GTO SAILS INTO U.S. Global engine in production

GTO SAILS
INTO U.S.
Commodore
still Australia's
top-selling car
Global
engine in
production
Proving ground
unlocked
G R E G MURPHY'S NZ VICTORY SOUVENIR POSTER INSIDE
NE\A/S
F R O M
THE
THE
BOARDROOM
CHAIRMAN'S
VIEW
r
71
Jeff Jamieson
Executive Director - Manufacturing
We're in the home stretch of the most exciting year in
Holden's history since the Introduction FX in 1948.
e end of 2004, we will be
Itaneousiy sending care created
olden employees to every
continent - with the exception of
Antarctica, of course.
In the past few months, we have
confirmed programs to Thailand,
e United Kingdom and shipped the first
s to the United States. America's top
automotive journalists are now singing the GTO's
praises as a fantastic reincarnation of America's
original performance car and we are sure the American
public will have the same feeling about our car.
The Holden Board believes our export program can
help to protect Australian jobs for decades to come.
General Motors Chairman and CEO, Rick Wagoner,
highlighted our strengths during his visit earlier this
month: "Holden's done a great job here, and it's terrific
that we're moving so fast on the Monaro and the GTO."
But we cannot rest on our laurels and w e should
always remind ourselves that these new markets are
never at the expense of Australian sales.
Holden Is Australia's own car company. Australia is
a complicated and competitive market with more than
50 brands from the world's largest automotive groups
which helps to us to create exciting cars. The
Australian market created Holden and generated its
greatest successes.
We must be able to reach 200,000 vehicles in
annual production - including domestic and export
sales - to be a globally sustainable company. Holden
plans to secure more expori:s in the coming years,
with possibilities in the Asia-Pacific region and Europe.
This will never occur at the expense of Australian
customers. Regardless of how high w e aim and how
much we grow, we will always be
Australia's own car company and
Holden employees and can-do
^
I
attitude will always be our
greatest assets.
/
I
Id.
i
Peter H a n e n b e r g e r
Chairman and Managing Director
Eight of the nine new models scheduled for introduction
have been successfully launched. Elizabeth plant capacity
has risen from 620 to 780 cars per day, helped by the
introduction of the third shift.
Even bigger manufacturing, engineering and facilities
projects, aimed at setting us up for 2006, are well under
way in General Assembly, the Press Shop, Plastics, the
Body Shop, Fabrication and in the Paint Shop.
Production has started at the new Global V6 plant which
officially opened earlier this month. Family il export engine
volumes are increasing and some extremely good initiatives
from employees have placed the plant in a much better
competitive position.
Today's demand for faster, cheaper vehicle development
programs at higher quality no longer make it possible for
engineers alone to develop the product and manufacturing
processes without the problem-solving abilities and innovative
ideas of everyone on the line.
The application of the skills and knowledge of every
Holden employee is the key to Holden's success In the
future and 1 think sets us apart from the competition.
HEO
s e t s sa'Fety r e c o r d
October returned a record result on the safety front at
Holden Engine Operations. For the first time in the history
of the plant, HEO achieved zero GM recordable
incidents and zero lost work day cases for the month of
October. A recordable incident refers to an injury severe
enough to need treatment from a doctor.
Corporate Occupational Health and Safety Manager
Kilner Brasier said the result reflected a trend across
GM plants and Holden's commitment to improved
workplace safety.
"There's been a marked improvement across all GM
plants which reflects the big push we have had over the ^
past five years to improve our performance in the area
of workplace safety," Kilner said.
Acting Director Engine Operations, Anthony Hengel
welcomed the result but cautioned against complacency.
"It is a good result that can be attributed to the efforts of
everyone at HEO but we need to remember that this was
only one month. Before we can claim victory in the area of .
woii<place safety, we have to be consistently sustaining this '
result, month after month, year after year," Anthony said.
C O V E R P H O T O : Holden Chairman and Managing Director, Peter Hanenberger has signed his last deal as the chief ambassador for the brand he has
championed since taking up the top job in June 1999. But even in his last weeks at the helm, Holden's number one man is helping to make history as the first
boatload of locally built Pontiac GTOs land in the United States. More GTO news, page 5.
