Ford Australia as an Innovative Company - Report Example

Innovative Company Name: University: Date: Table of Contents Ford Australia understands the richness of Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal cultures in addition to their distinctive knowledge and skills that this people bring to the company. The company is committed to improving the economic and social opportunities for Aboriginal Australians through offering stirring development as well as employment opportunities in various departments within the company. The company commitment to Aboriginals Australians has been recognised through Employability for Life program from its Indigenous Employment Strategy that resulted in awarding of the Diversity at Work Award as well as Corporate Leaders for Indigenous Employment Award Scheme. The Employability for Life program is a nine-week training program before employment, purposely for Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginals Australians (Purdie, Frigo, Stone, & Dick, 2006). Through discussions as well as research with aboriginals, Ford Australia established that behavioural issues, inadequate skills, and inconsistent histories of employment were the main factors that prevented most Indigenous people from accessing employment. Therefore, the Employability for Life program was specifically designed to solve such issues. The key objective of the program was to listen to, establish relationships with, as well as learn from Australian Indigenous communities (Purdie, Frigo, Stone, & Dick, 2006). Besides that, Ford Australia offers cross-cultural training programs to its workers, so as to change workers’ perceptions of Aboriginal culture and persons. Moreover, the processes of recruitment are reviewed regularly to make certain that there is continuous unbiased access for Aboriginal people. 11 1.0 Executive Summary The engineering profession expertise is important for converting ideas that are innovative into actuality for normal application. Majority of the comforts enjoyed by people these days have been as a consequence of innovative engineers. Some of these comforts include telecommunications infrastructure, transportation, electrical appliances, and constructions. Innovation may be described as new ideas application to the processes, products, or other facets of the company’s activities that result in improved value. Formerly, scores of organisations managed to endure even with exceedingly little amounts of innovation. Earlier engineering innovation enabled companies to offer high-quality products and easily modernize them to the required level for competitive advantage. This is still applicable to a number of products that have long lifecycles as well as few innovation opportunities. However, lately a number of trends have materialized, which are driving the process of innovation. Because of factors like outsourcing as well as globalisation, as it will be evidenced in the paper, there is a high push for enhanced effectiveness as well as efficiency for manufacturing companies. As indicated by engineers during the group interview, organisations require not just end products for continued existence; rather, they need processes of innovation, which may improve productivity as well as cut down costs. That is to say, engineering innovation is crucial for a continuous advancement of the company. The report has described how engineering innovations have impacted Ford Australia by profiling the recent innovative accomplishments within the company. Besides that, the Electronic Stability Control (ESC) has comprehensively been analysed, which is an engineering innovation adopted and implemented by Ford Australia. Pursuant to that, Ford Australia’s cross-cultural engagement policies have been explored. 2.0 Introduction Innovation according to Krautter, Lock, and Scanlon (2012) is an entrepreneurial tool, which offers entrepreneurs a way for exploiting change as an opportunity for a new service or business. Entrepreneurs must persistently look for innovation sources, the symptoms and change that point out successful innovation opportunities. Basically, entrepreneurship generates economic gain and maintains the economy afloat; thus, resulting in innovation significance in entrepreneurship. The significance of innovation in entrepreneurship is the main value for business durability. To remain successful in the ever changing marketplace, entrepreneurs have to keep themselves updated with the present demands and trends. While engineers are continually innovating so as to produce more and maintaining quality, entrepreneurs are diffusing the innovation to the global marketplace (Krautter, Lock, & Scanlon, 2012). Without a doubt, engineering innovations results in the company success, and as innovators, entrepreneurs see more than one solution to a specific need. They generate ideas and convert the ideas to multiple solutions. The main innovative company analysed in this report is Ford Australia, a subsidiary of Canada-based Ford Motor Company, which produces distributes, and imports passenger vehicles in addition to commercial and four-wheel drive vehicles (Ford Australia, 2014). 3.0 Recent Innovative Achievements of Ford Australia Basically, there are numerous latest innovative achievements made by Ford Australia: first achievement is Active City Stop. In stop-start city traffic, a lot of things can distract drivers, and as a result, anything can happen; so, Active City Stop is an innovation that detect if the vehicle in front has not moving and automatically stop by applying the brakes. According to Ford Australia engineers, Active City Stop was designed purposely to assist in avoiding a rear-end collision or lessen its impact through automatic brakes application, if needed (Ford Australia, 2014). A Light Detection and Ranging sensor installed at the windscreen is tasked with scanning the area in front for other cars in slow traffic. In this case, the sensor can capture fifteen images, monitor and measure whether the traffic has stopped or is slowing, in a second. In case the sensor establishes a looming collusion, the brakes are pre-charged, and if nothing are done by the driver to avoid colliding, Active