Friday, January 18, 2008

Buick City Lee Furse 1985

Link for 1984 news story.
This view in factory #12 is facing north from the area where the body exited this department on a turntable heading off to the east annex 12c where it received the rest of it's body panels. The gentleman at the left with the white hair is final assembly's plant manager Lee Furse one of the nicest people I met at Buick. I would say he was the main reason Buick City came to be. He was a pilot in WWII and if I recall right he told me his plane was shot down near the coast of Japan once during a raid. I think he told me it was a Hellcat fighter not to be confused with the Buick Hellcat tank. Also his first assignment after hiring into Buick engineering was heading up the building of the XP300 Buick show-car in the early fifties Link for XP-300 news.  XP-300 features. The last I knew he retired to Flushing Michigan. This line run along the south west wall of #12. The aisle up the middle of this photo was closed to traffic except when I needed to take parts there for the drivers side buildup. There was a draw bridge at the north end of the line and the two workers just to the north of the Robogate would hold up the carriers when I needed to raise the bridge. There job was putting the lead at the rear roof pillar.

No comments: