T Sharara

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March 13, 2025

Ford Global Technology & Business Center Wins ENR 2024 Global Best Projects Award

The Ford Global Technology & Business Center in Naucalpan, Mexico was named Best Project in the Office category of the ENR 2024 Global Best Projects competition. The facility includes a Ford corporate office center as well as the largest automotive engineering center in Mexico.

The project was designed with sustainability as a guiding principle. Spanning 19 hectares of land that includes a protected ecological zone, the complex operates a Zero Waste/Zero Discharge program. All waste is recycled or composted, and all wastewater is treated and reused to prevent discharge into the municipal sewer system. To maintain natural flow to the local dam and minimize erosion, the site includes an extensive stormwater drainage system. Site construction also included the protection and reforestation of 4.2 hectares of natural green area.

The Engineering News-Record’s annual ENR Global Best Projects Awards program honors the best construction projects in the world as well as the companies that design and build them. The awards shine a spotlight on the challenges, risks and rewards of designing and constructing in a wide range of locales around the globe.

June 6, 2024

Workplace Experience Extends Beyond Walls

When people think “workplace experience,” they usually picture indoor spaces like offices, factories, production facilities, etc. However, at Ford Land, we go further. We consider the total workplace experience – including the areas beyond our walls and ceilings that extend to the outside world surrounding our facilities. We think of it as being “nature positive,” meaning that we strive to not only halt, but reverse nature loss as we work to improve our human workspaces.

One great example is the commitment we’ve made to the city of Dearborn to replant two trees for every one we remove during the transformation of our central campus building. Doubling the tree canopy aligns with our overall sustainability design guidelines for the project. The goal is to make the campus more walkable, more beautiful, and more in harmony with nature and wildlife. For that same reason, we’re also incorporating native grasses and plants favored by local pollinators.

This is only the latest way we’re rethinking our place in the world at Ford Land. We recognize that the reduction of a commercial development’s carbon footprint should go beyond the facility itself and include its surrounding environment. Our goal is to do more than create workspaces that inspire teamwork and human well-being. They must also leave a more positive mark on the planet by being greener and more sustainable – in their daily operations, and in relation to the geographic location they call home.

April 3, 2024

July 13, 2023

120th Anniversary-Themed Tasting Menu Inspired by Henry Ford

To honor 120 years of mobility innovation, Ford is celebrating in new and exciting ways. One of the most unique is a special anniversary tasting menu based on 1930s-era recipes. This tasty bit of Ford history is available this summer through July 21st at Ford Land properties throughout Southeast Michigan as a special experience for employees to enjoy.

“We’re always focused on improving the workplace experience, and one of the ways to do that is through offering really good food,” said Ford Senior Executive Chef Scott Simpson. “Not only is Ford trying to find new ways to fuel the industry, we’re trying to find new ways to fuel the employees who are creating those vehicles.”

Inspired by a 1930s-era Ford soybean cookbook, as well as the former Ford Times magazine, the special 120th anniversary menu will feature items like soups, cheesecakes, the iconic Maurice Salad, and one of Henry Ford’s personal favorites: a delicious soybean chocolate chip cookie. The menu adds a unique element to Ford’s 120th anniversary, by modernizing classic recipes and bringing to life some much appreciated culinary history.

And that’s the goal: reviving the same excitement Henry Ford brought nearly a century ago. He was so impressed by the multifaceted uses of soybeans that he was willing to wear an entire outfit, made just from the beans. Not only were the soybeans versatile enough for what he needed, it became his mission to continually expand his knowledge and experiences. In his eyes, soybeans were protein rich, easy to grow and offered up many unique capabilities that extended beyond just the food. Before long he was serving dinner guests an all-soybean menu that included soybean cheese-stuffed celery, apple pie topped with soybean sauce, soybean coffee, and soybean ice cream.

Thanks to Henry Ford’s adventurous spirit, employees throughout Southeast Michigan are getting a taste of history with this time-honored culinary experience.

March 10, 2023

Workplace Design Conversation with Julia Calabrese

Workspaces have continued to evolve over the decades where new design trends emerge and cutting-edge research has taught us how spaces can affect a worker’s psychological state. As companies all over the world continue to evaluate their workplace strategies, the revamped Ford Experience Center in Dearborn, Michigan reflects some of the latest thinking around human-science driven workplace design.

