This thesis was to study the introduction of the Ford 1.6 Zetec SE (Sigma) engine and make a comparison with the introduction of the 1.25 Zetec SE (Sigma) engine in Valencia Engine Plant. It documents the work carried out by members of the Quality Program Action Team (QPAT), with the aim of achieving a better warranty and manufacturing performance than achieved at Valencia. It considers the process of managing the FMEA, Advanced Quality Planning and Production Validation for the 1.6 Sigma engine at BEP. It discusses how these processes influenced warranty and internal manufacturing quality performance for the 1.6 engine.

The results showed that the level of supplier related faults detected at hot test reduced from 42% for the 1.25 engine at Valencia to 11% for the 1.6 engine at Bridgend. This considerable improvement is attributed to the high risk / impact workshops held with suppliers. Warranty costs in the first year of manufacturing were lower than at Valencia. This was due in part to the lower cost per unit gained through the good teamwork and sharing of lessons learned between Valencia and Bridgend Sigma engineering teams. Other performance measures were disappointing showing no improvement or deterioration on the Valencia measures. Several factors contribute to this in particular a considerable reduction in the expenditure in process verification, launch and cost savings in some production tools.