. '
PEOPLE
P A G E B.
Global
V6
in p r o d u c t i o n
More than 1500 people jammed into the
new Global V6 plant earlier this month to
witness the commissioning of Holden's
first new engine plant in 22 years.
The $400 million Todd Rd plant is the
largest single investment in Australia in
more than two decades. It will generate
up to 900 engines a day or 240,000
engines a year, with capacity to expand
to 300,000 engines a year, which will
ultimately create more than 500 jobs.
The plant will deliver fully locally
produced six-cylinder engines for the
first time since 1986. The global V6
engine family will be exported to GM
brands around the world and power
future Holdens for domestic and
overseas markets.
Holden expects to generate up to
$450 million a year in V6 engine
exports, boosting its contribution to
Australia's balance of trade to more
than $1.5 billion a year.
Holden Chairman and Managing
Director Peter Hanenberger was joined
by GM Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer, Rick Wagoner, Victorian Premier
Steve Bracks, Federal Industry, Tourism
and Resources Minister Ian Macfarlane,
and ACTU President Sharan Burrow
and senior representatives of Holden for
the inauguration of the new plant on
November 5.
Victorian Premier Steve Braclts, GIVl Cliairman and CEO Rick Wagoner, ACTU President Sliaran Burrow,
Federal Industry, Tourism and Resources Minister Ian Macfarlane and Holden Chairman and Managing
Director Peter Hanenberger officially iaunch Holden's new Global V6 engline plant at Fishermans Bend
Peter told the large crowd of guests
and media that the Port Melbourne facility
was a major part of Holden's strategy to
become a niche global manufacturer
servicing a range of GM markets.
"This engine plant will take
Australian skills and products to the
world," Peter said.
According to Rick Wagoner, the plant
is further indication that Holden is
becoming a centre of expertise within
the GM family, particularly in the AsiaPacific region.
"Holden is very much part of GM's
bigger plans for the long term," Rick said.
GM and Holden CEOs Rick Wagoner and Peter
Hanenberger took the opportunity to be brought
up to date on life in the Family II engine plant
Families join
lii-tech celebration
A festive atmosphere flavored by
entertainers and musicians greeted the
large crowd that turned out for the special
weekend family celebrations to launch the
new Global V6 plant. Employees took the
opportunity to show off their new work
environment to family while younger
visitors were kept amused by jugglers,
magicians and balloon artists. And while
the production lines were not operating,
there was plenty for visitors to see
including the latest high-tech
manufacturing equipment featured in the
$400 million plant
The catering team were kept busy feeding the hundreds of visitors who enjoyed family celebrations
P E O P L E [tm
PAGE
3
Simple suggestion - big
reward
General Assembly's Shane
Betterman is saving Holden an
estimated $50,000 a year and has
earned himself the maximum reward
through the Employee Suggestion Plan
in the process.
Shane, Work Group Leader in cockpit
assembly, made his suggestion after
fixing up to 10 damaged wiring
harnesses - the heart of the every
vehicle's instrument panel, each week.
He noticed that one of the electrical
wires was too long and was sometimes
caught in the conveyor, as the cockpits
moved along the assembly line. A small
plug on the end of the wire was
damaged in the process.
"To fix the problem, we had to use
parts from a completely new wiring
because the damaged part could not be
bought separately. There had to be a
better way," said Shane.
Shane Betterman finds a better way
"The fix 1 suggested was simple. Our
supplier just has to tape the longer wire
at the same time as it already tapes the
other wire. It doesn't mean an
additional operation."
Shane is one of 1200 employees
from various Holden sites whose
participation in the Holden Suggestion
Plan has landed them in the draw for
the Monaro to be drawn in February.
upplien of the yean a w a r d
The quality, service, technology and
phce offered by Holden suppliers came
into the spotlight at the Holden Supplier
of the Year Awards 2003. A first for
Holden, the awards mirror the successful
GM initiative that has recognised its
supplier base for the past 10 years. And
in the spirit of fostering strong
relationships with its business partners,
the awards were presented in a friendly
atmosphere at a gala dinner hosted by
celebrities Tim Watson and Suzie Wilks.
