DETROIT
This Week In
I
Black History
c mb
-
,
e erthele ,h d all 0 the
chore t includin the cooking. Mrs
Poole, ince becoming blind, ha a
Ie r 0 fire, he aid. "I can't even
make my If cup of co e be-
c e I am fraid of fir ."
, a thing are today.
. Po le will be able to pic the
four boll t two on e ch of th two
plan h has, quick. f t and in a
hurry.
Mrs. Po Ie and her hu. b nd Wil­
liam. who is also 71. are from
Roanok • Alabama. Th y au nded
th arne elem ntary and high
choot and in F bruary they will
H UM T ur-
rounding M� Poolcs 10' of vrght
i It tragi one that . orne econd
llC . ers might . ay wa prevent-
Ina recently published book called, The
Machine That Changed The World, M.I.T.,
one of the foremost engineering schools in
the U.S., reported that in a world-wide survey
co�ucted between 1984 and 1989, it found
Ford Motor Co.'s Stamping and Assembly in
Hermosillo, Mexico, to be the highest qualjty
builder among 80 volume·producing plants,
including Japanese.
Hermosillo is a process called Ouality
Deployment System (ODS), designed to
improve quality through extensive employee
involvement.
"Ii hnlcl n Own Their Work
ODS allows technicians "ownership" of
the jobs they perform. Supervisors give
assembly technicians basic goals and
objectives and
other key
information, such
as quality,
employee safety,
maintenance, basic
process and design
intent. Then, plant
management lets
the technician
determine and
recommend the
.best way to do the
job.
The employee
participates directly
in developing the
process, safety and
maintenance
requirements of the
prOduct.
By increasing
the ability to repeat
the job perfectly
each time, ODS
has proven to have
a significan t effect
on plant quality.
Additionally,
Hermosillo officials
delegate a great
de�1 of authority to departmental work
groups, comprised of assembly technicians,
regarding management of their
groups. The groups
elect team
leaders
In addition, among 105 plants, including
lUXUry car producers, the Hermosillo plant
ranked second only to Mercedes.
The plant, opened in November, 1986,
produces the Mercury Tracer.
The report did not come as a big
, surprise to the proud Hermosillo plant
employees. As a matter <;>f fact, the plant's
Stamping and Assembly served as a test
bed for manufacturin� and quality techniques
that are now being transfused into the
wond·wide Ford manufacturing system.
Maintaining Th High Standard
Ford is unflagging in its efforts to try to
maintain the high standard that the
Hermosillo plant has set for itself.
For example, to prepare for the launch
of the all new 1991 Mercury Tracer, the
COf)'lpany invest� more than $300 million on
the plant's facilities and tooling, including an
expansion of its stamping operations. It also
continued to enhance the quality-related
employee programs that have been crucial to
the plant's success.
"Clearly," said Ford executives, he
most important resource at Hermosillo is,
and has always �n, its orkforce."
Among the employee-oriented
programs Ford has implemented at
and partiCipate in daily decision-making
processes concerning job assignments and
job rotation of team members.
In addition to designing his own job, a
Hermosillo technician troubleshoots and
maintains his own equipment, using his
training in such disciplines as electrical,
mechanical and pneumatic systems and
we ing.ln fact,during the retooling to produce
the current Mercury Tracer, Hermosillo
assembly technicians actually Instal ed and
debugged th plant's n weqUipment.
Employee training remains high on the
agenda. Before their first day on the line, the
employees underwent an extensive 700-hour
training program that, in addition to teaching
basic skills like welding, instructed them on
finer points of statistical analysis and
language skills.
A number were sent to Mazda in Japan
for further training, and some even learned
Japanese as a supplement to their English.
Although they were already among
Ford's best trained employees, the
technicians underwent another intensive
round of training to, prepare for the all-new
1991 Mercury Tracer during the five month
changeover.
In addition to pre-launch
training, at any given
time, six percent of
Solid performance is provided by
Tracer's 1.9 liter engine featuring sequential
multi-port electronic fuel injection teamed
with manual five-speed overdrive and
transaxle.
The L TS has a dual-overhead cam 1.8
liter engine with 16 valves that turns out an
impressive 127 horsepo er.
Other L TS equipment includes a sport
handling suspension, power four-wheel disc
brakes, cast aluminum wheels, and 14-inch
low profile tires. An optional 4-speed •
electronic overdrive transaxle is available on
all models.
the plant's 2,400 member workforce is
rotating through on-going training.
"We're always focusing on giving
people greater capability to control their
world," said Felix Guillen, Hermosillo plant
manager.
Technology and automation also help
contribute to the overall quality of Mercury
Tracers built at Hermosillo. For example,
optical scanners make sure that body parts
line up properly. If not, the scanner
automatically stops the line so any problem
can be corrected.
And, with the stamping plant attached
to the assembly plant, potential problems are
detected and remedied much earlier in the
cycle, thus preventing rework and waste.
