Sheet Metal Stamping Simulation

Greetings from Mexico City. 

We're at the end the the second day here at MetalForm, and so far the response we have received has been outstanding. The people here seem to really understand how simulation can benefit them in their business. It seems that Mexico will become a huge growth area for our company, and we are excited about the prospects in the very near future.

Auto giant Ford Motor Co. (F) plans to produce 80,000 to 90,000 units of its new Fiesta model this year at its plant in Cuautitlan, outside Mexico City, Ford de Mexico Chief Executive Eduardo Serrano said Tuesday.

The majority of the cars, which Ford launched in Europe in Asia about 18 months ago, will be exported to the U.S. and Canada, officials said at an event celebrating the end of an extensive renovation of the plant.

About 400 jobs will be added at Chrysler Group LLC's casting and transmission plants in Kokomo, Ind., as part of a $43 million investment announced today.

Of the new positions, as many as 379 will be recalls of laid-off Chrysler workers and 20 new hires will be for supervisory positions, the company said.

Two of the key administration figures that led General Motors and Chrysler through bankruptcy last year said Monday that the companies have made significant progress in turning around their operations.

Ron Bloom, senior manufacturing adviser to President Barack Obama, said the administration is pleased with the management of the two companies and is "hopeful, cautious ... not yet confident" that they'll fully recover.

An international scandal erupted in early 1993 when Volkswagen A.G. enticed Jose Ignacio Lopez de Arriortua to walk off of his job as head of General Motors worldwide purchasing.

A native of Spain, he had cut a wide swath in Detroit inspiring fear and awe among longtime GM suppliers. At GM, Lopez served at the pleasure of the Board of Directors, and while at VW he was given a four-year contract valued at $20 million. A master of “lean manufacturing,” Lopez took seven GM executives with him. This so enraged GM that it took immediate legal action. The company asked a German court to issue an order restraining VW from raiding their employees in Europe. 

Rolling off the assembly line at Ford’s plan in Cologne, Germany yesterday was the six millionths Fiesta model – a Vision Blue Sport edition intended for a German customer. Show above next to an original Fiesta, this seventh-generation model celebrates 31 years of production in Cologne, with Fiestas dating back to 1976 in Europe.

Lt. Governor Becky Skillman joined executives from General Motors, LLC today to announce the company's plans to expand its manufacturing operations here, adding 245 jobs by 2013.

GM Powertrain Bedford, one of the world's largest aluminum die casting facilities, currently manufactures NorthStar engine blocks, four-speed transmissions and fuel efficient six-speed transmissions. The automaker plans to invest $111 million to add a semi-permanent mold cylinder head casting line for small block engines.

THE relief that workers in Defiance and Ottawa are feeling at the prospect of a turnaround in local manufacturing is palpable. It should be. Not long ago, employees in both communities came to work each day apprehensive that their jobs might vanish.

But in a hopeful sign that the recession may be making way for growth and recovery, General Motors has announced a $115 million investment in its Defiance casting facility.

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The ripple effect of the Volkswagen project is illustrated by a $1.7 million expansion planned by Southern Tool Steel, Inc. (STS), a Chattanooga-owned distributor of metals and plastics. The project will double the production capacity of the operation and add 25 new jobs within the first year of completion.

STS is a metal supplier to machine shops, tool and die and manufacturing facilities including automotive parts stamping operations, and their tier-one suppliers. Customers include Hyundai, Nissan, Honda, Kia and Toyota. Gestamp, a potential customer for STS, is a tier-one supplier to Volkswagen in Chattanooga. STS can also supply additional Volkswagen suppliers with their metal needs.

Two respected sources foresee the industry adding about 88,000 jobs over the next year.

The forecast, from the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor and IHS Global Insight Inc. in Waltham, Mass., predicts automotive employment in the U.S., including automakers and suppliers, will grow from an average of 565,700 this year to 653,600 in 2011 and 742,200 in 2012.

Hundreds of millions of dollars of investment are coming to GM Powertrain in Defiance.

The automaker committed $115 million today for Powertrain to make its newest aluminum engine block. The project will require almost 200 workers, although most of the jobs will be transferred. Ohio's Department of Development gave GM roughly $16 million in grants and incentives as part of the Defiance investment.

General Motors will unveil a plan Tuesday to spend $890 million to upgrade five North American factories for the next generation of V8 engines, the latest set of factory upgrades in the automaker’s recovery.

The move comes just after GM announced last week that it would invest $257 million for a new version of the Chevrolet Malibu, along with the payoff of $5.8 billion in government loans. GM North America President Mark Reuss said the automaker was running close to 100% capacity, one of its top goals following bankruptcy.

The current economic recession has highlighted the importance of the automotive industry to the economy and the nation’s employment, where 1.7 million automotive-related direct jobs impact over 8 million jobs in the private sector. A newly released report by the Sustainable Transportation and Communities group at the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), an Ann Arbor-based nonprofit research organization, examines the economic and employment impact of automotive manufacturers, parts suppliers, and dealerships in contributing to the economies of all 50 states. The report also outlines what economic and employment impacts to expect in the near future.

The gain, the largest in the 40 years the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has been compiling data, provides extra evidence that the economy is moving into a sustained recovery following the recession.

Manufacturing has been boosted by scrappage incentives across Europe and a comeback in demand from consumers and business.