US carmaker Ford Motor Co opened its 100-million-baht parts distribution centre yesterday on Bang Na-Trat Road, aimed at boosting customer support as sales grow.
The distribution centre has full access to Ford's parts inventory across nine Asia-Pacific markets to locate and retrieve parts, said Narong Sritalayon, deputy managing director of Ford Thailand.
He said the centre would be used as a facility stocking over 2 million pieces within 26,000 square metres of storage space. The area can be extended to 79,000 sq m in the future to support growth.
The centre optimises parts storage and distribution for Ford's rapidly growing nationwide dealer network and increasing customer base.
"This new centre enhances our ability to efficiently service customer vehicles at Ford dealerships across the country by storing a vast amount of parts that are required for both preventive maintenance and general repairs and service for all models," Mr Narong said.
Multiple loading docks across the facility enable a consistent flow of trucks and containers to keep the centre stocked and able to meet customer demand both in Thailand and throughout Asean, he said.
"The centre is part of an overall commitment to providing a world-class ownership experience that includes excellence in after-sales service," Mr Narong said.
Ford, ranked sixth by sales volume, posted year-on-year growth of 37% with 39,508 cars sold from January to September.
Ford sales jumped 29% to 13,995 vehicles in the third quarter, with market share gaining 0.9 percentage points to 6.7%.
Ford remains third in the pickup market after Isuzu and Toyota.