It has been confirmed that Alfa Romeo will develop and produce two brand new engines at its Termoli production facility.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles chief executive Sergio Marchionne announced that the plant will be responsible for creating a high output four-cylinder engine as well as a Ferrari-derived six-cylinder engine. Both of these engines will be specifically designed for Alfa Romeo.
Further details about these two engines haven’t been revealed but the Italian marque did comment that over 200,000 examples of the new four-cylinder and six-cylinder engines will be produced annually.
As part of the announcement, it has also been confirmed that work on retooling the Termoli plant is underway with one of the newest pieces of equipment installed being a cylinder head tooling machine courtesy of Comau. The retooling of the plant will come at a cost of over half a billion dollars and is pinned to be finished within six months. During the retooling however, the plant’s 2400 works will be temporarily laid off.
Discussing the project to the staff at Termoli, Marchionne said “It is because of your technical know-how and capabilities that we are allocating production here at Termoli. It also represents an opportunity for you to show the world what you can achieve.”
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Termoli to Produce Two New Engines for Alfa Romeo
FCA Chief Executive, Sergio Marchionne, and COO for the EMEA Region, Alfredo
Altavilla, met employees at the Group’s plant in Termoli (Italy) today, where they
announced that the plant had been chosen to produce two new engines.
Both engines are for future Alfa Romeo models and, as such, will play an important
role in the brand’s global relaunch.
The first is an advanced, high output 4-cylinder engine developed for Alfa Romeo. The
second is a Ferrari-derived 6-cylinder engine, which has also been developed
specifically for Alfa Romeo.
With installed production capacity for the two engines of more than 200,000 units, the
plant will be capable of meeting approximately half of the total volumes projected in
Alfa Romeo’s plan for 2018.
Work to retool the plant is already underway and today’s ceremony also included
installation of the first piece of equipment on one of the future production lines: a
cylinder head tooling machine from Comau.
In total, more than half a billion euros will be invested in design, development and
engineering of the engines and construction of the new production lines.
The work is set to be completed within six months, during which employees will also
undergo the necessary training.
The new production activities will enable the number of employees on temporary
layoff at Termoli, where a total of 2,400 are currently employed, to be reduced to zero.
In addition, over the next few months 50 young people will be hired in strategic roles,
including positions related to a third shift necessary in certain areas of transmission
production.
“This high tech project is an integral part of our bet on Alfa Romeo,” said Sergio
Marchionne to plant employees. “It is because of your technical know-how and
capabilities that we are allocating production here at Termoli. It also represents an
opportunity for you to show the world what you can achieve.”
The CEO’s visit also marked the 30th anniversary of the FIRE engine, which
continues as a benchmark of technological excellence and one of the greatest
successes in the automotive field. The Termoli plant has produced 20 million units of
the FIRE engine since March 1985.
Mr. Marchionne concluded his address to workers at the engine and transmission
plant, seldom the focus of media attention, with these words: “You should all be
proud. In today’s society, where form often counts more than substance, you are a
symbol of those who go quietly about their work with professionalism, preferring action
to words and committed to resolving problems faced along the way. You exemplify the
values upon which FCA was founded: a sense of duty, a strong work ethic, generosity
in moments of difficulty, and the courage to step up when called upon.”
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