How the Tour Will Run
Last week was Part 1 in a five part series on Ford's recently revitalized Rouge plant. This week the story continues, with details regarding how the facility's tour will run.
Visitors will buy tickets at The Henry Ford, near the intersection of Village Road and the Southfield Freeway, some four miles from the Rouge factory complex, board video equipped motor coaches and ride to a visitor's center built just outside the Dearborn Truck Plant. Visitors cannot join the tour by driving to the factory complex themselves.
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| Inside the visitors center there are two large theaters showcasing the history of the Rouge and the 'Art of Manufacturing'. (Photo: Ford Motor Company) |
"Once inside the visitors center, they will step inside theater one, called the Legacy Theater, where they will view a short film chronicling the legend and the legacy of the Rouge over time, giving actual historical photos and film footage from our collection," Hamp said. "In theater two will be the 'Art of Manufacturing.' Seven large screens will surround the viewer with the sights, the sounds, and the sensations of the manufacturing experience."
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| The legacy theater documents how Ford revolutionized the industry by the creation of mass production with the continuous moving assembly line. (Photo: Ford Motor Company) |
The legacy theater documents the beginnings of Ford Motor in 1903, after Henry Ford was involved (and failed) in two other auto ventures following his successful creation of the Quadricycle, a funny-looking motorized vehicle that looks like two bicycles slapped together with a seat in between, in 1896. Then how Ford revolutionized the industry with the creation of mass production with the continuous moving assembly line and raised the workingman's standard of living with the eight-hour, five dollar day (which was twice the average wage while cutting a hour off the standard working shift when it was introduced in 1914).