- Ford is prioritizing education, environmental protection and local investments to help ensure West Tennessee residents benefit from the growth BlueOval City will bring
- Ford to train West Tennessee residents for jobs at its Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center assembly plant and begin hiring hourly employees in 2025 to ensure employees are ready to support customer deliveries of its next-generation electric truck beginning in 2026
- BlueOval City was designed with sustainability top of mind, and the company’s goal is for the Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center assembly plant to be carbon neutral and use carbon-free electricity
- Ford formed the Equitable Growth Advisory Council in 2023, bringing together community leaders from across West Tennessee. The council is developing a comprehensive Good Neighbor Plan with investment priorities driven by resident feedback and will publish it in the coming weeks
STANTON, Tenn., May 14, 2024 – Ford’s BlueOval City campus in Stanton, Tenn., is taking shape as robotic training cells, conveyors, paint spray booths and stamping press lines are installed at the Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center assembly plant.
As the work in the plant progresses, Ford is prioritizing education, environmental protection and local engagement to help ensure West Tennessee residents benefit from the growth BlueOval City will bring.
“We have been humbled by the warm hospitality extended to us by our new neighbors in West Tennessee,” said Kel Kearns, plant manager, Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center at BlueOval City. “As the company that helped create the American middle class, we want residents in every community around the region to benefit as BlueOval City comes to life.”
Ford plans to develop local talent for jobs at the Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center through its BlueOval Learning initiative. Training will be comprehensive, with online, classroom and hands-on segments designed to prepare employees to operate, maintain and troubleshoot equipment in their areas.
The Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center will use the latest Ford manufacturing equipment, so employees will train on machine vision systems for robot guidance and quality assurance, automated pick-and-place material handling, sealer and adhesive dispensing systems and various automated mechanical joining technologies, among several other manufacturing processes.
The company will begin hiring hourly employees in 2025 to ensure employees are on board and trained to support customer deliveries of the next-gen electric truck beginning in 2026.
Prospective employees can meet with Ford representatives at the new Ford Tennessee Discovery Center in Brownsville, Tenn., once it opens later this year. Community members also will be welcome to experience advanced manufacturing through virtual reality simulations at the Discovery Center.
Designed to protect the environment and local communities
As construction of BlueOval City progresses in Tennessee, Ford’s vision for an efficient and carbon-neutral manufacturing facility is becoming a reality. From its earliest conception, BlueOval City was designed to help minimize impact on the local environment and to protect the local community.
“We recognize the significance of farming, fishing and hunting in West Tennessee,” said Blake Newbill, senior environmental engineer, Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center. “And we understand that part of being a good neighbor is caring for the air, water and land so these important resources are preserved for our community.”
Ford is investing in carbon-free and renewable electricity in West Tennessee to help strengthen the local energy grid and reduce air emissions. The company’s goal is for the Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center assembly plant to use carbon-free electricity.
New technology aims to help reduce the amount of electricity needed to manufacture vehicles, including innovations that will capture and reuse heat from the site’s utility infrastructure and geothermal energy system to provide heat for the assembly plant – saving about 300 million cubic feet of natural gas typically needed each year to heat similarly sized vehicle assembly plants.
To further help protect air quality, Ford plans to install state-of-the art systems that will help limit emissions with no uncontrolled exhausts from painting operations. The air emission limits for Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center are the most stringent of any U.S. assembly plant.
The campus’ new utility system will save approximately 50 million gallons of water each year by reducing evaporation from the site’s cooling towers. Plus, the zero-waste-to-landfill Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center plans to reuse industrial water from across the site to preserve the use of fresh water in the plant for drinking water and other basic human needs.
This facility will also follow best practices Ford has implemented in its facilities around the world to reduce and reuse water. Ford has saved 199 billion gallons of water in its global manufacturing operations since 2000.
The facility aims to incorporate environmental designs, safeguards and structures to carefully control materials used in the manufacturing process and to prevent them from having contact with stormwater runoff and soil. The facility will not store chemicals or other materials underground, and chemical storage structures will incorporate multi-level safeguards like back-up and secondary containment systems and sealed flooring with drainage to a dedicated wastewater collection system. Ford also intends to develop a holistic stormwater management system.
Good Neighbor Plan will help address resident needs
Ford formed the Equitable Growth Advisory Council in 2023, bringing together community leaders from across West Tennessee to share their insights. The council studies barriers that might prevent residents and local businesses from participating in upcoming economic growth, based in part on research and surveys led by the University of Tennessee at Martin.
“We are honored to join West Tennessee residents in shaping the future of their community,” said Gabby Bruno, Ford’s director, community relations. “The Equitable Growth Advisory Council continues to develop a comprehensive Good Neighbor Plan with investment priorities driven by resident feedback, and we look forward to sharing details in the coming weeks.”
Ford and Ford Philanthropy, the company’s global philanthropic arm formerly called Ford Fund, spent more than 1,000 hours listening to community input and learning about local priorities.
Donations from Ford and Ford Philanthropy total $21 million so far in West Tennessee, including $1.2 million in capital grants. Funding supports youth programs such as the Brownsville and Jackson Boys and Girls Club, Project Ready in Partnership with the National Urban League and Junior Achievement; essential service providers like United Way, Mid-South Food Bank and Fayette Cares; first responders such as the Stanton Volunteer Fire Department and Mason Fire Department; and more.
