The Iveco Defence Vehicles manufacturing facility in Sete Lagoas, Brazil and the New Holland Agriculture plant in Croix, France have both attained Bronze status in the World Class Manufacturing (WCM) program. This represents a significant achievement for Iveco Defence Vehicles and New Holland Agriculture, global brands of CNH Industrial N.V.. It is further testament to the success of the Company wide program aimed at achieving production process excellence through the combined efforts of its multifaceted workforce.
Inaugurated in 2013, the Sete Lagoas plant in Minas Gerais State, Brazil occupies 30,000 square meters and was the first facility outside of Europe to manufacture Iveco Defence Vehicles products. The plant produces the Armored Personnel Transport Vehicle (VBTP-MR), better known as the Guarani, the result of the brand’s successful partnership with the Brazilian Army. More than 450 units have been delivered to the military so far for use in peacekeeping missions and in operations to combat organized crime in the country’s border regions. The Sete Lagoas plant is structured around a complex manual production process which benefits from a highly trained and dedicated workforce.
The New Holland Agriculture plant in Croix, northern France manufactures tractor cab frames for all CNH Industrial agricultural brands, exporting them to their respective European assembly facilities. It also produces fully trimmed cabs for New Holland combine harvesters and foragers. It occupies 61,000 square meters, of which around 29,000 square meters are covered, and has a workforce of some 250 people.
World Class Manufacturing is one of the global manufacturing industry’s highest standards for the integrated management of manufacturing plants and processes. It is a pillar-structured system based on continuous improvement, designed to eliminate waste and loss from the production process by identifying objectives such as zero injuries, zero defects, zero breakdowns and zero waste. To certify improvements, a system of periodic third-party audits evaluates all WCM pillars, forming an overall score for each plant that is the basis for three achievement levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold.
The WCM audits in both Sete Lagoas and Croix noted progress and consistency across a variety of both manufacturing and managerial areas including Allocation of Highly Qualified People and Time and Budget leading to their Bronze Level designation.