City Stop automatically applies the brakes. Furthermore, the system is deactivated when the car is accelerated or navigated to evade a collision. Another innovation by Ford Australia is the Adaptive Cruise Control Cruise that enables the driver to cruise in traffic through evaluating the traffic ahead as well as managing the speed of the car as the distance changes. The innovative system helps solves the challenge of the driver turning cruise on and off so as to adjust to the varying traffic. The system permits the driver to set the distance he/she desire to keep between him/her and the car in the lead, and also help to set the cruise speed. In this case, the driver has four distinct length gaps to select from, and the system’s radar scans the cars in front automatically when it is activated. In operation, the system reduces automatically the car speed upon detecting a slower car in order that the gap that has been selected between the car and the car in the lead is retained. Torque Vectoring Control is another engineering innovation noticeable at Ford Australia, and is useful for balancing speed and braking for enhanced handling, even in conditions that are less manageable. According to the engineers, in a corner, G-forces always transfer more adhesive friction to the car’s outside wheels as compared to the inner wheels, and so when a corner is taken too fast, under-steering can take place; thus, making the car to slide to the outer turning edge, instead of going in the desired direction (Ford Australia, 2014). Therefore, utilising the braking system so as to duplicate the torque vectoring differential effect, the Torque Vectoring Control engages prior to the spinning of the wheel. For this reason, more light brake force is used to the wheel in the front inside once it starts losing grip; thus, more engine torque is transferred to the outside wheel, which has more grip. In consequence, this increases traction in the desired direction and enhances the ability to steer the inside tyre. EcoBoost engine technology is a remarkable innovation by Ford Australia that has surprised all and sundry including the cynics. Whereas the technology delivers improved fuel economy, its power output is derived from the conventional petrol engine. In this innovation, an integration of turbocharging and direct fuel injection has resulted in EcoBoost’s small engine big power as well as fuel efficiency. This has also been boosted by Ti-VCT (Twin independent variable camshaft timing). According to the interviewed engineers, EcoBoost engines are capable of reducing fuel consumption by almost 20 per cent and are helpful in reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. Based on direct fuel injection, the engineers posit that all fuel drops are burnt through injection of an accurate amount of fuel that is highly pressurised into every engine cylinder’s combustion chamber. Moreover, an electronic control system changes the intensity as well as timing of each injection so as to equal the operating conditions of the engine. This as a result, enhances the efficiency of the fuel and delivers better functionality. Another crucial technology in EcoBoost engine is turbocharging, which utilises the exhaust gases of the engine so as to push air that is more highly compressed into the engine. In this case, when the combustion chamber has more air, the power out is higher. In cooperation with variable cam timing, turbocharging produces high torque and preserves peak power in a long distance. This according to the interviewed engineers offers instant responsive power when the car is accelerated. 4.0 Engineering Innovation Adopted and Implemented by Ford Australia Electronic Stability Control (ESC) was adopted and implemented by Ford Australia as an innovative technology for safety driving. Essentially, since the roads are every time busier, Ford Australia had to make immediate manoeuvres so to facilitate safety. In this case, ESC was purposely designed in order to assist prevent sliding or skidding sideways when driving in bad conditions or while taking evasive action. In this case, electronic stability control (ESC) is a high-tech technology which seeks to improve the stability of the car by spotting and decreasing skidding (loss of traction). When instability is detected by ESC, the brakes are applied automatically so as to assist in steering the vehicle in the desired direction. In this regard, automatic brake application takes place to individual wheels, for example in the inner rear wheel for countering understeering or outer front wheel for countering oversteering. In addition, Ford Australia’s ESC system reduces the power of the engine until the vehicle control is regained. ESC is not intended for improving the cornering performance of the vehicle; rather, it assists in minimising the loss of the vehicle control. The system measures the steering input of the driver against the yaw angle of the vehicle as well as the wheels’ traction. In case there are differences, the brakes are automatically applied to the wheels or one wheel that steers the vehicle to the desired direction. At times, the engine throttle is reduced in order to stop power slips and enable brakes to work effectively The effectiveness of this system has been noticed by numerous automakers, whereby ESC was offered to almost 85% of vehicles manufactured in 2010. This feature is common in sport utility vehicles (SUVs), which are a group of cars that experiences much deadly rollover crashes. Given that SUVs turn in a corner sharply, their higher centre of gravity exposes them to fatal rollover, as compared to other cars. Even though ESC system does not have the ability to detect an looming rollover, the system according to the interviewed engineers can assist in preventing conditions that result in such accidents. ESC abilities are derived from Roll Stability Control, which is the system that that surpass Esc ability and essentially detects a looming rollover. The Roll Stability Control first appeared in Ford’s Volvo XC90 SUV, and the system has since then disseminated to other Ford models and brands like the Ford Explorer and Expedition, as well as Navigator and