Why dealer allotments no longer make sense

[Trucklet]

Spoiler alert - I didn't get my email today and I'm salty. I know I'm only Oct 14th order but we're talking XL EB with only 4k tow and the 110V inverter; no constraint items, just a small-town dealership that will never get vehicles from Ford.

Prior to Covid, the dealer allotment system made sense in the fact that dealerships who could move vehicles would get preferential treatment of stock units because they've proven to be the most capable at converting those stock units into sold units as fast as possible. Now that supply chains are completely broken and Ford is (allegedly) trying to shift to a custom-order model, there is no reason that I can see outside of pure inertia that an allotment system even makes sense anymore. Can anyone think of one? The only thing I can possibly figure would be that a lower performing / smaller dealer would be less likely to convert a customer-cancelled order into a sale, but even then you could transfer vehicles among dealerships if needed.

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[maningr]

Spoiler alert - I didn't get my email today and I'm salty. I know I'm only Oct 14th order but we're talking XL EB with only 4k tow and the 110V inverter; no constraint items, just a small-town dealership that will never get vehicles from Ford.

Prior to Covid, the dealer allotment system made sense in the fact that dealerships who could move vehicles would get preferential treatment of stock units because they've proven to be the most capable at converting those stock units into sold units as fast as possible. Now that supply chains are completely broken and Ford is (allegedly) trying to shift to a custom-order model, there is no reason that I can see outside of pure inertia that an allotment system even makes sense anymore. Can anyone think of one? The only thing I can possibly figure would be that a lower performing / smaller dealer would be less likely to convert a customer-cancelled order into a sale, but even then you could transfer vehicles among dealerships if needed.

I'm right there with you. 4k XLT Area 51. My only constraint items would be full size spare (which I saw on scheduled today) and the rubberized mats(not constrained). This is truly getting frustrating. This is the type of day where these vehicles should have been scheduled. Order date of 10/8.

 

[Landric]

I agree. I also think that Ford needs to remove dealers from the special order process entirely. Their only involvement should be taking the vehicle in and prepping it for delivery to the customer once it is built. The rest of the process should be able to be completed online; Ford can compensate the dealers for handling the delivery.

Dealers can and should have stock units. Some people are not patient enough for special orders, others need a vehicle "now" for any number of reasons. That can continue with the allocation system.

As it stands now one has to rely on a dealership to input the order correctly, communicate effectively, and not to change the price or put "add-ons" on the vehicle when it is delivered. All that needs to end.

 

[FakeCowboy]

Ford has much more to lose by not delivering in a big market than it does by not delivering in a small time market. It is the reality of the situation.

 

[bpcooper14]

TBH, I don't know that the allocation system ever made sense because there was no clear information how it was implemented. Haphazard selections of identical builds placed at a later date that were selected for production caused most of the angst and hate we've all seen

 

[Trucklet]

Ford has much more to lose by not delivering in a big market than it does by not delivering in a small time market. It is the reality of the situation.

I'd agree there, but if all of these Mavericks are tied to real orders, what's the risk?

 

[coxwm2]

TBH, I don't know that the allocation system ever made sense because there was no clear information how it was implemented. Haphazard selections of identical builds placed at a later date that were selected for production caused most of the angst and hate we've all seen

Reposting this for those who don't take the time to research.

Found this on another site. Explains the allocation / ordering process very well.

Dealers assign priority codes to each order based on the Order Type. Stock orders are assigned priority codes 20-80, retail orders are assigned priority codes 10-19. Fleet orders are assigned special alpha numeric codes that represent a requested production week. The priority codes determine the order for which vehicle orders are to be selected and/or considered for scheduling. This overview doesn’t consider commodity issues (model, powertrain or option scheduling restrictions) that may be in place for a scheduling week. Commodity issues and/or restrictions can apply at either or both the regional and national levels.

The highest priority that a Dealer can use for a retail order is 10. An order with a “10” priority code will schedule ahead of an order with an “11” priority code, etc. This allows Dealers to prioritize the order in which vehicles are scheduled, especially when a Dealer may have multiple retail orders in the USOB (Unscheduled Order Bank). With the WBDO ordering system, retail orders default to priority code “19” so it’s important that a Dealer change the priority code to a lower number if they want the order to be considered for scheduling earlier compared to other orders.

