Ford India has completed the capacity expansion at its Chennai Engine Plant in the state of Tamilnadu,increasing the production of diesel engines by 36%or 80,000 units to 340,000.
The company has invested$72m in Chennai plant for enhancing the crankshaft machining,cylinder head and cylinder block machining at the machine shop in addition to the procurement of new equipment which will allow the plant to handle more complex tasks.
Ford said that the additional capacity will allow the company to serve the increasing demand for diesel engines in India and the rise in exports to markets including South Africa,Thailand and Taiwan.
Currently,the plant produces 12 Duratec petrol engine variants and five Duratorq diesel engine variants,of which 40%are for export,the company said.
The facility features single flexible production line for manufacturing petrol and diesel engines,cold test,hot test and dyno test facility for petrol and diesel engines.
Ford said that the expansion of engine facilities is in move with the company's plans to launch eight new models by 2015.
