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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Ford Establishes Ottawa, Canada Research and Engineering Centre

03/30/2017
Ford is expanding its Canadian research and development presence with plans to invest an additional C$500 million to establish a new Research and Engineering Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

According to Ford, “the additional 400 engineers, approximately 300 of whom will be based in Canada, more than doubles Ford's mobile connectivity engineering team. By doubling the size of the team, Ford will accelerate its pace of innovation, expand services to leverage the potential of the connected vehicle ecosystem and extend its connected vehicle technology leadership.”

"Connectivity is the critical component to the future of mobility," said Raj Nair, Ford Executive Vice President, Global Product Development & Chief Technical Officer. "Whether it's providing information to help reduce congestion in cities, allowing vehicles and infrastructure to communicate to keep us safer on the road or simply knowing all your personal settings when you enter a self-driving vehicle, connectivity is the key. By more than doubling our connectivity talent and establishing a research centre, we can innovate faster and deliver more software and services to exceed our customer's expectations."

The new Ottawa Research and Engineering Centre in Canada will focus on research and development across infotainment, in-vehicle modems, gateway modules, driver-assist features and autonomous vehicles. Additional facilities will be located in Waterloo and Oakville, Ontario, as well as Cary, North Carolina and Sunrise, Florida. This will be Ford's first centre focused on connectivity research and advanced technology in Canada, and it will serve global connectivity needs for Ford.

"Canada has reinforced its position in Ford's global operations as the company shifts to lead as both an auto and mobility company," said Joe Hinrichs, President of The Americas, Ford Motor Company. "With this commitment and the support from key strategic partners, we have established a strong future for the highly-skilled and talented employees across Canadian operations."

In the past six months, Ford has announced C$1.2 billion in Canadian investments, including a C$700 million investment in its manufacturing facilities. The company is transforming its Windsor Operations into a world-class engine facility and adding an all-new global engine program, supporting its future in Ford's global powertrain operations. Oakville Assembly Complex will continue to upgrade its facilities to support the production of one of Ford's most popular crossover utilities, the Ford Edge, which is exported from Canada to more than 100 countries.

"Working together with Unifor we were able to create a compelling package that is enabling us to make a significant investment in the Windsor site," said Bruce Hettle, Group Vice President, Manufacturing and Labour Affairs, Ford Motor Company. "This project will bring the latest levels of powertrain manufacturing innovation and flexible technology to our Canadian operations."

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