Ford Builds 1 Million-Square-Meter Plant in China

Ford has invested 3.34 billion RMB ($490 million) to build a 1 million square meter factory in Chonqing, China, that will build the Ford Focus. It will be the third factory that Ford has in China. 

The Chongqing factory will boost Ford's capacity in China to 600,000 vehicles per year. The new plant is the largest Ford factory outside of Michigan. It combines stamping, body assembly, paint, trim and final assembly in one location. 

The new Chongqing factory was designed by Ford to have not only a high production capacity but also be friendly to the environment. The air in the paint booth is recirculated, and heat energy is recovered from the drying ovens. Ford claims that the energy saving technologies at the factory save 58 million kWh per year.

It employs 3,026 hourly workers and 129 salary workers in a two shifts. For now it will just produce the Focus, but the plant can be configured to produce more vehicles. 

"Following the vision of Henry Ford to produce vehicles where they are sold, the opportunities created by this expansion help create the ability for our production team to buy the vehicles they build. This expansion will benefit Chongqing and western China for years to come," said Joe Hinrichs, president of Ford Asia Pacific and Africa.