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ETuesday, Dec. 26, 2006 Business dept.: 313-222-8765, business@freepress.com www.freep.com Detroit Free Press

Joe Hinrichs spent the earlypart of his life in the small, blue-collar town of Fostoria, Ohio,playing by the rules.

He was an altar boy. He hadperfect attendance in school.He avoided rebellious teenageactivities. He graduated as vale-dictorian of his Catholic highschool, with a 4.0. He went tothe University of Dayton on apresident’s scholarship.

Then, Hinrichs got into theautomotive industry, where hestarted breaking with conven-tions he found ineffective andfrustrating to get things done.

His first day on the job in aGeneral Motors Corp. factory,back in 1989, the young engi-neer tried to clean the dirty win-dows in his office and was quick-ly cited “for doing organizedwork” — a union-covered task.

Hinrichs refused to fall inline, going on to earn 22 suchgrievances one day.

When he got to Ford MotorCo. in 2000, he transportedtransmission parts from onefactory to another in his Explor-er SUV, a breach of protocolthat kept his assembly plantrunning.

Today, Hinrichs turns 40,and he’s the youngest vice pres-ident at Ford — charged withthe company’s sprawling NorthAmerican manufacturing oper-ations, which include 42 facto-ries in the United States, Cana-da and Mexico.

In these troubled times atFord, that makes Hinrichs onepart Grim Reaper, one part dei-

ty and, quite clearly, an unpre-dictable Whiz Kid to watch.

The 103-year-old automakerlost $7 billion this year throughSeptember. Ford’s Way For-ward turnaround plan calls fora variety of actions to reversethat dive, such as cutting one-third of its North Americanworkforce, about 44,000 hourlyand salaried workers in all, andclosing 16 factories by 2012.

That has put the task ofdownsizing Ford squarely inHinrichs’ hands, and his to-dolist for 2007 is daunting:� Close four plants and prepareto close three more in 2008.� Execute 32,000 hourly buy-outs at factories, without com-

promising safety or quality.� Decide whether layoffs ortemporary hires will be neces-sary.� Help launch five new cars andtrucks.� Keep reducing costs in plants.

And if all that weren’tenough:� Help negotiate a new contractwith the UAW.

“Next year will be one of themost challenging years that I’veever seen, at Ford or any-where,” the boyish-looking Hin-richs told the Free Press.

This might not have been thekind of responsibility Hinrichs

FORD VP’S CHALLENGE

Photos by HUGH GRANNUM/Detroit Free Press

Engineer Bharat Pawa, second from left, and operator/team coordinator Charle Roach show Joe Hinrichs transmission parts for a FordFocus at the Van Dyke Transmission Plant in Sterling Heights on Dec. 19. Hinrichs is in charge of North American manufacturing for Ford.

A prodigy, JoeHinrichs issuited to task

By SARAH A. WEBSTER

FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

Democrats campaigned onpromises of making sweepingchanges to the nation’s energypolicy, but it’s unlikely they’ll de-liver on most of those promises.

The new Democratic-con-trolled Congress is expected toplace greater emphasis on re-newable energy sources andend the drive to open offshoreareas to oil and natural gas pro-duction.

But Democrats who will havejurisdiction over energy issuesindicated they aren’t planning abig energy bill next year.

“We’re going to have smaller,more manageable, more digesti-ble” legislation, said Bill Wicker,spokesman for Sen. Jeff Binga-man of New Mexico, the newDemocratic chairman of theSenate Energy and Natural Re-sources Committee.

The new Congress is expect-ed to debate ways to cut green-

house gases to fight globalwarming and press for in-creased efficiency standards forcars and other gas-operatedmachines. Democrats also areexpected to champion propos-als that would require utilities toproduce a percentage of theirelectricity output from renew-able energy sources.

Producers of solar power,wind power, geothermal powerand other technologies that usewood or waste products to gen-erate energy also are expectedto receive new tax breaks fromthe Democratic Congress.

But the biggest change in en-ergy policy is expected to comethrough a farm bill Congresshopes to consider next year thatwould provide new incentivesfor the production of ethanol, acorn-derived fuel.

Many Democrats cam-paigned against Big Oil thisyear, tying Republicans to an in-dustry that critics say pollutesthe environment and manipu-lates prices.

If Democrats follow through

JASLYN GILBERT/Gannett News Service

Huge wind towers are built by Tower Tech Systems in Wisconsin. Al-ternate energy sources are likely to get Democratic support.

See FUEL, 2E

Congress likely tofavor alternate fuelDemocrats ranagainst Big Oil

By ANA RADELAT

GANNETT NEWS SERVICE

NASA and the MichiganResearch Institute are to an-nounce this week that they aregiving Delphi Corp. nearly $1million to develop an advancedwelding process that promisesto be less expensive and moreeffective at welding dissimilar-shaped materials.

NASA will use what it learnsfrom Delphi’s deformation re-sistance welding procedure indeveloping spacecraft and ter-restrial vehicles.

Deformation resistancewelding is unique because it en-ables welding different materi-als and shapes for less moneythan conventional weldingmethods.

The $950,000 grant under-scores Delphi as a tale of twocompanies: While Delphi’s tra-ditional car-parts business,making items such as brakehoses and batteries, loses bil-lions, Delphi also is an innova-tive manufacturer of highlyprofitable, highly technologicalproducts.

The welding process can beused in manufacturing heavyload-bearing structures, mobilemedical products and automo-biles because of its ability tohandle tube-to-tube and tube-to-sheet welding.

“Delphi will be in a strongerposition to provide innovativejoining and structural solutionsto a broader set of customers,”said Jayson Pankin, Delphi’snew venture creation specialist.

Contact JASON ROBERSON at313-222-8763 orjroberson@freepress.com.

Delphi getsgrant fromstate, NASAFirm to developwelding method

By JASON ROBERSON

FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

Joseph R. Hinrichs

Age: 40, today Title: Vice presi-

dent, North Ameri-ca manufacturing,Ford Motor Co.

Experience: Oct. 2005 to

Sept. 2006: Vicepresident, NorthAmerica vehicleoperations, respon-sible for 19 assem-bly and eightstamping andtool-and-die plants.

Jan. 2005 to Oct.2005: Presidentand CEO, Ford ofCanada.

July 2003 to Jan.2005: Director ofmanufacturing forvehicle operations,responsible forlaunch of vehiclesat six assemblyplants.

April 2002 toJuly 2003: Execu-tive director, mate-rial planning andlogistics.

Dec. 2000 toApril 2002: Manag-er of the Van DykeTransmissionPlant.

Aug. 1998 to Dec.2000: Partner andsenior vice presi-dent of Ryan En-terprises Group, amanufacturinginvestment groupin Chicago.

May 1989 toAug. 1998: Workedat General MotorsCorp.

Education: Bachelor’s de-

gree in electricalengineering fromthe University ofDayton in 1989.

Master’s degreein business admin-istration fromHarvard BusinessSchool in 1994.

Family: Wife,Maria, and childrenAnna, 12, Andrew,10, and Sarah, 8.

Hobbies: Spend-ing time withfamily, landscapingand reading busi-ness books.

Drives: LincolnNavigator.

YOUNG EXEC,BIG MISSION

“He’s a very strong leader. Some people just have that.”JIM BUFFALO SMYTHE, UAW Local 2280, on Ford Vice President Joe Hinrichs

See HINRICHS, 3E

F01E_26_0D_X#color#broad#single