Rouge Awakening

Ford Unveils New Green Assembly Plant

On the site of its nearly 90-year-old Rouge manufacturing complex, where workers once assembled Model A's, Ford Motor Co. yesterday unveiled its new Dearborn Truck Plant, touted as a model of 21st-century, eco-friendly manufacturing. The multibillion-dollar plant is chockablock with innovative features. A 10-acre "living roof" covered in sedum grass, a porous-paved parking lot, and human-made swales all reduce storm-water runoff, saving on sewer-building expenses. The grass roof also insulates the factory, reducing heating and cooling costs, while 36 skylights and 10 glass-walled rooftop window boxes direct sunlight to workers on the floor. A system distills paint fumes into hydrogen-rich gas, which powers fuel cells expected to save Ford some $100,000 a year in electricity costs. Green spaces and wildlife refuges surround the facility. CEO Bill Ford promised to roll the concepts out to all of Ford's plants if they "play out from an economic standpoint, and we believe they will." If only the trucks rolling off the assembly line were so green ...