Chrysler Tweaks the Line to Hike Ram Truck Production

Ram assembly line in 2013

Chrysler Group LLC has modified the assembly process for its popular Ram 1500 pickup truck to deliver an additional 28,600 units of annual production at its assembly plant in Warren, Mich.

Chrysler reviewed operations at more than 353 assembly work stations at the factory. The company says it collected almost 7,000 suggestions about how to improve efficiency. It eliminated 100 issues that could cause injury and made some 300 improvements to assembly ergonomics.

On the chassis line, for example, larger and heavier components are now automatically positioned directly in front of the operator, thus streamlining the installation process. The result: an additional five trucks per hour of output.

The Warren complex also has sharply reduced the amount of non-value-added walking formerly required by operators to retrieve the parts and tools they need. Now the required parts are collected into kits that ride in the truck itself and are retrieved as needed.

Parts kits for the three engines made at the plant are now color-coded so operators can instantly confirm that each kit's contents matches the powerplant being assembled.

Chrysler says the tweaks aim at enabling workers to focus on the actual assembly process by being handed the parts they need.