Ford provides Dealers with a schedule for vehicle allocation each week on Monday mornings which shows how many vehicles of each model line that the Dealer has allocation for scheduling that week. That same weekly allocation report also includes information on any regional commodity issues or restrictions. On Monday afternoons, the Scheduling Toolbox Report is released which provides more detailed information on commodity issues and scheduling availability on a national basis. On Tuesday mornings, the AM Scheduling Preview Report is available to show Dealers which vehicle orders have been selected or previewed, on an initial basis, to be selected for scheduling that week. The same report is updated and available on Wednesday morning to show any changes based on commodity issues that may have changed.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Regional Scheduler issues a notice informing Dealers of the vehicle specifications available for scheduling for orders not already showing on the AM Preview Report. This provides Dealers with information on what vehicle specifications are available for scheduling should they have orders showing on the AM Preview Report that are not what the Dealer wants.

Ford generates what are called “SIMS Orders” each week which are Ford’s suggested orders based on commodity information available at the time. If a Dealer has vehicle allocation for scheduling that week and has no Dealer orders in the USOB or orders that don’t meet the commodity restrictions in place for that week, the scheduling system will default to trying to schedule SIMS (Smart Inventory Management System) orders if they meet any commodity restrictions in place. The SIMS orders are available to Dealers online Monday mornings and in print form on Tuesday mornings. Dealers can enter their own vehicle orders or change the Ford generated SIMS orders.

Ford Dealers earn vehicle scheduling allocation each month based on reported vehicle sales, current inventory, projected sales, etc. Each month, Dealers usually meet with their Ford Zone Manager to review the allocation offered for scheduling the following month. A Dealer can accept the suggested allocation per vehicle line or change their commitment. Should a Dealer want more allocation than offered for a vehicle line, they can submit a request for supplemental allocation which will be considered based on total allocation available and commitments from other Dealers in their Zone. There are times when Dealers accept less allocation than offered for a vehicle line which makes that allocation available to other Dealers that may be looking for additional inventory. At other times, a Dealer may want more allocation for a vehicle line than Ford has offered. A supplemental allocation request is how Dealers can get allocation for extra inventory.

A Dealer needs allocation each week for scheduling for each vehicle line. Even without allocation for a vehicle line, Ford is pretty good at trying to schedule retail orders even when a Dealer doesn’t have allocation that week. When a Dealer knows that they don’t have scheduling allocation, it’s always a good idea for them to provide the retail order information (Body Code & Order Number) to their Ford Zone Manager and the Regional Scheduler. The Regional Scheduler can reprioritize the retail order to priority code “01” which basically forces the Ford scheduling system to schedule the unit ASAP unless extreme commodity restrictions prevent the scheduling. When a Dealer doesn’t have allocation, the Ford Zone Manager may try to get the allocation from another Dealer that is willing to give up their allocation.

Ford scheduling is done on Thursday’s but at times scheduling may be carried over to Friday’s due to scheduling, commodity or other issues. Vehicle scheduling confirmations are available on Friday mornings for allocation scheduled on Thursday.

With only a few exceptions (Focus RS, EcoSport, Transit Connect) VIN numbers are generated at the time that an order is “Submitted to Plant” for scheduling. The initial scheduling information will show an order scheduled for a production week. Afterwards, the information will be updated to show production for a particular date. Along the process, the vehicle order status information will be updated along with the ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) at the dealership.

Years ago, the ordering process was much easier, with few or limited commodity issues to deal with. Ford’s vehicle scheduling was mostly driven by scheduling and building vehicles based on Dealer orders to meet Market demands. For a number of years now, the ordering process has become more complex and time consuming based on the constantly changing commodity issues and restrictions. It is now not uncommon for allocation to roll over to the following week because manufacturing can’t accurately forecast how many vehicles can be scheduled for production. In many cases, it seems that either because of vendor supply issues or other factors that Ford skews vehicle scheduling to higher content models in order to maximize corporate profits rather than scheduling vehicle production to meet Dealers orders or Market demand.

The overall vehicle order process, scheduling and status updates is listed below for reference.

· Dealer places order into the USOB (Unscheduled Order Bank)
· When Dealer has vehicle allocation for scheduling, orders are scheduled based on Order Type, Priority Code and commodity restrictions.
o Scheduled vehicle orders display as “Submitted to Plant” on the Dealer’s daily schedule status report.
o Vehicle orders are assigned a VIN number when scheduled except for certain vehicle lines (EcoSport, Focus RS, Transit Connect)
o The initial vehicle scheduling notice will include information for the scheduled week of production. The initial ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) is usually provided within a few days of the scheduling notice.
o Dealers can change vehicle specifications for a scheduled vehicle up until the vehicle is “locked in” for production or about two weeks prior to the scheduled build date. Specifications for certain vehicle lines (EcoSport, Focus RS, etc.) cannot be changed once scheduled.
§ Dealers are limited to making 6 changes to scheduled orders.
§ Dealers cannot change Order Type, Body Code, Order Code (Package/Trim Level)

