Breana Noble | (TNS) The Detroit News
Artificial intelligence-powered photographic inspections, 3D-printed tools and augmented-reality training headsets are part of Ford Motor Co.’s strategy to improve vehicle quality, something that has continued to plague its financial results.
The Dearborn automaker in the second quarter was slammed with a more than 5% decline year-over-year in net income after warranty costs on pre-2021 vehicles unexpectedly ballooned. The hit comes following years of negative financial effects from poor quality results on its vehicles — a key area the company has been seeking to address with new leadership, revamped manufacturing systems and advanced technology.
Slower vehicle launch and ramp-up processes are costing the company — the new procedures on the launch of the Super Duty last year cost Ford about $1 billion. But Ford executives say it’ll be worth it to yield better results and that with each launch under its new industrial system, the process becomes smoother and less costly. The brand jumped 14 spots on J.D. Power’s 2024 U.S. Initial Quality Study to No. 9 from No. 23.
“To see a full market brand make a big shift like that is significant,” said Frank Hanley, J.D. Power’s senior director of auto benchmarking, though he noted Hyundai also jumped 14 spaces to No. 3 from No. 17. “The biggest thing is the organization’s commitment to quality. When they commit to changes they are going to make, they have to have this whole organization — design, product planning, the manufacturing facilities — everybody has to be in to improve.”
More in-depth quality checks, improving the flow of communication to address issues more quickly and reforming its purchasing approach are part of that effort at Ford.
Hanley points to physical indications of the company’s commitment to quality and its determination to instill the culture needed to succeed. The tools Ford is implementing include those that the automaker says better train and upskill workers, provide employees the resources to do their jobs more efficiently, and identify issues before a vehicle or part moves to its next station.
AI cameras
One example is the implementation of Mobile Artificial Intelligence Vision System, or MAIVS. Using cameras found in smartphones and available artificial intelligence technology, Ford engineers implemented the system to talk to Ford software and capture images of, for example, a parts kit. The technology checks the photos against a library of images to determine whether the assembly is correct. If it’s not, the part kit halts at the station until it’s fixed.
The Mobile Artificial Intelligence Vision System, (MAIVS) used for photographing the motor housing after completion of assembly at Ford’s Van Dyke Electric Powertrain Center on Aug. 5, 2024, in Sterling Heights, Michigan. (Clarence Tabb Jr./The Detroit News/TNS)
About 20 plants globally have more than 300 stations installed with MAIVS, and it conducted more than 60 million inspections last year. Van Dyke Electric Powertrain Center in Sterling Heights was the first powertrain plant to incorporate the technology in its operations. The plant, which churns out transmissions and e-motors for vehicles like the Escape, Maverick and Transit …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