Sam Lip Industrial Co. Ltd, which
supplies front, rear and fog lights for
Holden vehicles, took out the award for
Overseas Corporation of the Year
ahead of the other nominees, Enkei
International (alloy wheels), Sumitomo
Australia (steel) and Hokuto (body shop
machinery and equipment).
Australian Arrow Pty Ltd, which
supplies wiring, clusters and telematics
was named Australian Corporation of
the Year: Other nominees were
Bridgestone Australia (tyres) Dana
Australia (chassis components and
assembly) and Castro! Australia (fluids,
oils and chemical management).
A number of other suppliers took out
awards recognising excellence in a
range of sub categories:
Suppliers joined government representatives and senior Holden executives for the inaugural
award's dinner at Melbourne's Sofitei Hotel
Australian A n ^ Pty Ltd
Australian Corporation of
Environment Award
Resolve FM (facilities management).
Value Analysis /
Value Engineering Award
Dana Australia
Service Award
Exei Australia Pty Ltd (customs brokerage).
Quality Award
Denso International Australia Pty Ltd (HVAC)
Small Business Award
Sage Automation Ltd (automation).
Export Award
PBR International Pty Ltd (calipers).
PEOPLE
PAGE A
Ltd {chassis components and assembly).
NE\A/S
GTO
new
chants
export w a t e r
parttime
An automotive catalyst is much
more than a large bulge in a pipe.
It is, in fact, very active at a
molecular level.
When heated by the exhaust
gas, the catalyst becomes active,
and converts pollutants such as:
• Hydrocarbons, or unburnt fuel;
Members of the GTO manufacturing team, from left, Dean Stevens (Bodysiiop), Steve Pratt,
(Paint Shop), Dan Hayward (Quality), Tony Sylvester (Program Manager, Coupes), Bradley Cook
(Plastics), Florin Alexandru (Press)
The first shipment of the Pontiac GTO
has landed and is finding its way to
dealerships across the United States.
For Manufacturing Program Manager
of the Holden-built Pontiac GTO, Tony
Sylvester, and his team it is sweet
reward after months of preparations.
"From day one, everyone knew
the deadline for start of production
was September 2, 2003, and come
hell or high water, w e were going to
make it," Tony said.
Equivalent to a new model upgrade,
the GTO required a range of changes
to meet or exceed mandatory US legal
requirements, environmental
conditions and design cues. This
meant new tooling for unique panels in
the Body Shop. A new plastics
injection moulding machine was
installed to deliver greater occupant
protection in a market where weahng
of seatbelts is not mandatory. Steel in
the Press Shop had to be coated
differently and a new clear coat
process was installed in the Paint
Shop to resist acid rain. Meanwhile,
new error-proofing measures were
introduced in General Assembly to
ensure quality fitment of parts. All of
these initiatives are now used in
production processes for other models.
The arnval of the first boatload of
GTOs on United States soil is the
result of a cross-functional team
• Carbon monoxide or partially
combusted fuel and
• Oxides of nitrogen, formed at
high temperatures to the less
harmful and / or polluting water,
carbon dioxide and nitrogen.
The stainless steel outer shell
houses a 'brick' (a ceramic called
cordierite) supported by a ceramic
fibre mat.
GM chief Rick Wagoner joined the GTO drive
program during his recent Holden visit
effort, according to Tony.
"There is no one person or
department who can lay claim to
praise for the entire GTO program. It
took a mammoth effort from every
department in Holden to bring the
program together," Tony said.
"There were so many Issues to
consider. A product for the US is a
totally new ball game.
"The engineering team in
Melbourne was brilliant. And 1 can't
praise enough the manufacturing
team I had working on this project
with me at Elizabeth."
Quality Coordinator Dan Hayward,
has flown to California in the US to
Inspect the first shipment of GTOs,
and National Distribution Centre
Manager Barry Crees has been on the
ground ensuring safe delivery of parts.
Two Holden employees will remain in
the US for the next 12 months to work
with US Pontiac Retailers.
PEOPLE ^
PAGE B
The brick increases the surface
area exposed to the exhaust gas
through a large number of square
channels. The surface area in just
one WK cat converter brick is
nearly four square metres.
