WCA May 2013

and, in Mexico, Fronteras Comunes; as well as to an investigative article in the Times . Soil collected by the Times in a school playground near a recycling plant outside Mexico City was found to have lead levels five times those allowed in the United States. “There’s a pretty consistent pattern suggesting that exports [of batteries] are the direct result of US emissions standards,” Perry Gottesfeld, executive director of Occupational Knowledge International, told Ms Rosenthal. He noted that a Mexican plant owned by a major American recycler puts out more than 30 times as much lead emissions as its newest plant in the United States. Apparently motivated by the damaging attention, the Milwaukee-based company said in an email to the Times that it was “modernising and reinvesting” in the Mexican facility, acquired in 2005, to reduce its environmental impact. “What Mexico needs to do is to get its recycling up to US standards,” said Mr Gottesfeld. “And the US needs to do a much better job of tracking batteries overseas.” ❖ The NAFTA report, which had been circulating in draft form, was forwarded in early February to the governments of the United States, Canada, and Mexico, which were given 60 days to register objections to its publication. A Ford investment in Cleveland is a sign of how much American carmakers have trimmed labour costs and improved productivity Ford Motor Co is adding 450 jobs and expanding an engine plant in Ohio to meet a growing demand for more fuel-efficient cars and SUVs in the American market. The second-largest US automaker after General Motors, said 21 st February that it would spend $200 million to renovate its Cleveland engine plant to produce small, turbocharged engines for use in its top-selling models. The move is the latest by American automakers to expand production at home, where sales had increased 14 per cent to that point this year compared with 2012. In January, GM announced plans to invest $600 million in its assembly plant near Kansas City, Kansas, one of the company’s oldest factories. And Chrysler, the smallest of the Detroit “Big Three,” is adding a third shift to its Jeep plant in Detroit. As noted by the International Herald Tribune “Wheels” blogger Bill Vlasic, the expansions are another tangible sign of the steady recovery in the American auto market, which fell to historic lows during the recent recession. Both GM and Chrysler declared bankruptcy in 2009 to qualify for government bailouts. While Ford survived the industry’s financial crisis without help, it cut thousands of jobs and shuttered several factories to reduce costs. (“Ramping Up US Production, Ford Expands in Ohio,” 21 st February). Automotive

But in Mr Vlasic’s view “the tide has turned in car showrooms” across the US, prompting automakers to “strategically increase output” in their remaining plants. In Ford’s case, he reported, the company added about 8,000 salaried and hourly jobs in 2012 and has said it plans to hire about 2,200 white-collar workers in 2013. Ford is also moving some production from Mexico to a Michigan plant, where it will add 1,200 jobs. “Just a few years ago, the company was forced to consolidate two engine plants into one in northern Ohio and to close a major component operation,” Mr Vlasic wrote. “The investment in Cleveland is indicative of how Ford and other carmakers have trimmed labour costs in the United States and improved productivity since the recession.” ❖ While Ford is adding jobs and production domestically, Mr Vlasic said that it is racing to reduce costs in its European division. Workers who previously built the company’s 2-litre EcoBoost engine in Spain, for shipment to America, will be moved to a nearby assembly plant that is taking on work from a plant to be closed in Belgium. Joe Hinrichs, the head of Ford’s Americas region, told the “Wheels” blogger that a new agreement with the United Automobile Workers union local in Cleveland paved the way for the expansion there. The plant now employs about 1,300 workers. “This is about servicing more demand in the United States,” Mr Hinrichs said. “And with our competitive labour agreements, we can bring business [here] from Spain and Mexico.” Other automotive news . . . ❖ Consumer demand for motor vehicles has bolstered business for US producers. February sales, reported 1 st March, show General Motors Co, Ford Motor Co, Chrysler Group LLC and Toyota Motor Corp all posting gains as low interest rates and more available credit drew buyers to dealerships. Cars and light trucks sold at a 15.2 million annual rate in January after 15.3 million a month earlier, according to Ward’s Automotive Group. November through January were the strongest three months in the American auto industry in five years. ❖ The recall announced on 16 th February by German automaker BMW – on indications that a battery cable connector could fail – involves nearly 570,000 1-Series, 3-Series, and Z4 late-model vehicles sold in the US and Canada. According to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the connector and a fuse box terminal in some models can degrade over time, possibly breaking the electrical connection between the trunk-mounted battery and the fuse box at the front of the car. Electrical power might be lost, causing the engine to stall unexpectedly. BMW said in documents sent to NHTSA that the problem stems from movement between the battery cable and the fuse box. BMW said it knew of one minor collision in Canada due to the problem, but no injuries. In March the company was to start notifying owners – 504,000 in the US, 65,000 in Canada – that its dealers will replace the battery cable connector and secure it free of charge.

53

www.read-wca.com

Wire & Cable ASIA – May/June 2013