PHOTOS: Chrysler’s Windsor Assembly Plant Transformed As Pacifica Launches

Friday May 6th, 2016, 11:49am

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The Windsor Assembly Plant has been transformed to handle today’s launch of the Chrysler Pacifica.

The Plant, a mainstay in the community for the past 88 years, has produced more than 10 million minivans since their launch in 1983.

Over $1 billion was invested to upgrade facility with state-of-the-art technology, and Chrysler brought on more than 1,200 new employees since September 2014 to prepare for the launch.

A new type of assembly line – the skillet system – was introduced to the plant for producing the Pacifica. It features automatic raising and lowering of the vehicle to improve ergonomics for workers. The line currently produces both the Pacifica and the older model of minivan.

General Assembly Launch Manager Brad Cullen explains the benefits of the skillet system.

A worker loads parts onto a robot in the body shop area. More than 80 percent of the body shop equipment is new or has been modified. In total, 822 new robots were added, 19 lines are all new, five lines were retooled and more than 1.3 miles of conveyors were upgraded.

FCA added a 32,000-square-foot Component Center as part of the plant’s body shop. The goal of the Component Center is to allow engineers to efficiently solve problems, identify all sources of build variation – even when components appear perfect to the naked eye – and resolve any fit and finish issues before customer vehicles are built.

In addition to the Component Center, Chrysler built a new Complete Technical Vehicle Validation (CTVV) and Materials Laboratory. The purpose of the CTVV is to perform customer-focused audits on functional aspects of the vehicle. The CTVV puts eight vehicles each day through a full audit program, measuring and monitoring over 175 functional requirements on the new Pacifica and 165 on the Grand Caravan, including door closing efforts, audio testing, heating and cooling performance, and lighting performance.