Lincoln MKX. ESC in monitors the behaviour of the vehicle, considering the yaw sensors and acceleration, steering angle, as well as allows for automatic application of brakes to specific wheels in case over or understeering is detected. Furthermore, ESC contains a number of safety features, and this relies on the model of the vehicle. The first safety feature is the traction control, which regulates torque (engine power) to the driving wheels so as to assist in maximising the wheels’ grip or traction on loose or slippery driving surfaces, regardless of the speed. In other conditions, brake pressure is as well applied. Another feature in ESC is the Anti-Lock Braking System, which stops the vehicle’s wheels from locking after braking abruptly. The brakes are pumped electronically by the Anti-Lock Braking System numerous times per second after the sensors have detected the wheels locking in order to modulate the pressure of the brake. Another crucial future of ESC is the Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD), which by design stabilises the rear and front wheels’ brake force prior to activation of the Anti-Lock Braking System, in case the rear wheels are locked. Furthermore, EBD enhances performance of the brake through brake force adjustment under various loads. The last important safety feature of ESC is the Brake Assist, which senses when the driver suddenly applies the brake, but not adequately to stop the car Brake Assist in this case, applies the desired pressure to the brakes so as to maximise the reduction of speed and assist in reducing the stopping distance. 5.0 Aspects of Diffusion and Entrepreneurship Related To the Innovation Basically, innovation diffusion concept normally connotes the dissemination of creative ideas from one culture or society to another. In this case, entrepreneurs play a crucial role in innovation diffusion between societies, which is evidently a crucial process in cultural evolution. According to Rogers (2003), innovation diffusion is imperative since it facilitates transfer of knowledge to societies that lack that knowledge. Innovation is a combination of scores of skills, and takes time to be developed, so it is not easy to invent everything at one time. In this case, it is much easier to get or acquire innovation from a different culture or society as compared to individually making the innovation. In this case, entrepreneurship plays a crucial role, in transferring innovation from one society to another, one country to another country, or from one continent to another continent. Entrepreneurs help societies’ trade techniques as well as ideas, and commodities, and as a consequence, the acquired ideas are modified to invent products that are productive and durable (Miller & Garnsey, 2000). For decades, entrepreneurship has remained to be the key innovation diffusion driver both at international and local levels. Through innovation diffusion, economy has improved and employment has been created. Sometimes, entrepreneurs are the innovators and when they expand their business internationally, the innovation they have invented is disseminated in all locations they operate. 6.0 Organization’s Cross-Cultural Awareness Policies Ford Australia understands the richness of Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal cultures in addition to their distinctive knowledge and skills that this people bring to the company. The company is committed to improving the economic and social opportunities for Aboriginal Australians through offering stirring development as well as employment opportunities in various departments within the company. The company commitment to Aboriginals Australians has been recognised through Employability for Life program from its Indigenous Employment Strategy that resulted in awarding of the Diversity at Work Award as well as Corporate Leaders for Indigenous Employment Award Scheme. The Employability for Life program is a nine-week training program before employment, purposely for Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginals Australians (Purdie, Frigo, Stone, & Dick, 2006). Through discussions as well as research with aboriginals, Ford Australia established that behavioural issues, inadequate skills, and inconsistent histories of employment were the main factors that prevented most Indigenous people from accessing employment. Therefore, the Employability for Life program was specifically designed to solve such issues. The key objective of the program was to listen to, establish relationships with, as well as learn from Australian Indigenous communities (Purdie, Frigo, Stone, & Dick, 2006). Besides that, Ford Australia offers cross-cultural training programs to its workers, so as to change workers’ perceptions of Aboriginal culture and persons. Moreover, the processes of recruitment are reviewed regularly to make certain that there is continuous unbiased access for Aboriginal people. 7.0 Engineer Functioning As an Innovator at Ford Australia Environment The automotive industry has experienced a tumultuous decade, and this has mainly been attributed to engineers functioning as innovators. Engineering innovation is vitally crucial to the development of any manufacturing company, and so it offers a path for improving living standards, and is also an important competitiveness source. Engineers at Ford Australia are making enormous contributions to productivity growth as well as research and development, and this has been the main factor for continued success in the company. Innovators at Ford Australia have assisted the company to promptly discover the existing and upcoming opportunities, and consequently, the company has managed to develop cars that enable it to effectively and rapidly meet the present and future demand. Besides that, engineers, as innovators have helped Ford Australia remain competitive, and remain updated to the trend shift in the technology market. Innovators at the company so not just focus on designing innovative products, rather the also concentrate on company’s practices and processes so as to improve product efficiency, reduce waste, and improve productivity. By constantly innovating, engineers have successfully improved Ford Australia’s business practices and also managed to introduce applicable technologies such as EcoBoost engine technology that improve fuel efficiency. 