CASE: ROMEO ENGINE PLANT (ABRIDGED)

1. What were the main objectives of the Romeo Engine Plant’s manufacturing strategy?
According to the Mission and Operating Philosophy of the Romeo Engine Plant (REP) Manufacturing Handbook of August 1989, “The Purpose of the Romeo Engine Plant is to produce the highest quality production engines in the world that meet all of our customers' requirements at a cost lower than the competition, and to develop teams of employees who are the best engine builders in the world.” Ford seemed to continue to use REP with the same objectives; only to market their brand instead of REP’s.
During 1992, REP produced 400,000 engines in two engine models: a 4.6 liter, 2 valve engine used in the Lincoln Town Car, Ford Crown Victoria, and Mercury Grand Marquis, and a 4.6 liter, 4 valve engine used in Ford Motor Company's Lincoln Mark VIII luxury car. Sales of these automobiles for Ford were strong and Ford Motor Company would continually introduce new car models that would use the Romeo engines; so REP was to be Ford’s captive supplier. By 1996 REP expected to produce more than 800,000 engines per year.

2. What specific initiatives did the management of Romeo implement to achieve these objectives?
REP was continuously striving towards better efficiency and high productivity. In this regard they were set target of increasing production from 400,000 engines per year in 1992 to reach at least 800,000 engines by 1996. This goal of increasing production output by 100% in 4 years was a gigantic task; which meant George Pfeil had to rethink the way REP produced engines in the past.
Considering the above goal, the following innovative initiatives were implemented to increase the efficiency of the plant. i. Improving the Quality control process with the goal of the costumer getting Zero Defect parts with minimum variation. a. The Romeo