes take just hours.
After a $419 million makeover, Chrysler's Belvidere factory is embarking on a new era of flexibility, efficiency and team-oriented work practices. Built 40 years ago in this rust-belt town, the factory provides a glimpse into Chrysler's strategy to catch up to Toyota Motor Corp. and others in manufacturing efficiency by 2007.
The plant's 1,650 workers are now grouped in teams of six -- rotating between jobs and troubleshooting problems that arise while building the new Dodge Caliber five-door hatchback. In the past, rigid job classifications restricted workers to specific duties.
Newly installed robots -- 780 to be exact -- can automatically make tool changes within 45 seconds, allowing Chrysler to quickly shift production in response to market demands. In addition to the Caliber, the plant will assemble the new Jeep Compass compact SUV and is expected to begin building the new Jeep Patriot later this year.
The new equipment and work rules reflect Chrysler's effort to install more flexible manufacturing processes, reduce production time and increase the number of vehicles built at one site, while also reshaping the way workers interact with the vehicles and with one another.
"It's a cultural change. They're used to doing a certain job every day, all day," said Alan Schwandt, a Belvidere worker who's a team leader. He's worked at the plant for seven years.
"With the change now, they're rotating on six jobs on a daily basis. It makes it easier on the body. It utilizes everyone's potential. You're not limited to one particular job all day and that's where the quality comes in."
Plant manager Kurt Kavajecz said the new approach allows him to work closely with teams to constantly improve their performance.
"My focus is more on what I can do from a leadership standpoint to support team members building a car," Kavajecz said. "Part of the way my job has changed is I spend an hour a day on the floor doing nothing but reviewing team boards with teams leaders and team members."
During these meetings, Kavajecz and workers work through problems and discuss solutions for maintenance, quality, product or material issues that can crop up.
Chrysler invested $419 million in new equipment at the Belvidere plant, made the body shop completely robotic, and is working with the United Auto Workers to whittle a roster of job classifications down to further improve flexibility. Kavajecz said a new labor agreement is expected to be completed this year.
UAW Vice President Nate Gooden, who oversees the union's Chrysler department, said he doesn't foresee any problems ironing out the agreement on work rules. The union agreed last year to implement the team concept at the factory.
While the some union members have resisted efforts to reduce job classifications, Gooden said workers support actions that would improve plant productivity and take "waste out of the system."
"They're willing to give it a chance because they want to see this plant survive," Gooden said. "They know in order for this plant to survive, there are certain things that they have to do and they have to make changes. They're willing to make the changes."
He said workers that aren't willing to change with the times could be left behind.
"I always tell them all the time that the train is leaving," Gooden said. "If you want to be at the caboose and get left at the station, then you'll be left at the station."
The Belvidere plant will add 1,000 workers, including 400 laid-off workers, in March when a second production shift is added. A third production shift may be added later this year, said Frank Ewasyshyn, Chrysler's vice president of manufacturing.
Chrysler next plans to install similar flexible robotic body shops at its Sterling Heights assembly plant, which makes the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Stratus; and the St. Louis South assembly plant in Fenton, Mo., which builds the Chrysler and Dodge minivans
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