In a sit-down interview with Density’s Nellie Hayat, Ford’s Global Design and Brand Manager Julia Calabrese breaks down her team’s approach to the new workspace in Dearborn. They discuss how workspaces continue to evolve and bring the future of arena into focus.

Watch the interview below to hear the nine guiding principles behind the ongoing Ford workplace transformation.

View the full video here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/nellie-hayat_design-brand-beyondwork-activity-6998718806604861440-xhZD?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

March 9, 2023

A Discussion on the Future of Workplace

The future of workspace is constantly changing and evolving. While no one can predict the future, companies must look for ways to maximize worker productivity and inspire teamwork.

Ford Global Design and Brand Director Jennifer Kolstad and Chief Futurist Sheryl Connelly spoke at Sandow Design Group’s Penn1 Talk in New York outlining what the future looks like for the Ford workspace. Interior Design’s Editor-in-Chief Cindy Allen moderated the engaging discussion on how research drove Ford’s approach and how design methodologies are shaping the future of workspace.

Watch the discussion here.

March 9, 2023

Interior Design Magazine Awards Ford Experience Center

The Ford Experience Center was honored at Interior Design’s 17th annual Best of Year Awards. The magazine gave the Dearborn workplace a winning spot in the “Office Transformation” category.

As a showcase for the Ford brand, the Ford Experience Center makes a memorable impression on visitors and employees with multi-sensory experiences. With textile patterns and various shades of blue, the building uses design components that are emblematic of both the Ford workplace and the emotional responses that transcend within and beyond the walls of design and infrastructure.

Read more about the honor on the Interior Design website.
https://interiordesign.net/designwire/interior-design-best-of-year-awards-2022-finalists/

December 15, 2022

Color Psychology: How “Ford Blue” impacts human behavior

Colors influence human psychology, and blue invokes numerous emotions.

Extensive research has proven that certain shades of blue are viewed as trustworthy, non-threatening, and can even promote productivity. Additional research on color and alertness has shown that blue light increases subjective alertness and performance on attention-based tasks. Making it perfect for a workspace.

Blue is a tone found in nature and even affects our physiology. This dynamic color is proven to lower pulse rates and body temperature. During color theory tests viewers have used the words “secure” and “orderly” when exposed to blue spaces.

All of this is to say that the Ford Blue color has been invoking these feelings for decades. Blue is often seen as a sign of stability and reliability, making it the perfect color to represent Ford’s values and culture.

December 8, 2022

Atlanta Research and Innovation Center

Ford Motor Company is opening the Ford Atlanta Research and Innovation Center (FARIC) to advance Ford Motor Company’s digital transformation in areas such as software-led connected vehicles, artificial intelligence, university research and more.

FARIC joins a network of Ford research and development facilities in Tel Aviv and Palo Alto, CA dedicated to pioneering the future of transportation with automated, connected, and electrified vehicles. The new Atlanta location places Ford in one of the most diverse tech talent markets in the U.S. and enables the company to develop a pipeline of software experts with a variety of backgrounds.

As the company undergoes the most profound transformation in its history, it remains committed to developing a workforce that reflects the communities and customers it serves. For Ford, this includes attracting and retaining historically underrepresented talent, especially in the software engineering and high technology fields.

Located within the new 8West development on Atlanta’s Upper West Side (889 Howell Mill Road NW), the 24,000-square-foot FARIC space is designed to surpass standard Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance with a thoughtful, accessible layout that supports inclusion, flexibility, collaboration, and innovation.

December 1, 2022

BlueOval City Breaks Ground

Ford has officially broken ground at BlueOval City in West Tennessee, its largest, most advanced auto production complex in the company’s 119-year history.

Structural steel is erected less than one year after Ford and SK on announced their $5.6 billion investment to build a revolutionary all-new electric truck and advanced batteries for future Ford and Lincoln vehicles. The nearly six-square-mile mega campus will create approximately 6,000 new jobs when production begins in 2025.

With construction underway at BlueOval City, Ford – America’s No. 2 electric vehicle brand – gets closer to its target of a 2 million EV production run rate globally by late 2026.

Ford continues to engage with communities in West Tennessee, including through livestreamed discussions and collaborative projects. Most significantly, the company is working with the University of Tennessee to restore the stream waters flowing through the University’s Lone Oaks Farm, and to expand STEM education to Tennessee students from kindergarten through 12th grade.