Robots perform more than 80 percent
of the welding. As a result, the body
',... ... � assemblies are accurate and
consistently sound.
Hermosillo also boasts a
robotic painting system
and "clean room" spray
booths, which help eliminate
dust in the paint area.
Robotic painters help
do away with paint surface
imperfections like runs, drips '
and thin coverage. This results
in paint finishes that are
glossy, smooth and
durable.
"The mind set at
Hermosillo is that we
want to be the best we
can be, best-in-class,"
Guillen said.
Among Tracer's standard features are
four-whe I Independent suspension, tinted
glass, AMlFM stereo radio, two speed
windshield wipers with fixed intermittent
feature, digital clock, center console, backlit
analog gauges, split fold rear seats, reclining
front seats and rear seat heat ducts.
Options include power side windows,
power door locks, air conditioning, premium
sound system, power moonroof, speed
control and tilt steering column.
The Tracer wagon offers almost 70
cubic feet of cargo space. Front drive and 4-
wheel independent suspension provide good
traction and handling, as well as a smooth
ride. Other standard wagon features include
power steering and brakes, dual electric
remote control mirrors, AMlFM stereo
radio with digital clock, and defroster'
and wiper/washer for the rear window.
The 1992 Tracer interior features
an ergonomically-designed, wrap­
around instrument panel. The roomy
interior provides 91 cubic feet of space
and five-passenger seating capacity.
It is equipped with a motorized shoulder
The 1992 Mercury Tracer
The 1992 Tracer produced at the
Hermosillo p ant for Mercury comes in
three models: the four-door notchback
sedan, the performance-tuned L TS and
the versatile wagon.
The Tracer station agon
belt restraint system with manual lap
belts in the front seats and manual three
point safety belts in the rear outboard
seats, with a center lap belt.
DECEMBER 10, 1913 -
Y trumpeter/viOllnist,
born. 1950 - Dr. J.
boaune � fust B
awarded the 1 Prize.
With whichreJigious group was
Richtrd Varick tmOCiaed?
DECEMBER 11. 1934-l..ee
M.aye, t:.ll player, \ bom.
1938-Mc:CoyTyner,jmwt,
w born. 19 - JamalDe
J iqp', born.
What was the middhman
employee (Kho remainedinAfMJ
all the time) caIJed tJuing the sliNe
trodt!?
DECEMBER 12, 1912 -
Bef\iamJn O. Da Jr, Air Force
general, � bom. 1950 - J
Leroy Brown became � first
Black American Naval Otficer to
die in combat. 1965 - G
yers scored, five t uc�
and averaged 19.6 yards per amy.
both NFL single-game records.
1918 - Joe W �ist,
was bom.1963-Kenyadeclan:d
imcpeOOeIre.
Prior to World WtF Tho, how
many Blocks attained the rack of
CX?Ionel in theAmtrican army?
DECEMBER 13,1916-Ar-
Moore, boxing champion,
was born 1944-
sen1cewomen sworn into the
WAWS.
W1Uch disease cassedthe deah
lf'most Bah between 1900 and
1910?
DECEMBER 14. 1829 -
John Mercer Lang ton, US
Congre sman, was born.
How many Blocks have been
managersqmajor /eaguebmeball
teams (through 1987)?
QUESllONS TO
BLACK HISTORY
QUESllONS
8Ib - ApproxiJJl*ly 4$X)
miles from the Gambia 08t k>
Al. Soma1i1and. It is also ap­
proximately 5,400 miles mI1h to
south from Tunis to Port Elizabeth.
9th - Ulysses Kay, classical
mL6ic oompa;er.
10lb - African Methodist
Episcopal zjon Olwch.
1Ub - He was called, "the
factor." Many factors married
African women, had children, aOO
even sold some of them into
slavery, '
12Cb - Only five" If you in­
dude me chaplain, there were six
� k> WOOd War Two.
13Cb - Thberculosis.
14dl - Four. Maury Wills,
Frank Robisnon (2), and Lany
Doby.
Technology and automation contribute to the
ov rail quality of Tracers built at Henno iIIo.
Alzheimer' group ..
open center
lb: Alzheimer's Association's
Detroit Area Cbapt:r anrouoced
the 'gram opening of the Detroit
Alzheimer' Adult Day Que on
Thwsday, December 5.
. TIE adult day care is Joca.oo in
the.beph Walker Willialm Com­
munity Ceruer, 8431 Rosa Parks
BoulevaJd.
TIE murs arc, 1\£Sdays. Wed­
resdays am Thursdays from lOa
m. lIltil 2 p. m.
To be eli81ble, a person must
suffcrfromAlzmm:r' Diseese or
a rdated disotdcr arxJ be a resident
of Detroit.
For additional infonnation
pi call �oommWlitycentcrat
(313)361-3446.