8.0 Circumstances Hindering or facilitating Innovation at Ford Australia As mentioned by a number of engineers, the training level in technical, engineering as well as science education in addition to the research and development level in Australia are without a doubt the greatest facilitators of innovation creating an environment for driving productivity forward. For this reason, Ford Australia top management must concentrate on the training level of the employees in its various departments. This may be achieved somewhat by promoting on-the-job training, which is widely utilised form of training in automotive industry. Besides that, the researchers and contractors working with the company must as well be more engaged in research and development with the intention of improving activities that are related to innovation, which result in improved productivity. The company must always offer funding for research and development. With regard to hindrances of innovation, Shavinina (2003) posits that market size as well as well as government policies are barriers to innovation and may result in low productivity. In this case, Ford Australia must consider the broadening automotive market and start investing in areas in new areas that they have never invested previously so as to improve their competitive advantage. 9.0 Diagrammatic Model of Ford Australia Innovation Process for Engineering Innovation 10.0 Conclusion In conclusion it has been argued that, Ford Australia has developed an organisation with innovative culture, wherein everyone contributes to new development of product either through R&D or through committing and focussing on their role. Basically, in engineering innovation has assisted Ford Australia to constantly remain competitive, and also to develop and diffuse new technologies such as EcoBoost engine technology. Electronic Stability Control is a crucial innovation adopted by Ford Australia that has not just improved steering ability, but has also helped improve safety while driving. 11.0 References Ford Australia. (2014). Ford Australi. Retrieved from Ford Motor Company of Australia Limited: http://www.ford.com.au/ Krautter, M., Lock, M. B., & Scanlon, M. G. (2012). The Entrepreneurial Librarian: Essays on the Infusion of Private-Business Dynamism into Professional Service. McFarland, California: McFarland. Miller, D., & Garnsey, E. (2000). Entrepreneurs and technology diffusion How diffusion research can benefit from a greater understanding of entrepreneurship. Technology in Society, 22, 445–465. Purdie, N., Frigo, T., Stone, A., & Dick, W. (2006). ENHANCING EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR INDIGENOUS VICTORIANS. Victoria: Australian Council for Educational Research . Rogers, E. M. (2003). Diffusion of Innovations (5th ed.). New York: Simon and Schuster. Shavinina, L. V. (2003). The International Handbook on Innovation. London: Elsevier. 12.0 Appendices Letter to the Company Seeking Co-Operation Ford Motor Company of Australia: 1735 Sydney Road Private Mail Bag 6 Campbellfield VIC 3061 Name University Address To Senior Manager: I am asking for permission to interview a number of Engineers in your company for the current project “Innovation in engineering and Entrepreneurship.” I abide by the rules and regulations of the company, and only intend to collect data about innovation engineering utilised by Ford Australia. Your support in facilitating me to finish this research will vastly be appreciated. Yours Sincerely, Letter of Gratitude to Company Management Date Name Address Ford Motor Company of Australia: 1735 Sydney Road Private Mail Bag 6 Campbellfield VIC 3061 Dear Senior Manager: I am offering my gratitude and appreciation through this letter for permitting your senior engineers to take part in the study about “Entrepreneurship and Engineering Innovation.” The very cooperative and the feedback have widened my knowledge concerning the topic. Thanks a lot. Sincerely yours, Name: Signature Challenges faced in producing the required information Since the interview was a group interview, some opinions were bogus because of the psychological pressure due of what other engineers will think of them. It was hard to produce quantitative data and carry out comprehensive statistical analysis due to the small number of participants who took part. A lesson learnt is that innovation in engineering is crucially important for the reason that it aid corporations maintain their competitive advantage as well as improve productivity. Besides that, it was learnt that entrepreneurs are the main facilitators of innovation diffusion, and in consequence they keep the economy afloat and offer employment opportunities Competencies Demonstrated Competency Extent (From important to less important) Discernment of knowledge development and research directions within the engineering discipline. Application of systematic engineering synthesis and design processes. Conceptual understanding of the, mathematics, numerical analysis, statistics, and computer and information sciences which underpin the engineering discipline. Creative, innovative and pro-active demeanor Fluent application of engineering techniques, tools and resources. Knowledge of contextual factors impacting the engineering discipline Effective oral and written communication in professional and lay domains. Interview Questions 1. What drives innovation at Ford Australia? 2. Is engineering innovation important? 3. What different innovations have been accredited or adopted by Ford Australia? 4. What safety measures have been implemented to make sure all cars manufactured by Ford Australia are Safe? 5. What is the significance of research and development in engineering innovation? 6. What makes Ford Australia cars unique from others? 7. How has adoption and implementation of Electronic Stability Control improved the company productivity and safety for end-users? 8. Are there any programs implemented by company to promote diversity and employment of Indigenous Australians? Read More

