Ferrari Mailing List: Re : Re: I visited THE factory

[mysavard (mysavard]

   I got a LOT of pictures of test cars getting in and out of the
   factory. The ideal spot is at the entrance on MUSSO street and all day
   long they keep coming in and out non-stop. I even got to see a
   TESTAROSSA (late 50s). Very small and noisy car. I'll arrange to send
   some of them to the list when I get back home at the end of july.
   Michael Savard (1981 308 GTSi)
   ----- Message d'origine -----
   De: LS <lashdeep [at] yahoo.com>
   Date: Vendredi, 17 Juillet 2009, 19:05
   Objet: Re: [Ferrari] I visited THE factory
   À: mysavard [at] videotron.ca
   Cc: The FerrariList <ferrari [at] ferrarilist.com>
   >
   > Awesome post...
   >
   > Any top secret pics???
   >
   > :)
   >
   > I would love to see what's in their trash dumpster.
   >
   > LS
   >
   >
   >
   > ----- Original Message ----
   > From: "mysavard [at] videotron.ca" <mysavard [at] videotron.ca>
   > To: LS <lashdeep [at] yahoo.com>
   > Cc: The FerrariList <ferrari [at] ferrarilist.com>
   > Sent: Friday, July 17, 2009 12:12:10 PM
   > Subject: [Ferrari] I visited THE factory
   >
   >
   >    July 15th  will always be a special
   > anniversary for me. This is the
   >    date I visited THE factory. Below is a long account
   > of my 3 hours and
   >    30 minutes visit. They gave us a notebook to write
   > a few notes as the
   >    guide was talking and as we listened to the audio.
   > I' m writing this
   >    as I'm reading my notes. No camera allowed.
   >    Here it is:
   >    Don't forget as you read my numbers that the
   > factory has 1 8-hour
   >    shift. 5h00 pm comes and EVERYBODY leaves at the
   > same time. No weekend
   >    shift and plenty of vacations for everybody.
   >
   >    14h30 GALLERIA visit: I've been there 5 times now
   > and they ALWAYS have
   >    something new. It's worth going in.
   >    15h15 ENGINE DEPARTMENT: 70 engines a year. 40
   > Maserati and 30
   >    Ferrari. Lots of plants and trees inside,
   > temperature and humidity is
   >    computer controlled. 75 db, is a bit noisy though.
   > 25% V-12 and 75%
   >    V-8. It takes 35 days to built 1 crankshaft. Place
   > is amazingly clean.
   >    Only 70 people work here. Lots and lots of robots
   > and computers.
   >    15h55 PAINT SHOP: 70 (40 Maseratis, 30 Ferraris)
   > cars a day are
   >    painted. First by humans to make sure all the
   > little holes and corners
   >    are done. Then the car moves forward and robot-arms
   > do their job. When
   >    I was there, they were doing a black car (don't
   > remember which model),
   >    and the very next one was a red California. They
   > can switch paint with
   >    the same robot-arms just like that in a minute. 130
   > employes. Most
   >    popular colors are red 45%, black, silver, yellow
   > and right now white
   >    is becoming very popular.
   >    HISTORICAL ASSEMBLY LINE (OLD PRODUCTION LINE):
   > Before you get to the
   >    line, on the right they have the engine testing
   > section. Each V-8 is
   >    tested for 40 minutes and the V-12 for 1 hour,
   > Ferrari and Maserati
   >    engines. Of course they have modernized it. But
   > it's a very tight
   >    place. As we walked along the line, it was
   > fantastic to see the
   >    workers assembling the cars, the real stuff. A V-8
   > car takes 4 days to
   >    assemble with the line moving forward every 40
   > minutes on 45 stations,
   >    there is a clock that tells the employes how much
   > time they have left
   >    to finish their job.U.S. market is 27%, Italy and
   > Germany 11% each,
   >    they have 52 markets around the world. Employes
   > might switch jobs
   >    (stations) 7-8 times a year. So, they don't do the
   > same thing over and
   >    over again for a whole year. Each car is tested for
   > 50 km, they have
   >    10 test drivers.
   >    UPHOLSTERY-LEATHER DEPT: 60 employes, 12 color
   > options, 75% of work
   >    made by hand. Mostly women, we actually saw them
   > stitching leather and
   >    putting leather on dashboards.
