roadPilot

A number of people have asked what the word "BLEND" and the 'blend number' at the top of their window sticker means.

I know enough about this to be dangerous, so don't cite me on it. Most of the information should be accurate but is subject to correction. I don't work for Ford, I don't schedule vehicle builds for Ford, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

Vehicles are not scheduled nor built in VIN order. Meaning, if your VIN ends in A23456, that does NOT mean it was built right after A23455 nor right before A23457. Because vehicles are not built in VIN order, the assembly plant needs a way to keep track of what order they will be built in. If they didn't keep track of the order of build, they'd never know when they would be built and, as a direct result, they wouldn't be able to manage their releases (orders for new components) to their suppliers.

So to facilitate this, they use what's called blend numbers and a rotation numbers. In short, these refer to the build/rotation when and where a vehicle gets "blended in" to the assembly line. The vehicles are not yet in body or paint at this time, but are just beginning the process.

Continuing ...

Consider the blend/rotation number as a pool of reusable numbers. Rotation means something at the plant because it ties to the actual production date that signify where/when the vehicle is built. While often considered synonymous, blend number and rotation number aren't. But for sake of this explanation, just consider them very closely related.

Today, the blend number pool for P552 (the F150) goes to 10,000 and then rolls. This is not plant specific, so blend numbers are assigned out of the same bank for DTP as KCAP. As a vehicle (VIN) is assigned to the build schedule, a blend number/rotation number is assigned. It is THIS order that the vehicles are built. When the truck is built, than blend number/rotation number goes back into the pool. When they reach 9999, they start reissuing the blend numbers from the start (0001) again.

So, in a nutshell, blend/rotation numbers are a pool of reuseable numbers assigned to vehicles that are used to determine order of build because vehicles are not built in VIN order.

With this truck, it had a blend date of February 2, 2015 (20150204) and a blend number of 5104.



With regard to VIN: Your VIN corresponds to the 6th to last position (letter) and the last 5 digits. The first VIN was A00001. After A99999 was assigned, the next VIN assigned would be B00001.

That's about all I have on this subject. I hope I am able to thoroughly confuse you as much as possible.

Hey, at least I kept you from checking COTUS for the 7th time today ...

Kantuckid

iTrader: (1)

Is the weather affecting delivery/ My truck just switched to waiting for shipment on cotus today-said to be delivered on 3/08

zotman21

[QUOTE=roadPilot;4015522]A number of people have asked what the word "BLEND" and the 'blend number' at the top of their window sticker means.

You are basically correct. blend is an internal tracking reference. VINs are not assigned to a vehicle until the body is built , they go through paint process and the enter the final assembly plant.

roadPilot

The weather is affecting a lot of shipping and trucking operations across the US, not just vehicle delivery. However, blend and rotation numbers have nothing to do with this (other than delaying the scheduling of a vehicle due to lack of component inventory).

GOBLUEJD

Add to info page that is a Sticky :-)

roadPilot

I'd be lying to you if I told you that I didn't think you would do that as I was typing up the message ...

I actually hit up a contact @ DTP this AM to try to help clarify some things that were a little fuzzy. She was very helpful.

GOBLUEJD

Ya was waiting for it to go up when I read over on the tracking thread.

Kantuckid

iTrader: (1)

My BIL (who is retired from hauling Fords for delivery-he lives in Lou.,KY) was talking to my wife yesterday on the very day cotus started saying mine was waiting shipment-it was said to be 8 days yesterday on 03/08/15-I just now looked before typing this post and it now has jumped up two days to 10 days, not 8 and has it delivered on 3/10.
He stated that typical was ~ 3 days once ready for loading with no weather affecting the trucks. He also said his old trucking buddies had told him they were seeing "hood problems" on lots of new trucks. What that meant I have zero idea?
FWIW, when he first started Ford was still in the BIG truck business and he hauled them "piggyback style" until that business was gone. A great trucker job too, cause he flew home on most trips and was before air travel became such a PITA.

LCW

My blend showed as 220150224-2639

GOBLUEJD

I am hoping to get mine today, your comments scare me as my dad said his buddy said something similar (look at my posts yesterday in Track thread).

But here is were I am confused (even what my dad told me).

Truck is manufactured and inspected. Once it passes whatever Fords requirements are, then the Hauling Company (Jack Cooper) does their own inspection. Once JC inspects and accepts, then it moves into awaiting delivery and Ford is out of the picture. Then it moves into "Awaiting", JC sets loads (and does whatever else), then Load gets assigned and moves into "In Transit".

So I am guessing (based on your knowledge and mine) that if something was in fact found after the fact it was "In transit:" then it must be serious enough. But how the hell do they even deal with something like that?

Maybe Roadpilot knows what happens if something is found. This probably should be discussed over in the tracking thread, so feel free to respond (copy this stuff) over there.