Subs exclusive: Why Ford's Transit boss is hedging her EV bets

Ford has had a mixed sales period recently. On the one hand, its car market share has dropped dramatically and was down another percentage point in Q1 2022, while on the other, the Transit eclipsed even the best-selling car (the Vauxhall Corsa) with a bumper year. Ford’s new mantra is that the Transit Custom is Britain’s best-selling vehicle, and the company took a stellar 34.4% of the overall LCV market in 2021. That in itself underlines just how important the commercial vehicle and van market has become in the UK, with sales accelerating during the pandemic and Ford ramping up the pressure to build on its Transit-led leadership in the sector. Here Mandy Dean, who is director of commercial vehicles at Ford UK and joined the firm in 1995 on an undergraduate programme, discusses the booming market, the switch to electrification and the benefits of Ford Pro. What makes CVs so appealing? “There’s always things you can learn. Aside from the obvious movements around electrification and connected fleets, which we’ll talk more about in more detail, there’s always opportunities to create something new. When you deep-dive into the whole conversion market and think about the intricacies of that, there’s always things that we can do to help give our customers that bit more. I like that. “There’s also something about our customer base that I just love. There's something about business-to-business transactions that is different, and which everyone at Ford does really well. Our buyers tend to be very logical people who are relying on us for the success of their business, and that really resonates with me. “I can have customers who are buying one van at a retail outlet right up to customers buying huge fleets of them directly. We work with the two sides very differently of course, and that’s part of the fun – ensuring each is as happy as the other.” Is the CV business substantially different from the car one? “There are specialisms. Commercial vehicles can probably also be more technical than cars, and, with niches within niches, it pays to understand. Our Special Vehicle Services operations, for instance, know their customer base inside out. “Beyond that, though, the skills are probably transferable between cars and CVs. The marketing and sales sides are similar, for instance, and I definitely feel that my rounded experience applies.” How much pressure does being expected to top the sales charts bring? “It definitely drives me. It's something I wouldn't want to lose and I think it spurs us on as a team. Beyond that, though, we want to be even better. Not just to be number one, but to grow and to lead now in electrification – a massive opportunity and a massive change. “I also see Ford Pro as a huge opportunity to strengthen our brand further, by leading on data and software services and providing a holistic approach to providing the right charging infrastructure for our customers’ needs. “The data services aspect in particular is huge. It has the potential to reduce customers’ downtime by 60%, and the early statistics we’re seeing on that in live use back the figure up. That just adds to our opportunity list. We’re the top seller and we’ve got Transit and Transit Custom coming as electrified vehicles as well as the Ford Pro offering to roll out.” The Ford e-Transit arrives later than equivalents from some rivals. Why? “I like to think we’re launching the right product with the right range and the right capability at the right time. I feel like we are addressing all those anxiety points that potential buyers raise – range anxiety, charging speeds. “Crucially, I feel we are also bringing it to market at the right price. The feedback on that when we announced it at the Commercial Vehicle Show was overwhelming, not just in terms of the cost in terms of pounds, but also the cost in terms of the mileage per charge we are offering. The running costs are around 40% less than over a diesel, once you factor in fuel and servicing. I think it has the potential to accelerate a lot of firm’s plans to go electric. The more customers get behind the wheel, the more I think they’ll consider the advantages of switching.” How did the pandemic knock business? “The pandemic was a shock to everyone and clearly there was a period of adjustment. But in terms of demand, in the commercial vehicle world, it has just kept rising. We can all relate: we had more deliveries at home, more building work done on our homes and more – all of which spurs the commercial vehicle market. That plays to what we offer, and I can’t see that demand weakening for some time yet. “Electrification ties in, too. A lot of our customers are accelerating pledges around sustainability and carbon neutrality. Of course, that gives us a new stream that will – again – help us maintain that demand. We expect demand for electric commercial vehicles to grow rapidly from here, accelerating to match the car market quickly and then tracking it. That represents a significant switch over that we can be part of.” Who are your electric customers? “There are early adopters, just as there were with cars. In fact, some were early adopters with cars and now want to take those lessons through into