To remain successful in the ever changing marketplace, entrepreneurs have to keep themselves updated with the present demands and trends. While engineers are continually innovating so as to produce more and maintaining quality, entrepreneurs are diffusing the innovation to the global marketplace (Krautter, Lock, & Scanlon, 2012). Without a doubt, engineering innovations results in the company success, and as innovators, entrepreneurs see more than one solution to a specific need. They generate ideas and convert the ideas to multiple solutions.

The main innovative company analysed in this report is Ford Australia, a subsidiary of Canada-based Ford Motor Company, which produces distributes, and imports passenger vehicles in addition to commercial and four-wheel drive vehicles (Ford Australia, 2014). 3.0 Recent Innovative Achievements of Ford Australia Basically, there are numerous latest innovative achievements made by Ford Australia: first achievement is Active City Stop. In stop-start city traffic, a lot of things can distract drivers, and as a result, anything can happen; so, Active City Stop is an innovation that detect if the vehicle in front has not moving and automatically stop by applying the brakes.

According to Ford Australia engineers, Active City Stop was designed purposely to assist in avoiding a rear-end collision or lessen its impact through automatic brakes application, if needed (Ford Australia, 2014). A Light Detection and Ranging sensor installed at the windscreen is tasked with scanning the area in front for other cars in slow traffic. In this case, the sensor can capture fifteen images, monitor and measure whether the traffic has stopped or is slowing, in a second. In case the sensor establishes a looming collusion, the brakes are pre-charged, and if nothing are done by the driver to avoid colliding, Active City Stop automatically applies the brakes.

Furthermore, the system is deactivated when the car is accelerated or navigated to evade a collision. Another innovation by Ford Australia is the Adaptive Cruise Control Cruise that enables the driver to cruise in traffic through evaluating the traffic ahead as well as managing the speed of the car as the distance changes. The innovative system helps solves the challenge of the driver turning cruise on and off so as to adjust to the varying traffic. The system permits the driver to set the distance he/she desire to keep between him/her and the car in the lead, and also help to set the cruise speed.

In this case, the driver has four distinct length gaps to select from, and the system’s radar scans the cars in front automatically when it is activated. In operation, the system reduces automatically the car speed upon detecting a slower car in order that the gap that has been selected between the car and the car in the lead is retained. Torque Vectoring Control is another engineering innovation noticeable at Ford Australia, and is useful for balancing speed and braking for enhanced handling, even in conditions that are less manageable.

According to the engineers, in a corner, G-forces always transfer more adhesive friction to the car’s outside wheels as compared to the inner wheels, and so when a corner is taken too fast, under-steering can take place; thus, making the car to slide to the outer turning edge, instead of going in the desired direction (Ford Australia, 2014). Therefore, utilising the braking system so as to duplicate the torque vectoring differential effect, the Torque Vectoring Control engages prior to the spinning of the wheel.

For this reason, more light brake force is used to the wheel in the front inside once it starts losing grip; thus, more engine torque is transferred to the outside wheel, which has more grip. In consequence, this increases traction in the desired direction and enhances the ability to steer the inside tyre. EcoBoost engine technology is a remarkable innovation by Ford Australia that has surprised all and sundry including the cynics.

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