Members of the Wayne City Council have unanimously approved a site plan for additions to the Ford Motor Co. Michigan Assembly Plant in the city.
During a regular meeting of the city council earlier this month, Dave Shoemaker from Ford Motor Co. Land Development presented the site plan for the expansion of two areas of the existing plant to the city council members. He explained that the additions, one to the south of the paint shop and one to the final assembly building, were necessitated by the launch of the new Ford Ranger which require, he said, added components as the vehicles go through the assembly line.
He said the new models of the Ranger and the Bronco, both produced at the Wayne plant, have added complexities and model variants in the wheelbase of the vehicles which necessitated a 12-bay addition to one area of the current building and another seven-bay addition to another section.
He assured the members of the council that the additions would match the current construction of the building including exterior siding and paint. The 5-million square-foot, Michigan Assembly Plant first opened at the 369-acre site on Michigan Avenue in the city in 1957 and currently employs about 3,550 workers, according to the company website.
“This is part of normal operations,” Shoemaker told the council members. He said he expected construction of the additions to be complete by the end of the year and that a “late second quarter delivery of steel was expected.”
Mayor John Rhaesa thanked Shoemaker for appearing at the meeting and said he felt it “is great to see you guys doing well.”
