In an announcement made this week, the Ford Motor Company pledged investments topping $1.45 billion into two of its southeast Michigan manufacturing facilities and promised to add as many as 3,000 new jobs focused on expanding its modern vehicle push.
The bulk of the jobs will be direct jobs added to Ford’s Wayne, Michigan manufacturing facility over the next three years. That facility will benefit from $750 million earmarked for new equipment and a new modification center to prepare for the production of the new Ford Bronco and Ranger. It will also gain 2,700 new employees to address Ford’s first autonomous vehicles, beginning in 2021. They will be responsible for installing self-driving technology and purpose-built interiors, among other things, at the first center of its kind for the Detroit automaker.
“At Ford, we are investing aggressively in building on our strengths today – including trucks and SUVs – while at the same time expanding our leadership into electric and autonomous vehicles,” Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s president of automotive, said. “As America’s No. 1 producer of automobiles, we are proud of our commitment to invest in manufacturing here in Michigan.”
Another $700 million and 300 direct jobs will be added to Ford’s Dearborn manufacturing site. These will focus on the production of new electric variants of the F-150 truck: both hybrid and fully electric models. The facility will also assemble battery cells for these models.
Currently, the new, standard F-150 — as well as the hybrid model — are slated for release next year. The fully electric model should follow soon after, according to Ford.