Bricks are coated with a ceria,
alumina and precious metal
'washcoat', increasing the surface
area by a factor near 1000 (the
WK cat now has an internal
surface area of about 40,000m^)
The catalyst can withstand
temperatures over 1 0 0 0 X , and if
the vehicle is well maintained, will
last the lifetime of the car.
P
•Fast-Facts
The Pontiac GTO derives its name
from Grand Turismo Omologato,
an Italian term originally identifying
grand touring coupes qualified for
road racing.
J
OCTOBER
SALES
HIGHLIGHTS
INDUSTRY
OVERVIEW
Commodore reclaimed number one spot for the month, with
Record sales in passenger and light commercial {incl. SUV)
total sales of 7,590 vehicles, beating Falcon by 1,693 units.
segments propelled the market to an all-time high.
On a YTD basis, Commodore sales increased to 72,496 units,
Light commercial continued its strong sales momentum, with a
ahead of Falcon by 11,110 units.
total of 24,861 vehicles or a 12 per cent increase over last year.
Holden Caprice and Rodeo recorded their best ever
The vehicle market is on track to achieve total sales of 915.000
October sales.
vehicles by year's end. On a YTD basis, the market is currently
at 755,913 units, or 10.4 per cent higher than last year's sales.
[ MARKET
LEADERS
M A R K E T L E A D E R S (YEAR)
(MONTH)
T O Y O T A 15893
T O Y O T A 153709
H O L D E N 15267
H O L D E N 146925
F O R D 10440
F O R D 106196
M I T S U B I S H I 6250
M I T S U B I S H I 30998
N I S S A N 5369
N I S S A N 48563
M A Z D A 463S
M A Z D A 44876
H Y U N D A I 3005
H Y U N D A I 25627
S U B A R U 2807
H O N D A 25007
H O N D A 2646
S U B A R U 24299
1807
M E R C E D E S B E N Z 15936
KIA
4000
12000
80000
40000
16000
BARINA
120000
160000
ZAFIRA
VECTRA
ASTRA
October 2003 sales
1995
A S T R A CONVERTIBLE
October 2003 sales: 231
October 2003 sales:
336
October 2003 sales:
290
October 2003 sales:
October 2002 sales
2367
October 2002 sales:
October 2002 sales:
540
October 2002 sales:
63
October 2002 sales:
291
118
193
2003 YTD sales:
22458
2003 YTD sales:
2191
2003 YTD sales:
4327
2003 YTD sales:
2003
2003 YTD sales:
1307
2002 YTD sales:
23157
2002 YTD sales:
1738
2002 YTD sales:
8189
2002 YTD sales:
4554
2002 YTD sales:
1359
MONARO
CRUZE
October 2003 sales:
196
October 2003 sales: 7590
STATESMAN
October 2003 sales:
343
CAPRICE
October 2003 sales:
114
October 2003 sales:
October 2002 sales:
314
October 2002 sales: 9667
October 2002 sales:
304
October 2002 sales:
42
October 2002 sales:
C O M M O D O R E
223
234
2003 YTD sales:
2803
2003 YTD sales:
72496
2003 YTD sales:
3714
2003 YTD sales:
843
2003 YTD sales:
2561
2002 YTD sales:
1645
2002 YTD sales:
73213
2002 YTD sales:
3799
2002 YTD sales:
488
2002 YTD sales:
3691
JACKAROO
October 2003 sales:
140
UTE
October 2003 sales
1782
RODEO
October 2003 sales: 1781
COMBO
October 2003 sales:
109
October 2002 sales:
115
October 2002 saies
1274
October 2002 sales: 1170
October 2002 sales:
128
2003 YTD safes:
1428
2003 YTD sales:
13393
2003 YTD sales:
16208
2003 YTD sales:
1039
2002 YTD saies:
2238
2002 YTD sales:
11404
2002 YTD sales:
13026
2002 YTD sales:
274
PEOPLE ^
PAGE
6
HOLDEN
DRIVE
ON
Going to work on the weekend is
certainly no chore for the Proving
Ground team. Employees were joined
by friends and family to form the
crowd of more than 700 who poured
into the Lang Lang complex on Open
Day earlier this month. And with
airbag deployments on the hour,
regular bus tours of the 44 kilometre
test track, a side impact barrier test
and numerous displays, there was no
shortage of information.
