A Big Transformation For A Manufacturing Icon
DEARBORN (WWJ) -- Crews are making progress transforming the former Rouge Steel mill into a modern facility that will sell new forms of steel to the auto industry.
"We do have a rich history," says Christopher Kristock, vice president of quality and advanced engineering at Severstal North America, which has owned the facility since 2004. "This is a complete transformation of our finishing facilities, from 1940's vintage mills to fully 2011 mills. These are state of the art facilities."
Severstal received a $730 million dollar loan through a federal program that aims to help companies make vehicles more fuel efficient. Kristock says they qualified, because the steel made at the plant will be used to make vehicles lighter, and more fuel efficient.
"The current design trends all point towards the use of more and more of these types of steels in future automobiles," he said. "They provide a lot of advantages in terms of mass reduction, which relates to fuel economy, and also provide great passenger safety."
The transformation is about one third complete. It's expected to create 260 new manufacturing jobs at the plant, and more than 2500 construction jobs.
The mill dates back to the era of "vertical integration", when Henry Ford wanted the Rouge Complex to be a site where raw materials come in, and cars go out. Over the years, that transformed into a process where much of what's in a car—including the steel—is built by suppliers, and sold to auto companies.
The Severstal plant at the Rouge is now a supplier to the auto industry in general, and plans to grow that business.
"We do supply other than Ford," said Jim Mortensen, general manager of automotive sales for Severastal North America . "We supply throughout the entire industry, both directly and indirectly. As we increase our capabilities to our customers, obviously we plan on expanding our customer base."
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