Spin, owned by Ford, to deploy 15,000 scooters in 8 US cities

(July 25) Ford-owned Spin, the dockless scooter company announced that it will deploy 15,000 scooters in eight US cities beginning this August. Spin also revealed its latest mode e-scooter with anti-theft technology and custom parts to deter vandalism.

	1 of 4

Spin has grown since Ford acquired it

Since being bought by Ford last November, Spin has grown rapidly and with the new announcement will grow even faster. When acquired the San Franciso-based company operated rentable e-scooters in nine cities and five college campuses. Today it operates in 47 cities and campuses.

Scooters to be deployed in new cities

Starting this August, Spin will deploy thousands of the new scooter in these cities: Portland, Los Angeles, Denver, Washington DC, Kansas City, Memphis, and Minneapolis, and more later. The new scooter is made in China by Segway-Ninebot a joint Chinese-American company that is backed by Xiaomi a globally-recognized scooter manufacturer.

Features of the new scooter

The frame has been enlarged and strengthened with a wider and longer platform. The brake handling-system has been improved and is more intuitive to use and responsive. There are larger 10 inch tubeless tires providing better shock absorption when traveling over rough terrain. There is real wheel drive providing better acceleration and uphill performance. There are also custom-manufactured security screws to help prevent vandalism and tampering.

The battery life has been extended so that the scooter can travel over 37 miles on one full charge. While a much smaller company than its rivals such as Bird and Lime being supported by Ford will give it time to scale its business before making a profit.

Dockless scooter sharing faces problems

During the past year the business has had problems with vandalism, injured riders, and breakdowns. These problems have caused some companies to be unable to recover their investment costs. Bird reportedly lost $100 million in 3 months and seeks new funding to the tune of $2.5 million.

Scooter sharing systems

Wikipedia describes the system for sharing scooters: "A scooter-sharing system is a service in which scooters are made available to use for short-term rentals. The term describes the sharing of mostly electric motor scooters (also referred to as electric mopeds) as well as electric kick scooters. The sharing of scooters is similar to carsharing or bicycle-sharing systems; with some scooter-sharing companies offering more than one type of vehicle via their service. Scooters are generally "dockless", meaning that they do not have a fixed home location, and are dropped off and picked up from arbitrary locations in the service area. This makes them a convenient mobility option for first-/last-mile mobility in urban areas."

Previously published in the Digital Journal

Ford Motors under investigation for internal emission testing practices

(April 26) In a financial filing today Ford Motors admitted that it was under investigation by the US Department of Justice in regard to its internal emission testing practice. Ford said the investigation was still in its preliminary stages.

Investigation has nothing to do with "defeat devices"

The problem is not the use of defeat devices or any software meant to deceive regulators as happened in Volkswagen's Dieselgate scandal. Ford said: “The Department of Justice contacted us earlier this month to let us know that they had opened a criminal investigation. Ford is fully cooperating with the government, and we’ll keep them posted on what we’re finding through our investigation and technical review.”

Ford started its own investigation earlier

Ford had earlier this February started its own investigation into its emissions testing practices. It did so after employees themselves raised concerns about potential consistency problems. The problem is that the company may have been wrongly calculating "road load" or measurements of forces on a car when it is traveling at a constant speed on smooth, flat ground. Getting a lower figure would lead to the automaker thinking vehicles got better fuel economy and emitted less pollution than they actually did.

The company hired the law firm Sidley Austin to perform the investigation. It also alerted the Environment Protection Agency as to its actions. The company said it is also working with the California Air Resources Board to solve any problems that could exist.

Kim Pittel, Ford vice-president for sustainability, environment, and safety engineering said that so far the investigation had not indicated that the company had reporter incorrect data to regulators or to consumers. In a telephone interview he said: “We’re early days into the investigation. But there has been no determination that this affected fuel economy labels or emissions certification.”

Ford has had trouble overstating fuel efficiency in the past

In 2013 and 2014 Ford lowered the gas mileage ratings on several hybrid cars as it had overstated their efficiency from between one to seven miles per gallon.

Other automakers also under investigation

Other companies such as Daimler and Fiat Chrysler are also reported to be under criminal investigation regarding emissions but both are alleged to have used defeat devices to have some diesel cars appear cleaner to regulators than they actually were.

Previously published in Digital Journal

Ford Motor Company to invest $500 million in EV startup Rivian

The Ford Motor Company announced that it has invested $500 million in Rivian, an electronic vehicle (EV) startup. Ford will build an EV using Rivian's technology the two companies announced.

The new vehicle's production will not have any effects on two other EV's Ford is developing an EV version of the popular F-150 and the Mustang-inspired crossover according to Ford CEO Jim Hackett.

The announcement

In addition to the investment the companies have agreed to work together to create an all-new next-generation battery electirc vehicle for Ford's growing number of EV vehicles using Rivian's skateboard platform. RJ Scaringe, founder and CEO of Rivian said: “This strategic partnership marks another key milestone in our drive to accelerate the transition to sustainable mobility. Ford has a long-standing commitment to sustainability, with Bill Ford being one of the industry's earliest advocates, and we are excited to use our technology to get more electric vehicles on the road.”

Bill Ford, Ford's executive chair, said: “We are excited to invest in and partner with Rivian,” said Bill Ford, Ford’s executive chairman. I have gotten to know and respect RJ, and we share a common goal to create a sustainable future for our industry through innovation.”

