All articles by aladmin – Page 8
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ArticleMitsubishi to transfer RVR production
Japan – The OEM announced that it will move the RVR (the ASX or Outlander Sport in some markets) from Okazaki Plant, Okayama, to Mizushima Plant in Aichi at the end of December. Mitsubishi said it is optimising its domestic production before launching the Eclipse Cross compact coupe SUV at ...
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ArticleJLR’s EMC makes first petrol Ingenium
UK – The engine, which will debut in vehicles this summer, marks the completion of the first phase of the Engine Manufacturing Centre (EMC). The $1 billion plant in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, was opened in 2014 to supply the OEM’s three vehicle factories in the country.The manufacture of this first ...
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ArticleMcLaren finally fills COO position
UK – Jens Ludmann has been appointed as chief operating officer (COO), the role last occupied by Mike Flewitt, who is now CEO. It had been latent since July 2013, when Flewitt stepped up to his current position.McLaren is in the second year of its Track22 business plan to improve ...
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Dongfeng and Nexteer enter JV
US/China – The 50:50 joint venture will design and manufacture electric power steering (EPS) systems for passenger cars of the Dongfeng Group. Its production facility will be located near to Dongfeng's headquarters in Wuhan, China.Tao Liu, senior vice-president and global chief operating officer, Nexteer Automotive, said that both partners “will ...
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Audi picks plants for new Q models
Slovakia/Hungary – The vehicle-maker has announced that it will make the Q8 in Bratislava from 2018 and the Q4 in Győr from 2019. From next year, Audi Hungaria will also take responsibility for the Q3 compact SUV, which until then will be produced in Martorell, Spain.“We will integrate two completely ...
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ArticleTMMK receives $1.33bn for TNGA
US – The factory in Kentucky will become the first in North America to produce vehicles on the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA), beginning with the 2018 Camry. In addition to modifications relating to TNGA, Toyota says the plant will install new equipment and build a new paintshop to “modernise ...
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ArticlePSA to modernise European paint lines
Spain – Paintshop supplier Sames Kremlin has announced that in March it won the contract to update lines one and two at PSA’s Vigo factory. Over the coming months, the company will install a total of 51 robots at PSA facilities in Trnava (Slovakia), Poissy and Rennes (France), plus the ...
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ArticleAston Martin starts converting St Athan
UK – The facility in Wales was officially handed over to the OEM by the Ministry of Defence so that it can begin Phase II of the redevelopment and remain on target for the production launch of its new SUV, the DBX, in 2019. The plant will become Aston Martin’s ...
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ArticleVW's new workforce scheme, Chattanooga
US – The Volkswagen Neighbourhood Talent Pipeline has been established in partnership with the Chattanooga 2.0 coalition to familiarise participants with the manufacturing process and prepare them for careers at VW Chattanooga. The programme lasts for five weeks and is free for qualified participants.The scheme will take place at the ...
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ArticleFord Changan to make Mondeo Energi
China – The joint venture will produce the plug-in hybrid from next year, alongside the Mondeo Hybrid which went on sale in November 2016. Ford added that it will introduce a new, fully electric small SUV as part of its “China electrification plan”, which will also see electrified powertrains produced ...
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ArticleDel Rosso to lead Bentley in the Americas
US – Replacing Michael Winkler, who will return to Australia after a two-month transition period, Mark del Rosso will become president and CEO for the region on June 1, 2017. He will report to Andreas Offermann, Bentley’s member of the board for Sales, Marketing and Aftersales.Del Rosso started his career ...
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ArticleNissan opens Tennessee training centre
US – The 162,000 sq.m facility in Smyrna, a public-private partnership between the OEM and the Tennessee Board of Regents, will train local students and Nissan employees in advanced manufacturing and automotive technology. It will operate as an extension of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology at Murfreesboro.Describing Nissan’s workforce ...
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ArticleMazda’s February production data
Japan – The OEM’s domestic output decreased by 9.7% year-on-year, with a drop in both passenger cars and commercial vehicles. Overseas production in February increased by 21.3% due to higher demand in both segments.In Japan, Mazda made 77,416 passenger vehicles (-9.6%) and 903 commercial vehicles (-16.3%), for a total output ...
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ArticleNew assembly line at MAN Salzgitter
Germany – From 2018, non-driven axles for MAN and Scania vehicles will be produced on the same line. The project cost €30m ($32m) and has created 200 jobs at the plant.“The new direction that the MAN Salzgitter site is taking within the context of our PACE2017 programme for the future ...
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ArticleBMW celebrates ten years at Chennai
India – A decade after launch, the factory is able to produce up to eight car models on two assembly lines, courtesy of sophisticated systems engineering and 500 personnel. The cumulative output has now exceeded 57,000 vehicles.Jochen Stallkamp, managing director of Plant Chennai, congratulated the team for “producing cars with ...
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ArticleToyota cuts paint line size at Tsutsumi
Japan – The vehicle-maker says it has reduced the size of the equipment by 40% and the CO2 emissions by 32%, “while maintaining high quality levels” for Prius production. The achievement was recognised in March, when Toyota won the Okochi Memorial Prize for the first time in 16 years.The paintshop ...
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ArticleMMM’s new lights and manifolds plant
India – The joint venture operation between Magneti Marelli and Samvardhana Motherson at Bawal will make lighting systems and air intake manifolds for customers in the National Capital Region, Delhi, such as Maruti Suzuki and Honda Motors. It will make up to 1.2m rear lamps and 900,000 manifolds per year.The ...
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ArticleHonda spends $85m at Lincoln
US – The investment is for the first stage of a multi-phase project aimed at improving vehicle manufacturing flexibility and logistical efficiency as well as preparing for future technologies. The initial phase at the Alabama plant, which will involve expansion in assembly, is due to be completed in 2018.“This significant ...
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ArticleFord’s $1.2bn Michigan investments
US – The funds will go towards upgrading Michigan Assembly Plant, increasing capacity at Romeo Engine and developing an advanced data centre. Ford says the investments will help it to “strengthen its leadership in trucks and SUVs and support the company’s expansion to an auto and mobility company”.Ford is spending ...
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ArticleBMW's latest sustainability results
Germany – The OEM’s Sustainable Value Report, published alongside the Annual Report 2016, shows improvements in manufacturing, among other areas. This year the vehicle-maker recorded a drop of 4.9% on average in resource usage and emissions per vehicle produced, compared with 2015.The report also shows that, based on 2006 levels, ...