Organised by Supervising Engineer,
Safety Test Laboratory, Dean Niclasen
and the employee enthusiasm group,
the day enabled employees to share
their special branch of work and gave
family members a rare glimpse inside
the high security facility.
"Feedback has been extremely
positive. Families loved it and really
appreciated the chance to reach a new
level of understanding of the very
special job w e do here," Dean said.
PEOPLE
What is your role at Holden
Service Parts Operations?
I have been here about seven months
and am Supervisor of the Export Division
of the National Distribution Centre.
How is the Pontiac GTO, and
export generally, affecting your
world oad?
Exports are booming. We are running at
50-60 per cent more volume than this
time last year - that's double, even three
times the volume of parts we were
handling two years ago. The Pontiac has
only just gone on sale so we've only been
sending a base level of parts to date.
Over the past three months we've
shipped about 15 40ft containers. Some
of those parts are brand new and we've
had to integrate them into the
warehouse system. It's not just screws
and nuts, a lot are large panels bonnets, deck lids, side panels - so you
fill a container quickly.
Is distance a problem?
It can be difficult. Ships are not going to
the US everyday; there's only two or
three a month so we have to keep an
AND
eye on the cut-off dates and when the
ship leaves. It's about six weeks
travelling time. We also airfreight some
critical orders.
is not always an option given the size
of some parts.
It sounds like a major logistical
exercise.
All parts imported into the US must have
'country-of-origin' labelling. Usually the
label has the part number, a description
and details of quantity but customs
regulations in the States require 'country
of origin' as well. So we had to
implement an in-house audit process, to
check every part and re-label as
required before releasing for shipping.
Yes it is. If they place a large order
the day before cut-off w e have to
determine whether w e can get it on
board that vessel; if not, it's going to
mean a two to three week delay for
t h e m . That can make a very large
difference at their end and airfreight
Is there anything peculiar about
exporting parts to the U S ?
M Y GAR
From the age of 19, Mario Cufone
(Elizabeth General Assembly 516)
worked three jobs cooking pizza,
fixing white goods at his father's
business, and stacking shelves at
service stations to save enough
money to buy his original 1970 HT
Premier, at a cost of $400.
Originally a "clunker", Mario has
rebuilt his dream machine. He has
changed its engine five times before
settling on the current big block 454
(400kw) Chev LS6/7 combination 500
brake horse power {BHP).
He has restored it to its original
color, but with his own unique yellow
pear! addition.
The restoration has been a labor of
love since 1990 and there were times
Mario thought it would be easier (and
less expensive) to give up. But he
was driven on by a need to prove to
his father that the project was not a
waste of money.
"My dad would bag me for
spending money on the car. I wanted
to show him he was wrong. I'm a
persistent guy!"
There have been some anxious
PEOPLE ^
PAGE
a
moments for Mario. Not the least of
which was getting the car rejected for
registration two weeks out from his
wedding day in March 2000. "I had to
work like crazy to fix everything. I
was sweating like mad. The car was
going to be the bridal car in the
wedding procession - I just had to
get it through, and I did, with one
week to spare!"
PEOPLE
F a s t , s t r o n g vehicle development
Technology borrowed from the motor
racing industry has the potential to
revolutionise the development of
Holden's experimental engineering
vehicles. Using carbon fibre sheeting,
pre-impregnated with resin and
hardener, Group Leader, Chad Dodson
and his team in the Pattern Shop are
able to replicate steel exterior body
panels for a fraction of the cost.
"We are using cutting-edge
technology to make exterior body
panels for about one tenth of the cost of
traditional methods. We use less
matehal and can keep the .8 sheet
metai thickness because of the strength
of carbon fibre," Chad said.
"In the past, we made a steel die,
pressed out steel panels and fitted those
to the car. We had to make a panel 34mm thick to get the strength needed.
Because they were early prototype parts,
changes were inevitable.
The strength and lightweight
properties of carbon fibre have been
used for some time by the motor racing
industry to produce limited numbers of
body parts. But Chad had to look to a
Bhsbane-based supplier to provide
training for his team.
