Mercedes 2006 Annual Report Download - page 104

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Manufacturing flexibility improves efficiency. Enhanced
manufacturing flexibility allows the Chrysler Group to respond
more rapidly to customer demand and market changes by
making it possible to build more vehicles at one plant with little
incremental investment. The Belvidere (Illinois) Assembly Plant
was the first Chrysler Group manufacturing facility to use a body
shop comprised entirely of robotics and free of vehicle-specific
heavy tooling when it began production of the Dodge Caliber in
January 2006. Belvidere’s 780 new robots can make the necessary
tool changes automatically, giving the plant the flexibility to build
the Dodge Caliber, the Dodge Caliber SRT4, the Jeep®Compass
or the Jeep®Patriotwith no negative impact on production. This
newprocess also makes the changeover to new-generation
models faster and more cost-efficient.
The Chrysler Group also installed more flexible manufacturing
equipment and processes in the Sterling Heights (Michigan)
Assembly Plant, where the new Chrysler Sebring sedan went into
production in September 2006. The plant will also produce
the Sebring convertible and the Dodge Avenger, and has the
capability to build all of the vehicles produced in Belvidere,
if required. Flexible manufacturing will also be installed at the
Chrysler Group’s St. Louis South (Missouri) Assembly Plant
during 2007.
Harbour Report confirms further productivity gains. The new
manufacturing flexibility strategies have helped to improve the
Chrysler Group’s efficiency, allowing the division to better utilize
its assets. Over the four years of 2002 through 2005, the
Chrysler Group posted a cumulative 24% productivity improvement
with a 6% improvement in 2005, as confirmed by the 2006
Harbour Report, a recognized industry study that measures the
productivity of North American automotive manufacturers.
Also, the Chrysler Group’s St. Louis South (Missouri) Assembly
Plant was the most productive minivan plant for all manufacturers
in the report at 20.84 hours per vehicle. Furthermore, the
Chrysler Group’s assembly operations improved by 5.7%, topping
all other manufacturers in year-over-year improvement, and its
transmission plants were the industry benchmark for the second
year in a row at 3.55 hours per transmission.
New form of cooperation with the supply industry.
Production of the all-new Jeep®Wrangler and Wrangler Unlimited
began in August 2006 at the Chrysler Group’s Toledo (Ohio)
Supplier Park. This new plant represents an innovative partnership
model between manufacturer and suppliers: supplier colocation.
With this system, for the first time in a major US operation,
significant portions of the manufacturing process are completed
on-site by supplier companies delivering completed chassis
and bodies to the Chrysler Group’s assembly operations. Suppliers
Magna Steyr, Kuka Group and Ohio Module Manufacturing Co.
own their facilities on Chrysler Group property at the Toledo site.
Finished parts are moved from the suppliers’ facilities to the
vehicle assembly lines on conveyors.
Second World Engine factory opened. One year after the
start of production by the Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance
(GEMA), the second World Engine plant opened in Dundee
(Michigan) in October 2006. The two plants in Dundee are part
of a five-factoryglobal venture producing a family of 1.8-liter,
2.0-liter and 2.4-liter engines jointly developed by DaimlerChrysler,
Hyundai Motor Company and Mitsubishi Motors. In Dundee,
more than 800,000 fuel-efficient and low-emission engines can
now be produced each year. When the five plants are running
at full capacity, they will have a total output of 1.8 million engines
per annum, allowing the project to realize substantial economies
of scale.
Continuation of product offensive. The Chrysler Group will
push forward its product offensive in 2007, launching eight new
vehicles as well as five refreshenings, many of which were
on display at the 2007 North American International Auto Show
(NAIAS) held in Detroit in January.
The Dodge Nitro is the first mid-size SUV
under the Dodge brand. Its impressive
dynamics are under-scored by powerful,
aggressive styling.