OREANDA-NEWS. July 27, 2015. Marking a key milestone in the lead-up to the launch of the much-awaited new Ford Figo Aspire, the Body Construction team at Ford India’s Sanand Vehicle Assembly Plant (SVAP) recently rolled out the thousandth car off the line.

Spread over 72,000 square feet, with 95 percent process automation, this world-class Body Construction facility employs a diverse workforce of 550 employees. Within just one year, the facility has transformed from being an empty floor to a full-fledged production floor, thanks to the combined efforts of the Vehicle Operations Manufacturing Engineering team, Plant Launch team and Operations team.

“A passionate 0-100 percent mindset journey, which began more than two years ago, has culminated in this remarkable achievement. This has only been possible due to the team’s complete dedication to complete adherence to metrics, be it Safety, Quality or Delivery. This is a moment of huge pride for all of us and I am sure that this team will Go Further in its quest to achieve the next milestone: 10,000 vehicles,” said Kel Kearns, Site Plant Manager, SVAEP, at a small ceremony held to mark the occasion.

The ceremony was also attended by Dhiraj Dixit, Assistant Plant Manager,Vehicle Assembly; Matt Pickering, Launch Implementation Manager, VOME BCE; and Himanshu Soni, Area Manager, Body Construction, as well as the entire Body Construction and other support teams.

Also, just a few days ahead of achieving this milestone, the 103-member Body Construction Closure team recorded more than two consecutive years of Safety Green Days. With Ford’s emphasis on Zero Injury, which is the goal of the Safety Operating System, it is significant that the team clocked more than 730 consecutive green days under safety, without a single injury during the launch phase, which is one of the most critical phases for any facility.