   >    NEW ASSEMBLY LINE: Absolutely very high-tech. Cars
   > are hung in the air
   >    by some sort of a crank and lowered onto work
   > stations that
   >    adjust themselves so the employes don't have to
   > stretch and bend to
   >    work. As you walk the line, suddenly the whole
   > floor (red) besides you
   >    moves forward every 30 minutes, 50 stations, 15
   > cars a day. 3
   >    days to complete a car. Containers on wheels are
   > brought to the
   >    mechanics on the moving floor and when they are
   > empty of parts,
   >    another one is brought in. 8-hour a day shift.
   > Another section in the
   >    same dept. was for the assembling and testing of
   > dashboards.   AGV Automatic Guided Vehicle: There are
   > lots of them. They are like
   >    giant inflated mattresses moving around following a
   > laser under the
   >    floor. So you never see a human actually moving it.
   > They use them to
   >    put the engine\transmission\driveshaft\4 corners,
   > etc together and
   >    then that thing moves by itself to go under a car
   > that's waiting on
   >    the next assembly line. It was 5h00 pm as we
   > finished there, so we saw
   >    all the employes leaving at the same time with us.
   >    RACING DEPARTMENT: We walked through the engine
   > assembly garage. A
   >    mechanic was actually putting a Formula 1 engine
   > together. First thing
   >    I notice they are very small, 2.4 L V-8, 100 kg,
   > 18000, 750hp. Ferrari
   >    has around 2,800 employes, F1 alone has 900
   > employes. That's basically
   >    900 people for 2 cars. They'll make about 100
   > engines for the year.
   >    They supply Torro Rosso and Force India.
   >    Next was the car assembly bays. Felippe Massa's car
   > was there, he had
   >    finished 3rd in Germany. It had been dismantle a
   > lot by the mechanics.
   >    No wheels, no A-arms, no wings, just the body. Same
   > with Kimi's car.
   >    It takes about 3 days to assemble one F1. We saw
   > lots of sidepods,
   >    wings. They'll built 6 to 8 cars in a season and
   > will sell them to
   >    special clients after the season. At the end I saw
   > a mechanic working
   >    on those wheel covers that all F1 teams have now. I
   > finally figured
   >    how it was made. It was about 10 inches from me.
   >    17h30 F1 CLIENTI: It's just by the Fiorano track
   > (3km long). Since
   >    1970, Ferrari has sold about 200 racing cars. Over
   > 60 Formula 1 cars
   >    were in this garage. Awesome display. There were 3
   > 3-seat Formula 1
   >    cars. Yes, that's right 3 seats on a F1. Normal
   > position for the
   >    driver with 2 other seats where the sidepods are,
   > just a bit behind
   >    the driver on each side. These are owned by Philip
   > Morris and are used
   >    ONLY on the Fiorano track for their clients. One F1
   > had a sticker
   >    DUBAI STORE. All red, no publicity on it.
   >    17h45 FXX PROGRAM: There were 13 out of the 29 made
   > in that garage.
   >    Michael Schumacher's #30 was there. I wonder if he
   > paid for it. Now
   >    they have 860 hp.
   >    18h00 Finally, we finished at the FERRARI STORE
   > where we all got a 10%
   >    discount.
   >    Ferrari gets about 12,000 visitors a year, they can
   > have 4 groups a
   >    day sometimes. Very busy between March and July,
   > September to
   >    November. Owners visit, but also people from their
   > sponsors   We had a group of 18. I don't know why most
   > people stay in Modena and
   >    even as far as Bologna. I've always stayed in
   > Maranello itself. Plenty
   >    of good hotels, never had to make a reservation
   > either. Right now I'm
   >    in a Best Western Hotel Domus in Piazza Liberta for
   > 52 Euros a day.
   >    Plus, you live with the locals and all day long you
   > meet real employes
   >    from the factory. Plenty of restaurants too. All
   > day long you see
   >    Ferraris in an endless parade. Don't forget that
   > you also see the ones
   >    been tested.
   >
   >    Hope you enjoy this long reading!
   >
   >    Michael Savard 1981 308 GTSi
   >
   >
   >
   >