10 years on, Geelong and Broadmeadows count the cost of Ford’s departure

• The Ford factory in Geelong was a cornerstone of the local community for 90 years, providing multi-generational employment and serving as a major hub for postwar migrants and manufacturing.
• The facility played a vital role in Australian industry, producing engines and body panels for iconic models like the Falcon and Territory, as well as manufacturing aircraft components during World War II.
• Ford officially closed the plant in 2016 following years of significant financial losses and production costs that were substantially higher than the company’s international operations.

Tony Travers remains a Ford man through and through. After 28 years with the company, he still wears his jacket featuring the iconic blue logo with pride—a tribute to a family legacy that saw 17 of his relatives work at Geelong’s Ford factory over its 90-year history. For him, the decade since the plant’s closure has been a period of profound loss. “I still miss the factory,” Mr. Travers says. “If it was open, I’d still be there.”

It is difficult to overstate the factory’s impact on Geelong. Mr. Travers describes the suburb of Norlane as the town Ford built, a community once teeming with factory workers and their families. The plant’s history is woven into the fabric of the nation; during World War II, it pivoted to manufacture long-range fuel tanks for aircraft. Following the war, it became the heart of Australian automotive production, stamping metal into car panels and engineering the company’s famous straight-six engines.

Beyond the machinery, the plant served as a microcosm of Australian multiculturalism. It was a beacon for post-war migrants, drawing thousands to Geelong with the promise of steady, reliable work. At its peak, Ford’s operations in Geelong and Broadmeadows employed approximately 5,000 people. The sprawling Norlane complex was the start of the line, crafting parts for legendary models like the Falcon, Fairlane, and Territory. These components were then transported to Broadmeadows, where the panels were welded and painted, and the Geelong-built engines were finally installed.

The turning point came in 2013 when management delivered the news that the plants would close. Initially, the American automaker announced that roughly 1,200 manufacturing roles would be made redundant across both sites. While the final closure occurred on October 7, 2016, many workers had already seen the writing on the wall and moved on to other industries.

The decision was fueled by harsh economic realities. In 2013, Ford President Bob Graziano revealed that the company’s Australian operations had lost more than $600 million over a five-year period. The cost of manufacturing locally had become unsustainable, reaching double the cost of production in Europe and nearly four times that of Ford’s Asian operations. For men like Tony Travers, the end of the line was the conclusion of a nearly century-long chapter that defined a city and its people.

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