Ford investing US$500M in Ohio plant to build new EcoBoost engine
by Canadian Manufacturing Staff
Facility in Lima, Ohio, will be home to all-new 2.7-litre EcoBoost V6 that's set to power F-150 pickup
LIMA, Ohio—Ford Motor Co. is investing US$500-million in an Ohio engine plant to build punier powerplants for use in its 2015 F-150 pickup truck.
According to Ford, it plans to invest the hefty sum in its Lima, Ohio, facility to build the all-new 2.7-litre EcoBoost V6 engine—the smallest engine available in its popular pickup.
The US$500-million investment will go toward outfitting the plant about an hour southwest of Toldeo with a new flexible engine assembly system.
Ford said it also plans to renovate about 700,000 sq.ft. of the facility for machining and assembly functions.
The move will add about 300 jobs at the plant, and comes as demand for V6-powered F-150s reaches record-breaking levels.
The automaker said 57 per cent of customers in 2014 have opted for either the 3.7-litre Duratec or 3.5-litre EcoBoost V6 under the hood of their F-150s.
The 2.7-litre EcoBoost sports a twin-turbo system and uses a compacted graphite iron engine block—the same material used in Ford’s 6.7-litre Power Stroke turbo-diesel V8.
Opened in 1957, Ford’s Lima plant employs more than 900 people.
The facility is home to the automaker’s 3.5- and 3.7-litre Duratec V6 engines.
Ford also builds its 3.5-litre EcoBoost engine in Ohio at its Cleveland engine plant.
The investment in the Lima plant comes just weeks after the automaker announced plans to shift production of its F-650 and F-750 medium-duty trucks from Mexico to its assembly plant in Avon Lake, Ohio, near Cleveland early next year.
