How do you design a $30,000 electric pickup? Inside Ford's skunkworks.

To that end, the Ford EVDC currently has around 350 people working at Long Beach at any given time. Employees in outside offices that deal with manufacturing engineering and software, for example, bring the team size to around 480, but in Ford terms, that’s still a very small division. 4. A very simple drawing and drawing release system with great flexibility for making changes must be provided. This is an interesting one. EVDC is extremely well-equipped with everything from three types of 3D printers to a CNC mill bigger than my first three apartments (including one just for shaping full-size clay models). This allows for rapid iteration and a simplified approval process without the need to send changed models and drawings off-site for manufacturing. Speed also comes from everyone being under one roof, preventing silos. All of that is in addition to a wood shop, a metals shop, and more. Even elements like seat design and patterning are done in-house. 5. There must be a minimum number of reports required, but important work must be recorded thoroughly. The less time you spend justifying your decisions to upper management, the more time you have to actually do the work. 6. There must be a monthly cost review covering not only what has been spent and committed but also projected costs to the conclusion of the program. This may seem like Project Management 101, but it goes beyond just budgeting time and money for the project’s development. …