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Ford, GM Name ArcelorMittal as a Top Supplier

According to ArcelorMittal, General Motors named it a Supplier of the Year, and Ford gave the steelmaker its highest ranking as part of its 2015 Business Unit Review. It was the third year in a row ArcelorMittal had won the GM award, and the fifth straight year that it had ranked at the top in the Ford review.  

“It’s one thing to reach top level performance in anything; it’s a completely different thing to stay on top year after year,” said Brad Davey, chief marketing officer for ArcelorMittal’s North American and global automotive units.

“Competitors know what you did and how you’ve done it to get on top. They will copy you and surpass you unless you continuously improve and reinvent yourself. We’ve done a great job at this in everything we offer to GM and Ford, and that is why we’ve achieved consecutive top rankings from both.

ArcelorMittal accepted General Motors’ Supplier of the Year award on 10 March during an annual ceremony in Detroit. It was one of 110 suppliers to have won the recognition. The group represents approximately 1 percent of GM’s global suppliers.The winners are chosen by a team made up of GM purchasing, engineering, quality, manufacturing and logistics executives.

ArcelorMittal provides a variety of steel grades for all aspects of GM’s cars and trucks, with a large share going to the newly launched Chevy Cruze sedan, the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon pickups, and the Chevy Malibu sedan.

The Ford recognition was based on the performance of ArcelorMittal’s North American business, which includes Burns Harbor, Indiana Harbor, I/N Tek and I/N Kote, all in Indiana; AM/NS Calvert in Alabama; and Dofasco in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

The review measured, among other things, quality, delivery, cost savings, plant engineering and product development. ArcelorMittal’s performance was then compared against other major flat rolled steelmakers and aluminum suppliers.

ArcelorMittal provides a variety of steel grades for every Ford vehicle, but the largest portion of its business with the automaker is on the Ford Fusion sedan, the Edge crossover and the Transit commercial van.

The company’s steel is used in all aspects of the vehicles and trucks, including both exposed and unexposed applications.