Porsche is to invest heavily in its plant in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, Germany. In total, the German carmaker is investing 250 million euros in the plant, which is to become suitable for the production of electric vehicles (EVs), among other things.
The Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen plant is Porsche's main factory. With the investment, the German car brand aims to make the plant suitable for the production of the fully electric Porsche 718. The electric powertrain of the Porsche Macan is also to be manufactured at the plant.
At the same time, however, Porsche also wants other models with a traditional combustion engine to roll off the production line. These include models with a Boxer engine and the brand's two-door sports cars.
Automated guided vehicles
As part of the revamp, various production systems will be upgraded, among other things. Among other things, Porsche plans to use automated guided vehicles (AGVs) in the production of the Taycan. AGVs are mobile robots that use infrastructure - in many cases markings applied to the ground - to find their way through an environment. They can often adapt their route to obstacles they encounter along the way, for example, smartly dealing with objects or people blocking their way.
Porsche wants to use AGVs to transform its classic assembly line into a 'Flexiline'. This should enable a more flexible production process. Among other things, with a view to producing both electric and combustion engine vehicles on one production line.
Increasing production capacity as -flexibility
With the investment in the Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen plant, Porsche also wants to increase both its production capacity and flexibility. The company also plans to carry out additional quality tests. These include a new light tunnel, updated acoustic tests and redesigned leak tests and surface inspections.
The logistics areas in the factory will also be upgraded. For instance, Porsche plans to commission a new storage system with high bay racking by 2025. This is aimed at the bodywork department and sports car production, among others. In September 2023, Porsche already commissioned such a high-rise racking system, which supplies the assembly department with components.
"60 years of Porsche 911 and 75 years of Porsche sports cars: the double anniversary marks a special year for Porsche. The reconstruction measures and expansion of sports car production at our main plant are an important milestone for the Zuffenhausen site," says Albrecht Reimold, member of the executive board for production and logistics at Porsche. "The conversion measures enable greater efficiency, the highest quality standards and mixed production of internal combustion engine and electric sports cars. With this, we are starting a new chapter in smart factory sports car production."
Author: Wouter Hoeffnagel