"People are reluctant to give away
Kevin IVlcConneli, Chad Dodson and Daren Rubery road test new panel malting teclinology in
experimental engineering
their trade secrets but our supplier came
down for a week to give us some inhouse training. We got the process up
and running, put the infrastructure in
place and now the guys are physically
producing parts themselves," Chad said.
The use of carbon fibre has also
brought environmental and safety
benefits. Because the resin is preimpregnated into the material, there are
no toxic emissions. There's no noisy,
dusty grinding as there was with sheet
metal and because the carbon fibre is
pressed into the mould in a dry, inert
form, there's no need for tradespeople
to wear respirators or other safety
equipment. Once vacuum-sealed and,
cured in the oven under pressure,
there's no fumes let off into the
environment. These new processes
have been a highlight of Chad's two
years at Holden.
"We work about three years out and
I can already see that reducing with
VR. The lead times will get shorter
and shorter with these new processes
so that what we are putting out there
into the market is what people want to
see here and now. It's very exciting
work. I love it," Chad said.
Holden lions -Free to
roam at Monarto
The lions have officially been released
into their new 10-hectare open
grassland Holden Lion Habitat at
Monarto Zoological Park.
South Australian Premier Mike Rann
officially released the lions with the help
of Holden's Executive Director
Corporate Affairs Alison Terry.
Alison told the strong turn-out of
guests and media that the Holden
partnership with Monarto Zoological
Park was a logical link between
organisations that shared similar values.
Monarto and the Royal Zoological
Society of South Australia are
renowned, both nationally and
internationally," Alison said.
Amid the smooth running of the
launch event, there was one anxious
moment when the media bus failed to
start. Camera crew and journalists from
all SA metro TV stations found
themselves stranded in the middle of
the Holden Lion Habitat, with lions, Levi
and Leroy becoming increasingly more
interested in its occupants.
"Holden partnerships with
organisations such as Landcare
Australia, Greenfleet and Zoos
Victoria are all aimed at raising
awareness in the area of conservation
and environmental education for our
youth - the same areas for which
Holden's two-year naming rights
sponsorship agreement with Monarto
Zoo includes use of a Holden Rodeo.
The partnership will provide many
opportunities for Holden employees to
participate in volunteer programs in
the near future.
PEOPLE ^
PAGE
9
The natural Holden Lion Habitat at Monarto
GLOBAL
NE\A/S
Seizing the lion's
S h a n e of opportunity
American David Frye has adapted
quickly to life in Holden heartland. A
General Motors employee of 27 years
service, David is in Australia on a
three year assignment as a vehicle
Program Purchasing Manager. Since
his arrival in August with his wife
Karen, son Clark,15 and daughter
Emma 12, David has enjoyed
experiences in his personal and
professional life that have affirmed his
decision to uproot his family.
"From the second w e came down
here, the whole experience has been
made so easy. People are just so
bloody nice," David said.
Holden is very similar to the
organisation that David grew up in at
Cadillac where he started his GM
career in manufacturing engineering.
" It's a similar working environment in
that there's not a lot of bureaucratic
hierarchy between you and getting
something to happen. Individuals at
Holden have a lot of opportunities to
make a difference."
"This 'can-do attitude' and the Holden
organisation's ability to achieve so
much with a very lean but very
dedicated workforce, is one of the
things that North America truly respects
and would like to take advantage of."
David joined the purchasing arm of
the world's largest vehicle manufacturer
in 1987. Last year he was involved in a
study team that examined the business
case for building the Pontiac GTO in
North America. The opportunity to share
his knowledge and experience with the
corporation's most remote plant held
irresistible appeal.
"This three year assignment is
recognition that Holden is stepping up
efforts to take advantage of the
opportunities from its growing export
base. With these opportunities comes
the need for people to develop the
plans and work with suppliers to be able
to manufacture to new levels of
expectation," David said.
David believes the opportunities for
Holden to increase exports in a number
of regions is sizeable. The US is but
one example.
GM G L O B A L
GM WORLD F I R S T IN K O R E A
GM Daewoo recently opened a 315square-metre showroom at Korea's
Incheon Internationa! Airport called the GM
Daewoo Theme Lounge. The lounge is the
largest exhibition at the airport, which
serves metropolitan Seoul, and the world's
first automoblie showroom inside an
airport waiting area.