Few details about the new vehicle

Although few details about the new car have been released it will use RIvian's "flexible skateboard platform" that includes the battery pack, the electric drive-train, and the electrical architecture that will power also Rivian's own EVs. At present these include the R1T electric pickup an the R1S SUV both scheduled to arrive late next year. Ford will also gain a minority stake in Rivian through its investment.

Although Ford has decided what kind of vehicle it will build on the Rivian platform, it has yet to specify what it will be.

Rivian received investment from Amazon

Only two months back, Rivian announced there had been a $700 million investment in the company spearheaded by Amazon. Rivian also had talks with GM but it is reported Rivian backed out of an exclusive deal. However, Scaringe claimed that Rivian was making several models for other companies. The deal with Ford is looser. Scaringe said that the company is very much focused on the relationships it has developed along with launching its own products. It wants to make sure it executes on deals.

Ford is committed to large investments in EVs

Ford Motors announced previously that it will invest $11 billion into the development of EVs. An all-electric Mustang-style crossover is scheduled to be revealed later this year. Joe Hinrichs, Ford's president of automotive operations said: “We have a lot of experience in electrification. But there’s also a lot we don’t know, and there’s also things we can still learn. We don’t have all the answers, and we don’t pretend to.” Hinrich said that Ford has a lot to learn from Rivian. Hinrich will serve on Rivian's board of directors.

Hinrich claimed that the deal with Rivian represented an opportunity to get a new EV on the market faster and cheaper than if it had developed one on its own from the ground up. Scaringe said: “One of the great benefits you get from working with a startup company like Rivian, with RJ personally, is the opportunity to go faster. So speed is an important part of this...There’s absolutely an opportunity for us to learn from Ford in terms of their manufacturing expertise, particularly when it comes to lightweight structures, and, of course, how they effectively manage production."

Previously published in Digital Journal

Ford Motor Co. testing self-driving vans in Miami Florida

Ford has been using the city of Miami as a site to test its self-driving vehicles since earlier this year. Recently the company joined forces with Postmates to research how people will react and interact with deliveries by autonomous delivery vans.

 

How the delivery works

As things are now, the delivery driver knocks on your door and delivers your order and you pay.

In an autonomous delivery you are given an access code that you use to open a tiny locker in the delivery van to get your order.

The lockers vary in size to accommodate different size orders. There are audio prompts and light displays to ensure that you are guided to the locker where you order is located.

Many businesses involved

The pilot project is underway both in Miami and Miami Beach. Over 70 businesses are involved with both restaurants and hardware stores taking part. For now, the autonomous vehicles are not actually operating autonomously but are manually operated by human drivers. The vans are just testing different methods of food delivery. However, Ford plans a fully autonomous delivery service by 2021. Ford said: “Ultimately, we are testing how businesses and consumers interact with a self-driving vehicle."

Tests were made earlier in Ann Arbor Michigan

Last year, in late August, Ford teamed up with Domino's Pizza to equip delivery cars with a Heatwave Compartment to keep pizzas warm. Customers who use the service are given a unique code by phone matching the last four digits of their phone number that can be used to unlock the compartment when the delivery car arrives. Customers can track their order through a Domino's app. Information is displayed through screens and speakers on the exterior of the cars. These cars were all driven manually but Ford said that it hoped eventually to have thousands of the self-driving cars in the city.

Ford is currently building a completely autonomous vehicle that will not even have traditional controls. It plans to release the vehicle by 2021.

Food delivery workers, as with truck drivers and taxi drivers, may in time see their jobs disappear as they are replaced by self-driving vehicles which will take over their duties.

The two pilot projects are shown on the appended videos.

Previously published in Digital Journal

Ford Motor Co. buys historic Michigan Central Station in Detroit

The Michigan Central Station has been for some time a symbol of Detroit's decline but now will be part of Ford's aim to change the Corktown neighborhood of Detroit into the automotive company's automotive technology group's campus.

Deal completed

Matthew Moroun, whose family owned the building since 1995 said at the announcement:“The deal is complete.. The future of the depot is assured. The next steward of the building is the right one for its future. The depot will become a shiny symbol of Detroit’s progress and its success."

The supposedly secret deal has been known about for months. It should help revitalize the desolate Corktown area next door to the thriving downtown area.

The deal should help Detroit as neighborhoods surrounding the revived downtown area have been unable to keep up. There is plenty of room in the Corktown area for new housing and businesses. A redevelopment of the Michigan Central Station could help generate the investment and rebuilding needed in the neighborhood.

This is not the first Ford development in the area. At the start of 2018, Ford announced that it would put 200 employees in The Factory which is less than half a mile from the Central Station. The redeveloped Michigan Central Station could house up to 1,000 Ford employees. Most employees now are located in the suburb of Dearborn.

Station has long been unused by railroads

The Michigan Central Station is over 100 years old having been completed in 1913 and was a bustling rail hub for decades. However, as people began to travel more by car and plane, the demand for rail service went into decline. In 1986, for example, the 3-story depot handled approximately 64,000 passengers down from 82,400 the year before. Two years later it closed. It was vandalized by scavengers who took everything of value including wiring and plumbing. The Moroun family installed new windows and working lights a few years ago.

The station was last used by Amtrak in 1988 with the final train leaving 30 years ago now.. It has been vacant since but is still a must see destination for urban explorers.

The announcement of the sale was made in front of the 500,000 square foot building. Owner "Matty" Moroun said that an announcement of the Ford company's plans for the building will be made next week. The redevelopment plans have been spearheaded by Ford board member Edsel B. Ford II. After the building with its massive columns has served as a symbol of Detroit's decline it may now become a symbol of its return to being a thriving city.

Previously published in Digital Journal