Ford Enters Strategic Research Alliance with Chongqing University

29 October 2008

Ford Motor Company entered into a strategic alliance with Chongqing University (CQU) to increase collaboration on research, development and utilization of automotive technologies. Chongqing University is the first university in Western China that entered into a formal long-term partnership with Ford Motor Company.

Chongqing, the largest transportation hub in West China, is the city where Ford’s passenger car joint venture in China, Changan Ford Mazda Automobile is located. In the past few years, Ford Motor has worked with Chongqing University on a number of projects. The formation of the alliance will bring the relationship between the two parties to a new strategic level.

Last year, Ford Motor Company formed similar partnership with two leading universities in Eastern China, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (NUAA) and Shanghai Jiaotong University (SJTU). Currently several projects are running under these partnership, with major focus on lowering material cost and improving materials and craftsmanship. The results of these projects will be applied to the production of Ford Motor Company.

As part of the alliance, Ford also established a Ford Professor Chair for Materials Science at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and one for Mechanical Engineering at Shanghai Jiaotong University. This will help facilitate the research, technology development and education in materials science, engineering and manufacturing processes advancement.

Ford’s cooperation with China’s educational and research institutes began in early 1980s. Since the establishment of Ford China Research and Development Fund by Ford Motor Company and the National Natural Science Foundation of China in 1994, Ford Motor Company has worked on more than 100 projects with educational and research institutes in more than 20 cities across China.