South Africa Sets the Global Standard at Ford’s 2025 Quality Comes First Team Awards

Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa celebrated a historic milestone as the Silverton Assembly Plant was recognised on the global stage during Ford’s 2025 Quality Comes First Team Awards, securing four major international quality awards and reinforcing South Africa’s position as the home of world-class Ranger production.

The Quality Comes First Awards programme has evolved significantly over the past three years into a global platform recognising the best teams across Ford worldwide in areas including Manufacturing, Supplier Quality, Vehicle Programmes, New Model Launches, Warranty Performance and FCSD.

Opening the proceedings, Charles Poon, Vice President, Vehicle Hardware Engineering, reflected on the importance of quality across the Ford business.

“Quality is our shared signature. It is the ultimate proof of how well we work together,” said Poon. “From Vehicle Engineering and Manufacturing to Supply Chain and FCSD to New Models and Software Development, today is about celebrating the work teams do every day to perfect that signature.”

For FMCSA, the event became a defining moment.

Silverton Assembly Plant received Ford’s highest manufacturing recognition, the Global VO Plant Quality Excellence Award, marking the first time a South African plant has earned the honour.

In addition, the Ranger programme and FMCSA teams secured:

• Global Vehicle Line Quality Excellence Award – 3MIS
• Best in Segment Repairs – Mid-Size Pickup IMG
• Earlier Issue Identification Improvement (TT to PP) for the Ranger PHEV Launch

The results confirm that the FMCSA-built Ranger is now recognised as Ford’s highest-quality Ranger programme globally and is on track to achieve best-in-class pickup quality.

The Ranger programme also surpassed Toyota Hilux in the latest Australian ARC survey, reinforcing the growing global reputation of the vehicle and the Silverton team behind it.

Receiving the Global VO Plant Quality Excellence Award on behalf of the Silverton team, Ockert Berry, Vice President Operations, Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa, described the recognition as the proudest moment of his Ford career.

“In my 35 years with the company, there is nothing that tops this,” said Berry. “Being part of a team like this that can roll out a roadmap of what we need to change and then go out and deliver to this extent is just a fantastic result.”

“I am really proud of the team, the employees on the shop floor and every one of you, even those in the region. Thank you so much.”

Berry also reminded teams that quality leadership requires ongoing commitment.

“We need to remember that this is a journey. A journey for us. There are still many items on our workplans to implement and hopefully we can be back next year and the years thereafter. Thank you.”

The achievement reflects years of operational discipline, investment and cross-functional collaboration across Manufacturing, Product Development, Quality, STA, Supply Chain and FCSD. A strong zero-defect mindset, real-time customer feedback integration and relentless focus on process execution played a key role in Silverton’s transformation.

Closing the proceedings, Josh Halliburton, Executive Director, Quality at Ford Motor Company, praised the progress achieved globally and reinforced the importance of maintaining momentum.

“When we put quality first, we don’t just build cars. We build trust. We build loyalty. We build the future at Ford,” said Halliburton.

He highlighted the significant progress made across the business over the past year, including some of Ford’s best launch quality results in company history and meaningful improvements driven through cross-functional teamwork.

“This is not a hardware engineering, STA, FCSD or quality team discussion. This is a Ford team achievement,” Halliburton said. “It is that teamwork that allows us to win.”

For Silverton, the awards represent more than global recognition. They stand as proof that South African manufacturing excellence can compete with — and lead — the very best in the world.

As the home of the Ranger in South Africa, Silverton has now firmly established itself as a global benchmark for Ford quality, carrying forward the company’s commitment that Quality Comes First.