GM G L O B A L C E N S U S
All GM employees worldwide participated
in the GM Global Employee Census.
By conducting a common global
employee census every two to three
years, GM has the opportunity to gauge
current employee needs and issues and
respond through local action planning.
Feedback on the GM Global Census
results is expected early next year and
v/ilj help to identify ways to improve
v/ork environment.
GTO
Pontiac is debuting a number of
performance-tuned, specially equipped
show vehicles suitable for Auiocross racing
applications at the Specialty Equipment
Market Association show in Las Vegas.
This show version continues to be powered
by the venerable LS1 5.7L engine, but a
new camshaft and heads from the LS6
engine boost horsepower to 400kW.
GTO W E L L R E C E I V E D
The Pontiac GTO has been well received
by two key American auto journals.
MOTOR TREND described GTO as "the
fastest, most appealing GM muscle coupe
in memory."
PEOPLE
P A G E lO
CAR and DRIVER said "we're really
struggling to invent reasons not to put both
hands together for this supremely
comfortable, rear-drive, all independently
sprung. Corvette-powered, huskysounding, highway inhaling coupe."
CHINA
GM Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer, Rick Wagoner, has announced
GM's ambitious plans to expand its
presence and maintain its strong growth
in China. Gtvl will relaunch the Cadillac
luxury nameplate as both an import and
domestically assembled brand.
Shanghai GM and SAIC-GM-Wuling
manufacturing facilities will be
expanded in order to meet rising
customer demand.
SER^/ICE
HONORS
the
©
Megan Stooke continues her successful
career at Holden with her appointment
to Director - Sales, Peter Keley will
take over from Megan as Director Export, effective January.
in the Design Department, Tony Stolfo
has been appointed Director of Design.
Tony joined Holden Design in 1992,
and most recently as Chief Designer,
has led successful Design programs,
including VY. Meanwhile, Andrew Smith
has been promoted to Chief Designer,
reporting to Tony.
Dan Ryon has been appointed to the
role of Director - Holden Engine
3 5
Operations and will take up the role
from January 1, 2004.
Dan comes to Holden from GM in the
United States and has a wealth of
experience covering more than 20 years
in various areas of GM Powertrain. His
most recent role was "Business Team
Leader Powertrain" for Saturn.
Anthony Hengel will retain his interim
roie as Acting Director Engine
Operations before moving to HFV6
Production Manager on Dan's arrival.
Gabor Gerenscer will remain in an
acting capacity as HFV6 Production
Manager until the same time, then take
on the role of Manufacturing Engineering
Manager for Engine Operations.
Mario Adamo has moved from Finance
to take up a position as Purchasing
Manager, Indirect Machine and
Equipment, in World Wide Purchasing
and Order to Delivery. Kim Wallace has
been appointed Human Resources
Business Partner - Engineering and
Design, in HR Shared Services.
Pat Fahy returns to Holden from his
Planning role at APO Singapore to
replace Peter Keley as Manager,
Market Forward Planning, effective
February 1, 2004.
YEARS
Trim Assembly Group 2
Manufacturing
December 12
Experimental Garage
National Fleet
Manufacturing & Facilities Engineering Operations
Executive Director, Sales & Marketing
Engineering & Design
Sales & Marketing
Manufacturing
Sales & Marketing
December
December
December
December
Enzo Topatig
MIrcea Aldea
Ramon Collins
OLD Sales
SQA / Supplier Development
Internal Control & Business Risk
December 1
December 4
December 6
Thomas Sarapuu
Jeffrey Davitt
Phillip Dandrea
Material Flow Assembly
Fabrication - Components
Facilities & Equipment Engineering
Sales & Marketing
Sales & Marketing
World Wide Purchasing
& Order to Delivery
Manufacturing
Manufacturing
Manufacturing
Paul Lohmann
3 0
YEARS
Salvatore Quattrocchi
Leslie Peck
Malcolm Kelly
Ross McKenzie
£5
3
10
11
17
YEARS
December 7
December 11
December 14
December 5
Holden Retirees Christmas Luncheon, Elizabeth
December 6-7
Formula SAE Competition (employee volunteer opportunity) Murray Bridge, SA
December 7
SA Employee Sports & Social Club Christmas Party, SA
Serengeti Symphony - Monarto Zoological Park, SA (Discount entry tickets available for Holden
employees through Social Club, SA)
Social Club (SA) - Academy Cinema 1, Hindmarsh Square, Two movies Seabiscuit and S.W.A.T,
$8pp, 2pm and 6.30pm.
