Parts shortage slows Ford F-150 production - Kansas City Star
Ford Motor Co. is scrambling to find enough steel frames to keep up with demand for its best-selling F-150 truck. — to build the frames for the redesigned aluminum-bodied truck, which is produced at Ford’s Kansas City Assembly Plant in Claycomo and at a plant in Dearborn, Mich. The Wall Street Journal reported over the weekend that the frame’s main supplier, Mexico-based Metalsa SA, was having trouble building enough of the parts to keep pace with production needs. With frames in short supply, Ford has had to cancel planned overtime at the plants, and has temporarily halted assembly lines during regular shifts as workers waited for more frames to arrive, the Journal said. Ford has resorted to shipping the frames by truck rather than rail to get them there faster, but at a higher cost, the newspaper said. Ford has been dealing with the frame shortage for several months, and tight F-150 inventories on dealer lots have allowed rivals to gain truck business. Ford declined to directly comment Monday on the frame shortages. Ford began building the more fuel-efficient, aluminum-bodied F-150 at Dearborn late last year. Source: www.kansascity.com
