OAKVILLE, Ont. – Ford Motor Co. of Canada says it is adding 1,000 jobs at its plant in Oakville, Ont. by the end of this year to build the 2015 Ford Edge crossover SUV for the global market.
The automaker says it also expects to increase spending on Canadian-made auto parts by $200 million a year, to nearly $4 billion annually – a shot in the arm for Ontario’s manufacturing sector and Canadian exporters.
Ford has been preparing for months to make the redesigned Edge at Oakville , with vehicles now expected to be exported to more than 100 countries around the world – up from the previous estimate of 60 countries.
In 2013, Ford announced a $700 million investment in the Oakville assembly plant to expand its capability. It said in February that Oakville will make an all-new version of the Edge, in addition to the Ford Flex, Lincoln MKX and Lincoln MKT.
“Not only is the investment helping us meet much-needed capacity for high demand products produced in Canada, it’s creating jobs,” said Ford Canada president and CEO Dianne Craig in a statement early Wednesday.
The 1,000 new jobs announced Wednesday and 300 added last year will bring total employment at the plant to more than 4,000 by the end of 2014. Ford also operates an engine plant in Windsor, Ont. and employs a total of about 6,000 in Canada.
Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s president of the Americas, said the new jobs in Oakville will strengthen the company`s investment in Canada and “increase our capabilities as we gear up for one of the most anticipated launches at Ford.”
A Scotiabank report on the global auto industry, released last week, said that increased vehicle sales in the United States as well as a depreciation of the Canadian dollar over the past 18 months had benefited the Canadian auto parts sector.
“The industry has also started to make inroads in becoming more geographically diversified, with shipments outside of the United States advancing by 19 per cent so far this year – the largest increase of the past decade,” wrote Scotiabank economist Carlos Gomes.
He said vehicle assembly in Canada has been dampened by retooling at several assembly plants, but autoparts shipments have surged 14 per cent so far this year – nearly triple the increase in overall manufacturing activity.
“Record production across North America will provide a further lift to the Canadian auto parts industry, as each vehicle produced in North America contains rougthly $1,600 of Canadian-made parts,” according to Gomes.
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