Ford SA has announced that the global export of new Ranger units has commenced, with the local arm of the Blue Oval brand saying, “We are proud to commence with next-gen Ranger exports to customers around the world from our world-class manufacturing facility in South Africa.”
According to the firm, “Monthly export volumes from South Africa operations are expected to be around two-thirds of total production.” The latest iteration of the Ranger will be shipped to “more than” 100 global markets.
“We are excited about the huge export potential and continue to work with authorities to address bottlenecks such as high level of congestion at Durban’s roll-on roll-off (RORO) vehicle terminal, as well as lack of rail infrastructure for Ford to direct most of its export as well as import through Gqeberha,” said Ockert Berry, VP of Operations, Ford South Africa.
As a reminder, Ford SA has invested R15.8 billion in its Silverton assembly plant to ensure its operations are globally competitive. The upgrades to the factory included building an on-site stamping plant, a highly-automated new body shop, the only Ford-owned frame line in the world and a revamped assembly line.
Ford SA says, “The new and upgraded facilities were essential to unlock the plant’s installed capacity of 200 000 vehicles per year while consistently delivering world-class quality for Ford’s customers around the world.”
In addition, the automaker invested an additional R600 million in its Struandale engine plant to produce the 3.0-litre V6 diesel powertrain and upgrades for the 2.0-litre single- and twin-turbocharged diesel engines.
