DEARBORN, MI - Ford Motor Co.'s upcoming '09 Flex cross/utility vehicle in North America and its Kuga CUV in Europe are the first vehicles to be designed from the ground up utilizing the auto maker's virtual manufacturing technology. Based on Siemens AG product-lifecycle-management software, the technology allows designers and engineers to collaborate at the onset of a product program using computer-aided design data to digitally piece together the vehicle and optimize the eventual final assembly process in what is called a "virtual-build arena." The technique was adopted from Mazda Motor Corp., says Dan Hettel, chief engineer-vehicle operations.
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