December 13
December 14
People is published by Holden Corporate
Affairs for employees and retirees of Holden.
People Is printed on chlorine-free
50 per cent recycled paper.
Editorial office
241 Salmon Street Port Melbourne
MOTORSRORT
N
win
«
i t e m Cn
up
k
hallenge
New Zealander Greg Murphy cemented
his place as a genuine local legend by
winning the VS Supercar round at
Pukekohe, near Auckland, for the third
consecutive time.
The latest win closed the gap on
series leader Marcos Ambrose setting
up a thrilling finale for the final round
of the year at Eastern Creek on
November 28-30. Defending
champion Mark Skaife, w h o won one
of the three races contested at
Pukekohe, retains a mathematical
chance of snatching the title.
Greg was the major beneficiary of a
decision to anull the results of the Top 10
Shootout. As the highest pre-qua'ifier he
started from pole position, and received
a further free-kick when Mark Skaife and
Max Wilson collided on the first lap. With
Marcos Ambrose struggling in wet
conditions, Greg duly led a Holden 1-2-3
rout with Todd Kelly - who had started
from 10th after his pole-setting time in
the Top 10 Shootout was scrubbed - and
Garth Tander behind.
Race 2 brought more of the same for
Greg after a fantastic pitslop put him
ahead of a flying Mark. Mark reclaimed the lead but slid on oil dropped by
another car, gifting Greg the win ahead
of Mark and Jason Bright, who had
charged to 3rd from 21st position.
Mark's superior car speed finally told
Greg Murphy savors the sweet taste of victory on tiome turf
in the final race with the hard-charging
Bhght in second and Greg third.
"Now I have to do everything to stop
Marcos from winning the championship
at Eastern Creek. The pressure is now
on them and I'm sure they are feeling it
as lots of spanners can get thrown in
the works," Greg said
Mark Skaife won't lie down either.
"Eastern Creek is going to be on for
young and old," he said. "I'd certainly
say my reign isn't finished as today you
could see how quickly things turned
around. I won't lie down yet."
No prizes for guessing where this fan's loyalties lie
WITH PAUL
MORRIS
SIRROMET WINES RACING TEAM DRIVER
It's been a mixed season of
highs and lows for the Sirromet
Wines Holden Commodore V8
Supercar team.
The positive things include
qualifying for the top 10 Shoot
Out four times, which shows
we've had good car speed, and
finishing fourth at Queensland Raceway.
Unfortunately we've also been caught
up in some accidents and there have
been some reliability problems, including
Bathurst when a driveline failure put us
out of the race after only five laps.
We started the championship running
a VY Commodore, converted from a VX
model, with the 18-degree engine.
Mid-season w e changed to our new
purpose-built VY model, with the
Holden Motorsport engine, and there
was an immediate performance jump
when we qualified third and finished
fourth with the car's debut at
Queensland Raceway in July.
Things were looking good when w e
qualified third again in the next round
at Oran Park, but since then we've
had difficulty maximising the car
speed into results.
Some of the problems we've had
can be partially attributed to the
process of switching from simply
buying our race cars to designing and
manufacturing them.
PEOPLE ^
PAGE
i&
During 2001 we made a decision to
start building our cars 'in house' at the
team's headquarters, located at the
Holden Performance Driving Centre a t
Norwell, north of the Gold Coast.
The VY Commodore I'm now racing is
the third car we've built. We're now using
Computer Aided Design-Computer Aided
Manufacturing (CAD-CAM) technology.
There has been a lot to learn, but each
car we've built has been better than the
last. Long-term I think designing and
building our own cars is the way to go.
I'm confident w e now have the
personnel, and the technical expertise to
climb up the ladder and be consistently
competitive in 2004.