Ford Rouge Factory Tour

WITH GREAT PRIDE

The need to lead is strong at the Dearborn Truck Plant

COREY WILLIAMS HAS BEEN a part of the Dearborn Truck Plant management team for nearly four years, promoted to plant manager in January 2021. And he’s worked at many Ford facilities in a variety of management positions over the 25-plus years he’s been with Ford. He’ll tell you with conviction that the Dearborn Truck Plant (DTP), where the Ford F-150 is built and The Henry Ford’s Ford Rouge Factory Tour welcomes thousands of visitors a year, is unlike anywhere else in the world.

“Every Ford plant has the same goals, metrics and objectives — we all want to deliver the best, highest-quality product to the customer that we can,” said Williams. “But at Dearborn Truck, the culture is different. And when I say different, I mean everyone here understands that we are building America’s bestselling truck and the sense of pride in that is like no other.

“Everybody knows that we are leaders, never followers,” he added. “That if it can be done, it will be done at DTP — at not only the highest rate and volumes but with the greatest efficiency.”

That attitude and mental mantra fit perfectly with Williams’ persona. He’s not afraid to admit he’s an ultracompetitive guy who feeds off having to face the next challenge.

“I’ve been a sports guy my entire life,” he said. “I love to compete and like the idea of a team — the collaborative part of it and how you have to work together toward a common goal.”

And when asked about the new set of players — vehicles as well as workers — that are now ready to call the Ford Rouge Complex home along with DTP, Williams couldn’t be more excited. In 2022, the new Rouge Electric Vehicle Center is slated to open, employing hundreds of new hires and manufacturing both batteries and the all-new battery-electric F-150. “Not a day goes by that people don’t ask me about our new hybrid, the EV center and electric truck — the buzz and amazement just grows,” said Williams. “It’s a huge step in continuing our truck leadership and dominance. We are changing the game.”

— JENNIFER LAFORCE

ONLINE For the most up-to-date information, hours and pricing for the Ford Rouge Factory Tour, visit thf.org/rougec

PLAY TO WORK

Corey Williams, plant manager at Dearborn Truck Plant, will tell you that playing team sports in his younger years is a key precursor to his manufacturing management skills today. “Involving yourself in team events where you need to collaborate and compete as a team toward a common objective is extremely relevant from a STEM standpoint,” he said.

The Henry Ford Magazine also asked members of Ford Motor Company’s vehicle launch team and the Ford Rouge Factory Tour what games, TV shows, toys, etc., they remember growing up that helped spark their interest in STEM and manufacturing.

James Housel, bodyshop launch manager: “Saturday morning cartoons watching ‘Wile E. Coyote, SUUUUUUPER Genius.’” The cartoon character is always obtaining crazy gizmos from fictional mail-order company Acme in the hopes of capturing the Road Runner.

Cynthia Jones, The Henry Ford’s innovation experiences general manager: “I loved to play the board games Risk and Clue. Both of those helped me identify patterns, test hypotheses, set strategy goals and learn from failure.” Like Williams, Jones, a dedicated swimmer through high school, credits competitive sports too.

Doug Plond, operations manager, Ford Rouge Factory Tour: “As a really young tyke, I loved to build with my red cardboard brick set — knocking them down was the fun part. Once I got a bit older, I moved up to Lincoln Logs.”

DID YOU KNOW? / National Manufacturing Day is an annual event that occurs on the first Friday of October. For 2021, that’s Oct. 1. All across the country, organizations — including The Henry Ford and the Dearborn Truck Plant — use this day to celebrate what manufacturing really looks like, sometimes hosting special events and programming. Learn more at manufacturing.gov.

cCorey Williams, Dearborn Truck

Plant manager, will tell you that the culture at the plant where the

Ford F-150 is built is one of a kind.

“Everyone here understands that we are building America’s bestselling truck and the sense of pride in that is like no other,” he said.

SUPER COOL IDEA

Water toy tells story of innovation and entrepreneurship

SOMETIMES SERIOUS WORK LEADS to serious play — with seriously successful results. Did you know that the Super Soaker water gun was an accidental invention by NASA rocket scientist Lonnie Johnson?

Johnson was passionate about inventing not only at his “day job” as an engineer working with hundreds of colleagues but also working on his own inventions in his spare time. In 1982, Johnson was in his home workshop developing an environmentally friendly cooling system. To test his idea of using circulating water and air pressure — instead of the chemical Freon — Johnson connected a high-pressure nozzle to his bathroom faucet, aimed the nozzle, turned it on and then blasted a powerful stream of water into the bathtub. He quickly recognized its potential as a toy — a pressurized water gun that didn’t require batteries and was safe enough for kids to play with.

Johnson quickly produced a prototype using Plexiglas, PVC pipe, a two-liter soda bottle and other materials. Over the next few years, he continued to make improvements. In 1989, Johnson licensed his design for the Super Soaker to Larami. The company launched the toy on the market in 1990.

Kids loved it!

Within two years, the Super Soaker generated over $200 million in sales, becoming the top-selling toy in the United States. Improved versions of the Super Soaker debuted during the following years. By 2016, Super Soaker sales were approximately $1 billion.

Johnson didn’t just take his royalty money and retire. It was a means to achieving his real goal — to establish his own research company, Johnson Research & Development. Today, Johnson has more than 100 patents and is currently developing innovative technology to efficiently convert solar energy into electricity with world-changing results.

Johnson’s Super Soaker, familiar to millions of kids, can inspire new generations of inventors and entrepreneurs. The message? Creative play can lead to great achievements.

— JEANINE HEAD MILLER, CURATOR OF DOMESTIC LIFE

ONLINE See other toys from the 1990s in The Henry Ford’s Digital Collectionsc WATCH Episode 98, titled “Super Soaker Inventor,” from season 4 of The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation

thf.org/explore/innovation-nation/

episodes/super-soaker-inventorc

ANOTHER NASA SCIENTIST

Lonnie Johnson isn’t the only NASA scientist who’s a bit of a kid at heart that has caught the attention of The Henry Ford. In 2009, Charles Elachi, who was then head of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), was interviewed as part of The Henry Ford’s OnInnovation oral history project. He talked about the solar system being his team’s playground:

“Having fun is a big part of being passionate about what you do. Every time we launch a spacecraft, we have to be very serious about it because we are spending taxpayer money and people have spent years and years designing these missions.

“On the other hand, the work has to be fun or who is going to come here and work 60, 80 hours a week until the job is done?

“Every morning, I look forward to whatever problem I might face because I am going to learn something new, be enriched and maybe become a little bit smarter. I think most of the people at JPL think about it that way. That this is a playground, but a serious playground.”

To read or watch the full interview with Elachi, visit

thf.org/explore/stories-of -innovation/visionaries/

charles-elachi or view the feature story in the JanuaryMay 2015 issue of The Henry Ford Magazine at issuu.com/ thfmagazine.

dNASA rocket scientist Lonnie

Johnson was in his home workshop developing an environmentally friendly cooling system when the idea for a pressurized toy water gun first popped into his head.

Some eight years later, his Super

Soaker (above left) was generating millions of dollars in sales.