Product Development

In Ford's Global Product Development System, environmental objectives – including targets for fuel economy, vehicle emissions, the use of recycled materials and renewable materials, and restrictions on substances of concern – are defined at the outset of the design process for every new Ford vehicle. We track our progress toward these targets throughout the product development process. The targets are broken down from the vehicle level to the supplier or component level, and they enter into each contractual agreement signed between Ford and its suppliers. As part of our One Ford global integration process, we are developing targets for a range of vehicle attributes, such as fuel economy, quality and safety, which will make our vehicles either leaders or among the leaders with competitor vehicles in the same segments. We develop these competitive vehicle attribute targets for every vehicle program to deliver on key customer demands and Ford strategies by using a range of consumer data, internal brand data and competitor vehicle data. Based on this process, we have determined that beginning with the 2010 model year, all of our new vehicles will be the best in class or among the best in class for fuel economy in their segment. We have already begun to implement this product attribute leadership; as of May 2009, all of our 2010 model year vehicles released in 2009, and many of our 2009 model year vehicles, meet this commitment. For examples of our 2009 and 2010 vehicles that meet this commitment, please see "Delivering More Fuel-Efficient Vehicles."

We use our Design for Environment (DfE) tool to bridge the gap between product development and environmental management. DfE uses simplified life-cycle assessments and costings, substance restrictions, checklists and other tools to identify and reduce significant impacts. We are continuing to broaden the range of issues we consider in our product development process as we move from Design for Environment to Design for Sustainability (DfS). Ford of Europe's Product Sustainability Index is incorporating DfS principles, in order to improve each vehicle's environmental, social and economic performance.