Ford investing $95M, adding 1,100 new union jobs at KC plant to boost electric vehicle production
June 2, 2022 | Startland News Staff
One of Kansas City’s biggest employers is driving further into its commitment to local jobs and strengthening its electric vehicle portfolio, adding a third shift at Ford’s Kansas City Assembly Plant and bringing new focus to its evolving strategy.
Ford announced Thursday it is investing $95 million and adding 1,100 new union jobs in Kansas City to increase production of the Transit, America’s best-selling commercial van, and the all-new E-Transit EV.
Kansas City Assembly Plant; photo courtesy of Ford
The Kansas City news is part of Ford’s just-announced plan to create 6,200 new United Auto Worker jobs in the Midwest, convert nearly 3,000 of its temporary employees to full time, and produce 2 million electric vehicles globally by the end of 2026.
“You don’t serve your customers by waiting around,” said Kumar Galhotra, president of Ford Blue, the company’s global internal combustion business. “So we’re moving, and we’re moving now. We’re investing in whole new generations of vehicles, services, technologies and buying experiences for a whole new generation of customers.”
But traditional vehicles — like the seventh-generation Ford Mustang — aren’t going away, he emphasized.
“For the millions of loyal Ford customers who aren’t ready to go electric yet, who want and need Ford’s great gasoline-powered vehicles for years to come, we will continue to build great new iconic vehicles,” Galhotra said.
Ford also is committing $1 billion over five years to improve work experience across the company, he added, noting potential enhancements include better access to healthy food, new EV chargers in plant parking lots, and better lighting in parking lots. Such changes are expected to differ by plant, and it was not immediately clear which might apply to the Kansas City facility.
Kansas City Assembly Plant; photo courtesy of Ford
Ford currently has more than 7,000 employees at its Kansas City plant. In addition to the Transit and E-Transit vans, it also produces the F-150 pickup locally.
“Today’s announcement is great news for our state,” said Mike Parson, governor of Missouri. “For more than 70 years, hardworking Missourians have assembled iconic Ford vehicles. Now, these 1,100 new hourly jobs at the Kansas City Assembly Plant will increase production of the Transit and E-Transit commercial vans, driving Missouri’s economy forward.”
The announcements — which also included new jobs and developments for plants in Ohio and Michigan — come a year after the company detailed its Ford+ plan to transform its global automotive business, accelerating the development and scaling of breakthrough electric, connected vehicles, while leveraging iconic nameplates to strengthen operating performance and take full advantage of engineering and industrial capabilities.
Watch a video of Ford’s livestreamed jobs announcement below.
Featured Business
2022 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Chris Boyle wants you to reach for kombucha on instinct; his plan: make it as accessible (and tasty) as your favorite beer
Daily Culture Kombucha’s expansion is not quite as effortlessly self-replicating as the scoby that powers the Kansas City brand’s bold, full-bodied flavors — but a commitment to consistency and authenticity has fermented a strategy founder Chris Boyle said keeps his company on the tip of consumers’ tongues. “We’ve just been growing,” Boyle said, noting Daily…
Olathe restaurateur brings comfort food home from the Mediterranean (starting with falafel bowls)
Summer Salem looked around her city for an authentic Mediterranean restaurant and found a gap in the Olathe marketplace. So a year ago she began planning one of her own. She teamed with her husband, Abraham, who also is a partner in a downtown Kansas City Mediterranean restaurant. But the recipes would be Summer’s own.…
Cook to CEO: Chad Offerdahl sticks to Big Biscuit basics as breakfast industry trends funky — ‘That’s not us’
Chad Offerdahl’s journey with The Big Biscuit didn’t start in an office — it began in the kitchen, explained the CEO of the fast-growing, locally owned breakfast brand. That’s where he first learned the classics that define the company, its mission and the menu. “I started as a cook,” said Offerdahl. “I trained in the…
How this founder’s hobby (plus a little trouble) became Oak Park retail incubator’s biggest success story
“Big Chunky Blankets” — soft as a baby’s cheek and custom knitted in any color of the rainbow — folded into the foundation of what would become Maryann Nzioki Hult’s resilient, nearly pandemic-proof foray into entrepreneurship. They put local Tabu Knits on the online map of must-have-items, and then became the seed of two Johnson…