Ford South Africa as a world carmaker continues to go from energy to energy. The Blue Oval’s Silverton plant in Pretoria has the honour of being the primary to ramp-up full-scale manufacturing of the Ford Ranger Plug-in Hybrid Electrical Car (PHEV). Solely produced in South Africa for world export, the PHEV represents a key element to world sustainability for the carmaker. On the similar time, Silverton plant is adopting extra environmentally pleasant and sustainable manufacturing processes.
Ockert Berry, VP Operations at Ford South Africa mentioned the next. “The addition of the high-tech Ranger PHEV is a vital milestone. This makes Silverton central to Ford’s Ranger sustainability efforts. We’re the worldwide supply for each the brand new PHEV and established Ranger line-ups in over 100 markets,” mentioned Berry. Launching in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand in 2025, the South African-made Ranger PHEV combines a 2.3-litre EcoBoost petrol engine with a 75 kW electrical motor and 11.8 kWh battery. Thus, the Ranger’s 3 500kg towing capability is unchanged, and the PHEV introduces Professional Energy Onboard.
A GLOBAL CARMAKER
Consequently, Ford’s Silverton plant is proudly designated the worldwide hub for every little thing Ranger. Furthermore, it’s a testomony to the ability’s vital upgrades and enhanced adaptability to supply PHEV alongside different Rangers. Listed here are some fascinating insights into what it takes to be a world carmaker:
- Silverton’s capability is 200 000 autos yearly (720 per day).
- Roughly 200 Ranger PHEVs are in-built each left- and right-hand drive.
- Europe is the first export area for the Ranger, together with the PHEV in 2025.
- Ranger PHEV can be Ford’s first Ranger exports to Australia and New Zealand from Silverton.
- This necessitated a brand new PHEV Battery Meeting Plant with 62 000 annual battery pack manufacturing.
- The battery plant includes a 1 376 m2 meeting line and a couple of 116 m2 logistics warehouse.
- The Trim, Chassis and Ultimate Meeting (TCF) line was modified to combine PHEV elements.
- This features a new battery sub-assembly line with devoted areas to make sure high-voltage work meets security requirements.
ECO EFFORTS
Together with intensive upgrades to help Ranger PHEV manufacturing, the carmaker is implementing a number of environmentally pleasant enhancements, too. “Waste discount and recycling initiatives embrace a brand new water recycling undertaking. Within the Paint Store this conserves round 14 400 m³ of water yearly,” Berry says. Likewise, a brand new scrap yard will increase the quantity of cardboard, paper and plastic waste that’s sorted on web site and recycled. Ford’s goal is for zero waste-to-landfill switch throughout its worldwide operations.
All initiatives are complemented by the Silverton plant’s pioneering photo voltaic carpark, which makes use of greater than 30 000 photo voltaic panels to generate 13.4 MW of electrical energy. Within the occasion of energy outage, that is enough to energy the complete facility for a day. “We’re very near bolstering our photo voltaic system with different different power. A brand new storage provide will take us an enormous step nearer to completely utilizing carbon-free electrical energy for all of our manufacturing operations,” concludes Berry.
ARE YOU PROUD OF FORD SA’S EFFORTS ON THE GLOBAL STAGE?
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