“Through the first quarter of 2024, we distributed more than 10,000 pounds of food that assisted close to 400 families each month, thanks in part to the grant we received from Ford Philanthropy,” said Alexandra Porto, CEO, Fayette Cares, which provides homelessness and domestic violence prevention and intervention services. “The installation of the security gate openers and the re-surfacing of the parking lot has made it safer for the dozens of families who stayed at our emergency shelter last year.”
Ford Philanthropy plans to offer additional local grants in 2024. The philanthropic arm will also make a significant announcement in June about how it will support the Stanton community with other resources.
###
Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements
Statements included or incorporated by reference herein may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on expectations, forecasts, and assumptions by our management and involve a number of risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those stated, including, without limitation:
-
Ford is highly dependent on its suppliers to deliver components in accordance with Ford’s production schedule and specifications, and a shortage of or inability to acquire key components or raw materials, such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and manganese, can disrupt Ford’s production of vehicles;
-
To facilitate access to the raw materials and other components necessary for the production of electric vehicles, Ford has entered into and may, in the future, enter into multi-year commitments to raw material and other suppliers that subject Ford to risks associated with lower future demand for such items as well as costs that fluctuate and are difficult to accurately forecast;
-
Ford’s long-term competitiveness depends on the successful execution of Ford+;
-
Ford’s vehicles could be affected by defects that result in recall campaigns, increased warranty costs, or delays in new model launches, and the time it takes to improve the quality of our vehicles and services could continue to have an adverse effect on our business;
-
Ford may not realize the anticipated benefits of existing or pending strategic alliances, joint ventures, acquisitions, divestitures, or business strategies;
-
Ford may not realize the anticipated benefits of restructuring actions and such actions may cause Ford to incur significant charges, disrupt our operations, or harm our reputation;
-
Operational information systems, security systems, vehicles, and services could be affected by cybersecurity incidents, ransomware attacks, and other disruptions and impact Ford and Ford Credit as well as their suppliers and dealers;
-
Ford’s production, as well as Ford’s suppliers’ production, and/or the ability to deliver products to consumers could be disrupted by labor issues, public health issues, natural or man-made disasters, adverse effects of climate change, financial distress, production difficulties, capacity limitations, or other factors;
-
Failure to develop and deploy secure digital services that appeal to customers could have a negative impact on Ford’s business;
-
Ford’s ability to maintain a competitive cost structure could be affected by labor or other constraints;
-
Ford’s ability to attract, develop, grow, and reward talent is critical to its success and competitiveness;
-
Ford’s new and existing products and digital, software, and physical services are subject to market acceptance and face significant competition from existing and new entrants in the automotive and digital and software services industries, and its reputation may be harmed if it is unable to achieve the initiatives it has announced;
-
Ford’s results are dependent on sales of larger, more profitable vehicles, particularly in the United States;
-
With a global footprint and supply chain, Ford’s results and operations could be adversely affected by economic or geopolitical developments, including protectionist trade policies such as tariffs, or other events;
-
Industry sales volume can be volatile and could decline if there is a financial crisis, recession, public health emergency, or significant geopolitical event;
-
Ford may face increased price competition or a reduction in demand for its products resulting from industry excess capacity, currency fluctuations, competitive actions, or other factors, particularly for electric vehicles;
-
Inflationary pressure and fluctuations in commodity and energy prices, foreign currency exchange rates, interest rates, and market value of Ford or Ford Credit’s investments, including marketable securities, can have a significant effect on results;
-
Ford and Ford Credit’s access to debt, securitization, or derivative markets around the world at competitive rates or in sufficient amounts could be affected by credit rating downgrades, market volatility, market disruption, regulatory requirements, or other factors;
-
The impact of government incentives on Ford’s business could be significant, and Ford’s receipt of government incentives could be subject to reduction, termination, or clawback;
-
Ford Credit could experience higher-than-expected credit losses, lower-than-anticipated residual values, or higher-than-expected return volumes for leased vehicles;
-
Economic and demographic experience for pension and OPEB plans (e.g., discount rates or investment returns) could be worse than Ford has assumed;
-
Pension and other postretirement liabilities could adversely affect Ford’s liquidity and financial condition;
-
Ford and Ford Credit could experience unusual or significant litigation, governmental investigations, or adverse publicity arising out of alleged defects in products, services, perceived environmental impacts, or otherwise;
-
Ford may need to substantially modify its product plans and facilities to comply with safety, emissions, fuel economy, autonomous driving technology, environmental, and other regulations;
-
Ford and Ford Credit could be affected by the continued development of more stringent privacy, data use, data protection, and artificial intelligence laws and regulations as well as consumers’ heightened expectations to safeguard their personal information; and
-
Ford Credit could be subject to new or increased credit regulations, consumer protection regulations, or other regulations.
We cannot be certain that any expectation, forecast, or assumption made in preparing forward-looking statements will prove accurate, or that any projection will be realized. It is to be expected that there may be differences between projected and actual results. Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of their initial issuance, and we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. For additional discussion, see “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K.