Ford Motor Company is set to significantly boost the production of its highly demanded F-Series trucks, including the F-150 and F-Series Super Duty, starting in 2026. This strategic move aims to both capitalize on increased market demand and recover from production shortfalls caused by a recent fire at a key aluminum supplier plant. The company plans to add approximately 900 new jobs and reallocate existing personnel from other facilities to achieve this expansion.

A substantial part of this production increase will involve shifting 500 workers who were previously engaged in F-150 Lightning electric pickup production. These employees will be transferred from the idled Lightning plant to manufacturing gas-powered and hybrid trucks, which Ford identifies as more profitable and less reliant on aluminum, thereby reducing the impact of supply chain issues. The F-150 Lightning production had been temporarily suspended earlier this month due to slower-than-anticipated sales of electric vehicles, a trend not expected to improve with the discontinuation of federal incentives. Ford executives have not yet provided a timeline for the resumption of Lightning production.

To facilitate the heightened output, Ford will establish a third crew of 1,200 workers at its Ford Rouge Complex in Dearborn. Additionally, production capabilities at the Dearborn Stamping Plant and Dearborn Diversified Manufacturing Plant will be enhanced. The Kentucky Truck Plant will also see an expansion, with the hiring of an additional 100 new workers. These measures are projected to enable Ford to build an extra 50,000 trucks annually, with 45,000 units originating from Dearborn and 5,000 from Kentucky. The increased volume is expected to begin rolling off assembly lines in the first quarter of 2026, with a subsequent ramp-up in production.

The decision to accelerate truck production comes after Ford reported a significant financial impact from a fire that occurred in September at the Novelis aluminum plant in Oswego, New York. This incident resulted in estimated production losses that contributed to a $1.5 billion to $2 billion profit hit, as disclosed in Ford's third-quarter earnings report. Consequently, the company was compelled to revise its full-year earnings guidance downwards. Despite these challenges, Ford's third-quarter financial performance showed strength, with net income rising to $2.4 billion, a substantial increase from $900 million in the same period a year prior. Adjusted income reached $2.6 billion, and revenue climbed 9 percent to a record $50.5 billion. While the Novelis fire created an unexpected financial setback, Ford anticipates that the additional impact from tariffs will be approximately $1 billion, which is about half of earlier estimates.