Ford of Britain: UK-built engines powering cars worldwide
Ford of Britain, one of the leading manufacturing companies in the UK, exports vehicle products to countries around the globe. From high-performance, low-CO2 petrol engines built in Bridgend to super fuel-efficient diesel engines made in Dagenham and Transit vans put together in Southampton, the company is going from strength to strength as the result of a strategy focused on making the most of the opportunities presented by overseas markets.
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Last year Ford of Britain exported more than 1.5 million engines to 15 countries in six continents
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Half of the 28,100 Ford Transit vans manufactured in the UK last year were exported
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The combined export value of Ford Transit vans and engines exceeds £2 billion
At the heart of Ford’s operation is its Dagenham Export Distribution Centre, which ships components around the world from all of the company’s manufacturing plants. It has been kept busy: exports of engines and parts from the UK grew by over a third in 2010-2011 to keep up with increasing demand from Russia, Australia and South East Asia. Shipments of 2.7 litre V6 engines to Australia have leapt from a single container of 36 in August 2010, to 1200 a month.
In China, there is big demand for SI6 and 1.6-litre EcoBoost petrol engines, both produced at Bridgend. And with the company planning to build four new factories there, it looks like its penetration into the Chinese market is set to increase further. By 2013, Ford plans global sales of more than 1.5 million EcoBoost-powered vehicles per year.
The impact of this exports success on the UK economy is clear, with benefits for the company, its supply chain and local areas through the creation of new jobs.
Paul Arrowsmith, the Ford of Britain transport operations manager, says: “It's good news for the future of our business that the export arm of Ford’s operations is being kept so busy that we need to take on extra employees – additional packing work translates into more road movements of containers to and from various ports around Britain."
