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News of August 28, 2002

Ford to Open New Parts Distribution Center in Davenport, FL

DEARBORN, Mich. - In a move to deliver vehicle service and repair parts to dealers faster and more efficiently, Ford Motor Company will open a new parts distribution center in Davenport, Fla., in April 2003.

Ford will lease 275,000 square feet of building space to develop a High- Velocity Center at Park 27, near I-4 and U.S. Highway 27 North, in Davenport in Polk County. Duke Realty Corporation will oversee the project.

Last year, Ford announced plans to increase the number of its parts distribution centers from 10 to 21. This will create a nationwide network of specialized parts hubs that will allow dealers to order and receive parts every day, instead of the once-per-week standard under the previous system.

"At Ford Motor Company, we are absolutely committed to superior customer satisfaction. And we're not just talking about it, we're taking action," said Don Johnson, director, Global Parts Supply & Logistics, Ford Customer Service Division.

"There's no question that this new network will provide the most efficient and cost-effective parts delivery to our dealers throughout the country," Johnson continued. "In fact, for the new facilities that recently opened in Memphis and Sacramento, dealer order-to-delivery time has improved 80 percent, and we've already seen a significant increase in customer satisfaction."

Assisting Ford Motor Company with its new distribution center are the Polk County Office of Economic Development, Enterprise Florida, the East Polk County Committee of 100, Florida Power Corporation, Polk Community College and Polk Works Workforce 2020. Ford Motor Company has received overall local project coordination and permitting assistance from the Polk County Office of Economic Development and will receive labor and training assistance from Enterprise Florida, the community college and Polk Works Workforce 2020.

Davenport's new High-Velocity Center is one of 19 such facilities that will be opened across the country. These centers will concentrate high-volume parts in locations close to dealers to provide daily delivery and improve parts availability for customers' repairs, while improving dealer inventory performance. Items distributed by these centers -_ such as filters and spark plugs -- account for more than 80 percent of dealers' needs for customer repairs.

The Davenport facility will supply vehicle service and repair parts to about 209 dealers in Florida and Southeast Georgia. Dealers will order from 30,000 part numbers stocked in Davenport, with 21,000 pieces picked and shipped to customers every day. The Davenport center will have about 60 employees, most transferring from other Ford Motor Company facilities.

New distribution centers in Memphis, Tenn.; Manteca (Sacramento), Calif.; Houston; Denver; Fort Worth, Texas; Phoenix; Ontario, Calif.; and Portland, Ore., have opened or are scheduled to begin operations by the end of this year. Ford also announced that it will open a new parts distribution center in Mebane, N.C., in July 2003. Other centers will be opened in key areas around the country through 2004. Specific locations will be announced as they are finalized.

(August 22, 2002)

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