their business life, too. There’s a lot of owner-operators in particular following that path. “Then there are fleets. That’s a different kind of decision and one that needs careful planning – for instance, so that depot charging is organised or that employees all have wallboxes prior to taking delivery. There’s a need to plan a bit more, but that’s the beauty of Ford Pro: we are here to help at every stage. We need to get that message out there.” Where does this leave plug-in hybrid technology? “It is still a really good bridging technology. I run a plug-in hybrid myself, and for two-thirds of the time, I run it as an electric vehicle. Although we haven’t got charging points on every street corner, I think it’s a crucial technology. It gives flexibility and peace of mind. “We did some research prior to launching e-Transit around the average mileage of a van driver a day, which turned out to be 69 miles. That means that an e-Transit has more than enough range for most drivers to use daily, but that doesn’t mean it will suit everyone. Plug-in hybrid technology broadens electrification’s appeal.” Do you anticipate vans being subject to the same rules as cars, in regards to sales proportions being mandated? “We do get the opportunity to participate in consultations, so we would formally input into any consultation via our government affairs team and the SMMT. “The key is that the infrastructure and vehicle sales align. It’s a difficult prediction, but balancing those two sides eases the journey. Any mandate around proportions of sales has to track those two sides.” Lowering emissions means higher prices. Are all customers ready to make the switch? “No question, meeting emissions targets costs money. The technology needed to achieve the goals does add to the cost. In time, those costs will come down. “Today, we offer a choice. We have to remember that battery-electric won’t suit every application. I’m optimistic that they will sell amazingly, and that as more people experience the products, they will help grow the market, but the reality of business is that not everyone will have made the switch by 2030. “Our job is to support that transition, in whatever way supports the customer. If they need a diesel to do a specific job, our role is to make sure that we have the best diesel on the market available for them.” Ford Pro covers a lot of services. Can you sum it up from a customer’s perspective? “Ford Pro comprises the electric van itself – financing, charging and servicing it – and by using data, we can make a van or fleet more productive and ultimately reduce cost of ownership for customers to make the transition to EV easier. “First-level telematic support comes free of charge. That gives everybody the vehicle health alerts so they can see if there's a problem on the vehicle. That’s a huge bonus. “Then there’s a full telematics system, which comes with a subscription charge after the first year. That layers other benefits on top, and we believe will greatly reduce downtime for any vehicles by ensuring they are always kept in fully working condition. We can even send a mobile service van out if we detect a potential future issue and make the fix while the driver is doing something else. Our data suggests that the subscription charge will more than pay for itself. “Likewise, we will give free access to charging for a year, but then charge if you want access to the network thereafter. You are paying for convenience, and for busy businesses it is the convenience that pays back. “Knitting these services together is critical. It is not just about providing a vehicle to drive, but one that is easy to live with and that you can get maximum use out of all of the time. Engineering all the connected services to work together from the outset gives us the ability to provide full wraparound support.” We’ve driven the e-Transit and seen the e-Transit Custom. Presumably more electric vehicles will follow? “Yes, we have more plans for electric commercial vehicles. We’ve set the tone with Transit in terms of creating the right vehicle at the right price, and now we’ve revealed the Transit Custom that follows the same formula. Absolutely, we will bring more of these great products to market. “But I don't think it's just about the vehicles. It's about the support and the infrastructure as well, which is why we’ve built an ecosystem via Ford Pro so that our customers have everything available to them, not just to make the transition seamless, but also more efficient, from charging stations to warranty back-up and servicing.” Presumably your alliance with the Volkswagen Group will form the basis of some. How do you ensure Fords remain distinctive from VWs? “The way the VW alliance is created, everything has to be very separate. We share the basic underpinnings, but we are in control of our direction with the vehicle, and VW is in control of the directions they wish to take. “That, I think, is enough in itself to ensure adequate differentiation, but you have to layer in the services that we can offer on top of that, too. Ford Pro is as big a point of difference as you’ll find in this industry. It’s the sort of technology that should be enough to make choosing a Ford van a straightforward decision.”