· Vehicle order is next updated with a scheduled production date.
· Vehicle goes into production and shows as “Sent to Plant” on the Dealer’s daily status report.
o Vehicle invoices and window stickers are generated and available to Dealers at about this time.
· Dealer’s daily status report shows updates on production status.
· Vehicle status updated to “Produced”
· Vehicle status updated to “Released” meaning that the vehicle has been released for shipment.
· Vehicle is loaded on rail car. Dealer is provided with carrier information (Canadian National, Norfolk Sothern, etc.) along with the actual rail car number.
· Vehicle status is updated to show arrival at the final rail destination (Ramp 41/Newark, NJ)
· Vehicle is received by the car carrier (Fleet Car, Diversified Automotive, etc.) for delivery to the dealership.
· Vehicle is delivered to the dealership.

Dealers have access to the “Vehicle Visibility” application which provides status updates on a 24/7 basis for any vehicle order.

 

[Iamlearningpatience]

I’ve heard debate from here that Ford does or does not look at this site. I sure hope they do. I’ve written them an email last week. My husband told me I should be writing them emails every week I don’t get a build email lol

I’m still fully unaware of the allotment system and how it works but my patience is wearing thin….

 

[Trucklet]

Reposting this for those who don't take the time to research.

Dealers have access to the “Vehicle Visibility” application which provides status updates on a 24/7 basis for any vehicle order.

That's a whole lot of information, and after reading it - it doesn't appear to answer the question of why this is relevant in an environment when all orders are already spoken for -i.e. "why" one dealership gets a higher code than another if all orders are already "done-deals". As far as priority codes, I'm already at the highest level at my dealer but it's a small dealership that will never get attention from HQ.

 

[DogNamedMaverick]

Buyers should be able to order direct from Ford while choosing a delivery dealership. The dealer adds no value to the pre-order process whatsoever.
Then builds should be scheduled via one group without any preference to dealer volumes.

People love Tesla for this method (minus the dealers)

Dealers still have their place as a service center, used dealer, and people who want to buy new right off the lot.

 

[Roscoe]

I can't think of a worse system to sell cars. I've been waiting six months with no build date. Put down $900 and still have to worry if the dealer is going to jack me up when it does arrive.

 

[coxwm2]

That's a whole lot of information, and after reading it - it doesn't appear to answer the question of why this is relevant in an environment when all orders are already spoken for -i.e. "why" one dealership gets a higher code than another if all orders are already "done-deals". As far as priority codes, I'm already at the highest level at my dealer but it's a small dealership that will never get attention from HQ.

If your order is a Priority 2, Ford is previewing your vehicle to build. Some of have been in preview for several months, with no scheduled build date. Vehicles can only be built if ALL components are available for that particular build.

 

[Old Ranchero]

I agree. I also think that Ford needs to remove dealers from the special order process entirely. Their only involvement should be taking the vehicle in and prepping it for delivery to the customer once it is built. The rest of the process should be able to be completed online; Ford can compensate the dealers for handling the delivery.

Dealers can and should have stock units. Some people are not patient enough for special orders, others need a vehicle "now" for any number of reasons. That can continue with the allocation system.

As it stands now one has to rely on a dealership to input the order correctly, communicate effectively, and not to change the price or put "add-ons" on the vehicle when it is delivered. All that needs to end.

try thinking outside your own age demographic here. Many Sr citizens and just plain retired folks don't prefer doing everything on-line... and we buy new cars!

 

[MakinDoForNow]

I’ve heard debate from here that Ford does or does not look at this site. I sure hope they do. I’ve written them an email last week. My husband told me I should be writing them emails every week I don’t get a build email lol

I’m still fully unaware of the allotment system and how it works but my patience is wearing thin….

They obviously do. I have seen some replys to send TM to someone at Ford (not sure but I think they disappear in 1-2 days or when they get reply(??)). At least I have not found them again. There are not many percentage wise so one would have to read many threads to see one.

 

[dalola]

Yeah, I also think dealer stock orders should be handled differently from paid customer orders. Paid customer orders should be scheduled as they are received by Ford, in order, based on production schedules. Adhering to the allocation system on customer orders only serves to disappoint the customer, primarily.

At the very least, I would think dealer satisfaction scores could enter into the equation, to help recognize the small town dealers who don't do the volume, but exceed in customer relations/satisfaction.

Hopefully Ford will recognize the flaws with the current system, and make some very necessary changes, especially given the customer order method they are pushing.

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