Quiet, safe, and always at just the right speed: At Audi in Brussels, sophisticated MAXOLUTION® technology permits particularly flexible and ergonomic assembly of the new Audi e-tron electric vehicle fleet. Smooth, silent motion has taken the place of rigid cycle timing and rattling chain drives. This is made possible by perfect synchronization of all AGV frames and maximum safety.
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Smooth motion, safe positioning, and a curved track like none ever seen in the industry: At Audi in Brussels, every step in the production of the e-tron electric car is perfectly synchronized – without rigid cycle times. Watch our video to find out for yourself what drives Audi's new assembly line and those responsible for it – and why SEW‑EURODRIVE is the ideal partner for the project.
A curved track like none ever seen in the industry
We've created a technology that has never existed in this weight class or in the industry: A dual-track, electrified monorail system for heavy loads with a curved track.
It took only four weeks to integrate 96 vehicles into the plant.
SEW‑EURODRIVE helped us greatly.
The MAXOLUTION® solutions from SEW‑EURODRIVE were a great help in our efforts to improve workplace ergonomics for our line workers. Now we're much more flexible. The work is more ergonomic, with the track being much quieter than the previous chain conveyor technology.
The ceiling was too low for a single-track electrified monorail system, so we had to install a lower, dual-track EMS instead. Not a standard solution.
Safe Distance Monitoring not only prevents collisions in the system, but also completely eliminates any risk of crushing for the employees.
Even during the design and engineering phase, SEW‑EURODRIVE was already on board. The cooperation worked very well.
We're not trying to be "fast followers" – we want to be trend setters.
When we get involved in a project, it's all or nothing. We take our requirements for modern production technologies one step further. So we depend on partners who can support and advise us in such processes. SEW‑EURODRIVE is that kind of partner, and we're proud of the cooperation we've established.
We decided to radically refit the Audi plant here in Brussels because as of 2018, we're producing the first fully electric SUV in the history of Audi: the Audi e-tron. An electric car, with all-new technology, requires entirely new plant systems, too.
Audi is developing ever further toward the smart factory. However, we are not able to meet these challenges alone. That's why we need highly capable partners such as SEW‑EURODRIVE.
Any downtime costs money and must be avoided. That's why we chose SEW‑EURODRIVE.
The systems are assembled according to drawings, but then they still need to be run in and tested. That's the strength of a company like SEW‑EURODRIVE. They deliver the quality in their solutions that we demand of our own products. Any interruption leads to downtime, and downtime costs a lot of money. That's to be avoided. That's another reason we chose SEW‑EURODRIVE.
Each electric SUV means we need to move 2.9 tons down the assembly line. One part is assembled on skids, while the other part is assembled on the carriers of the electrified monorail system. To suspend such heavy loads, we needed heavy-duty carriers. These carriers are controlled using systems developed by SEW‑EURODRIVE.
In the south-west of Brussels in September of 2018, everything was ready: The e-tron, the first completely electric vehicle of the Audi brand, went into mass production. At that moment, the famous car manufacturer with four interlocking rings in its logo heralded a new era – not just for the in-topic of electric mobility, but also for production. In one of the 19 districts of Brussels, called Forest in French and Vorst in Dutch, modernization of its assembly line brought forth the factory of the future.
Rigid cycle times? They're a thing of the past at Audi Brussels. Just like the electric vehicle promises a new future for mobility on the streets, our solution for mobility on the assembly line brings a new future to production: The entire process is a single smooth motion thanks to MAXOLUTION technology with smart control and networking from SEW‑EURODRIVE.
Depending on the requirements of the moment, the electrified monorail system carriers speed up or slow down in moving from point to point, acting in perfect harmony with the lifting stations and the skillets on the ground. The heavy car bodies quietly settle in front of the factory workers. No rattling chain drives punish the ears.
The challenge of implementing this exceedingly flexible and ergonomic production line couldn't have been greater. After all, the refitting of the assembly line had to be completed in parallel with the running production of the Audi A1.
During a transition period, the plant operated in mixed mode, assembling the two vehicle types alongside each other. Once production of the smaller A1 was moved to Martorell in Spain, Brussels became the main location for Audi's production of electric vehicles.
