Opinion – Eduardo Sodré: After 500 days of closed factories, Ford seeks to remake its image and hires engineers

The message from Ford’s press office arrived in email boxes shortly after 4 pm on January 11, 2021. It was the announcement of the closing of factories in the country, which completes 500 days this Wednesday (25).

“Ford advances in the restructuring of South America, ends manufacturing operations in Brazil and serves customers with a new line of products,” read the title of the statement.

Since then, the automaker has spent a few million to demobilize its production lines, invested in imports and consolidated itself as a global center for the development of new products, but it knows that it will not be easy to rebuild its local image.

“Of course, all this is a painful process, which involves people, but today we have a business model in place that is in line with our vision of the market going forward”, says Rogelio Golfarb, vice president of Ford South America. .

After the period of strong image erosion due to the closing of factories and consolidation of labor agreements, the North American company continues its restructuring process in Brazil.

The most recent step was the negotiation of the Taubaté factory (São Paulo countryside). The new owner will be the construction company São José Desenvolvimento Imobiliário, which had already acquired the plant in São Bernardo do Campo (Greater São Paulo). The process must be completed within 90 days, after approval by CADE (Administrative Council for Economic Defense).

And indeed, there is a new product line. There have been eight releases since January 2021, with two versions of the Ranger pickup, which is produced in Argentina. The most recent option is the FX4, which costs R$ 292.9 thousand.

The most expensive model presented in this period was the sporty Mustang Mach 1, announced today for R$553,100. No vehicle for sale by Ford in Brazil currently costs less than R$ 200 thousand.

The strategy of reducing volumes and improving profitability is global. Ford stopped producing millions of compact cars around the world, but sees the numbers improve.

Revenue in South America in the first quarter was US$ 579 million (R$ 2.78 billion), up 32.8% over the same period in 2021.

Cars are displayed at renovated dealerships, but in smaller numbers. Today there are 106 stores – there were 280 in January 2021. This is a number compatible with the automaker’s current sales.

Between January and April, Ford sold 5,413 units in Brazil, according to data from Fenabrave (distributors’ association). That’s a drop of 72.6% compared to the same period in 2021, when Ka and EcoSport compacts were in stock.

The last units of the national line remain under warranty. Replacement components for these cars are stored in a huge logistics warehouse located in the city of Cajamar (SP).

Part of the machinery was passed on to suppliers. Rogelio Golfarb explains that there was also the production of a large volume of components for storage, something necessary to supply the circulating fleet. At the end of 2020, the Ka was the fifth best-selling passenger car in Brazil. “The fact that we close the factories does not eliminate the commitment to these consumers”, says the Executive.

Both the Ka and the EcoSport were produced in Camaçari (BA). The old factory remains closed and the region was heavily affected by the end of production. But Ford kept investments in Bahia, now concentrated in the engineering area.

This Tuesday (24), the company announced the hiring of 500 engineers for its research and development area, and most of them will work at the company’s facilities in Salvador. The new regional headquarters is located at Cimatec Park, which is part of the Senai complex.

In all, Ford has 1,500 engineers in Brazil. They spend most of their time dedicated to the development of global products, but they also work on adapting imported models for the Brazilian market.

At the moment, the vehicle that undergoes this process is the large F-150 pickup, which was presented at the 2022 edition of Agrishow, held a month ago in Ribeirão Preto (São Paulo countryside). The new utility arrives in Brazil in 2023 with a focus on agribusiness. The price should approach R$ 500 thousand.

The brand is also preparing the debut of the Mustang Mach E, which will mark its entry into the electric vehicle segment in Brazil. As can be seen, the tour line will continue to be elitist, which requires a new standard of care.

Rogelio Golfard says the new strategy has a greater focus on the consumer and connectivity. This path also includes the division of work vehicles, in which the Ford Transit is offered in cargo and passenger versions.

This van is produced in Uruguay, in partnership with Nordex. It is a business model that has become common: automakers establish contracts with outsourced companies to reduce operating costs and gain scale.

The vice president does not rule out that an initiative like this could be implemented in Brazil, but says that there is nothing in this direction currently.

“When we think ahead, our focus is on development. This is not the time to close any doors, nor to create expectations. But there is no plan to return to producing [no Brasil].”