BlueOval Battery Park Michigan Hits Hiring and LFP Production Milestones

Written By Scott Davis, CEO, Blue Oval Battery Michigan

Jun 17, 2026

What began as a promise to create jobs and bring leading-edge battery innovation to the United States is becoming a reality.

We have welcomed more than 500 employees to BlueOval Battery Park Michigan so far, and we plan to reach 800 by the end of the year as we continue toward our goal of 1,700 American jobs.

We are on track to ship electric vehicle batteries in 2026, which will make Ford the first to deliver lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in the U.S. for mainstream consumer automotive use. These LFP prismatic batteries will power Ford’s affordable midsize electric truck, the first vehicle on Ford’s Universal EV Platform.

Our momentum is drawing recognition all the way from Lansing.

BlueOval Battery Park Michigan has already created more than 500 high-tech, good-paying jobs, with hundreds more jobs on the way. This project brings world-class battery technology to our state and positions us to bring even more auto and battery manufacturing back from overseas. Michiganders will build the batteries that power a new generation of affordable electric vehicles, giving consumers more choices while supporting our workers. I’m grateful to Ford and everyone helping make Michigan the best place in the world to build and invent the future.

Gretchen Whitmer.

Michigan Governor

BlueOval Battery Park Michigan reached a significant milestone this month on our path to production readiness: Team members now assemble our first full LFP prismatic cells from slurry to coating and formation, all the way through aging and final inspection — and we’re ready to ramp the process.

Our progress demonstrates the success of Ford’s work with CATL, the world’s leading battery manufacturer.

We are past the stage of assembling initial pre-production battery cells. Having met rigorous safety and quality standards at each stage of the process, we are now testing batteries to ensure quality, following CATL’s industry-leading practices for production verification. Our ambition is to achieve quality levels where anomalies are measured in parts per billion.

We’re advancing American interests by onshoring critical technology, ensuring a secure supply of high-performance and affordable batteries for the United States.

World-Class Battery Technology, Local Talent

Interest in joining the BlueOval Battery Park Michigan team is high: We have received more than 11,500 applications.

We are keeping our commitment to hire locally, and we’re proud to welcome team members from the communities surrounding BlueOval Battery Park Michigan. 

Employees largely hail from within a 45- to 60-mile radius of Marshall, with a significant majority coming from the immediate surrounding areas. ‌More than 70% of team members hail from Marshall, Albion and Battle Creek.

One of those employees is Walt Nichols, who grew up in Battle Creek, graduated from Harper Creek Community Schools and joined our team as a production operator in December.

Before this job, I’ve never gotten up at 5 o’clock in the morning and been there 30 minutes prior to the start of my shift. That’s a good feeling. That means I want to be here. We’re working on the technology of tomorrow, and tomorrow is here right now.

Walt Nichols

Walt Nichols is a production operator at BlueOval Battery Park Michigan.

For Nichols, this job is about both the future of technology and the future of his family; his 20-year-old daughter Nevaeha also joined our team. Together they’re expanding Ford’s multi-generational employment tradition to BlueOval Battery Park Michigan.

“I’m so proud of her, and I’m grateful to Ford that she now has an opportunity to build a career close to home,” Nichols said. 

Andrew Charameda is another local hire whose family encouraged him to apply for the job. He grew up hunting and fishing in Olivet, Michigan, and he watched the plant’s construction progress with his grandparents nearby.

“Grandpa said why not shoot your shot and see if you can get in,” says Charameda, who joined our team as an operator in January and thrives on the excitement of a launch. “I love it. It’s a new place with room to grow. Every day I get to go learn something.”

Charameda loves video games and epic robot stories, and he says BlueOval Battery Park Michigan feels like those worlds brought to life.

Once you step into a futuristic plant like this, it’s not too far off. All these buttons and mechanics and the way that it works is truly amazing. It’s a work of art. It’s not just work anymore.

Andrew Charameda

BlueOval Battery Park Michigan team member Andrew Charameda.

Hands-On Skills Development

For Charameda, Nichols and their hundreds of teammates, working at BlueOval Battery Park Michigan takes teamwork, problem-solving and precision.

We train our employees in a mix of technical knowledge and hands-on skills, ranging from electrochemistry to robotics and software. We also focus on quality control and how to work in a cleanroom environment, where the goal is to prevent even small particles from entering the battery cell as it comes together.

Team members learn the intricacies of how equipment and materials interact. They master the human-machine interfaces that help enable them to control every part of their machines. And they learn how to assemble high-quality batteries and maintain their machines, becoming experts in their area of the plant.

Certifications include …

Level 1: Classroom work required to access the production floor
Level 2: Subject-matter experts guide hands-on learning as employees operate machines
Level 3: Employees operate machines independently, accomplishing all parts of their job and identifying opportunities for continuous improvement
Level 4: Employees are qualified to train others

To date, 87% of production employees have reached their Level 2 certification goal, and that number is growing.

We’ll keep moving forward together, getting one step closer to the goal of world-class battery tech for the United States. We’re making it more real every day.

Scott Davis is CEO, BlueOval Battery Michigan.

An anode roll is pictured in a tab forming machine.

This cathode roll – pictured in a winding machine – will be wound into a jelly roll.

Jelly rolls – pictured with copper and aluminum tabs visible – are the final product from winding machines. Two jelly rolls are assembled into each battery cell.

Ford electric vehicle LFP prismatic battery cells xit the wrapping machine at the end of the assembly process.