SEAT and CUPRA have put in one of many world’s most superior stamping presses at their Martorell plant in Spain, marking a big step within the facility’s transformation to help electrical car manufacturing. The brand new PXL press will produce as much as 4 million physique components yearly for upcoming fashions together with the CUPRA Raval and Volkswagen ID. Polo, whereas at the moment stamping parts for current manufacturing automobiles.
The press represents a significant leap in manufacturing effectivity and technological functionality. Working at 15 strokes per minute, the system can produce parts quicker than earlier gear whereas sustaining precision. Maybe most spectacular is the automated die-change system, which completes the transition between manufacturing completely different components in simply 5 minutes, enabling as much as fifteen adjustments per day.
“Due to its 15 strokes per minute, we are able to stamp extra components in much less time, with most effectivity,” mentioned Alicia Molina, director of Manufacturing Course of Engineering at SEAT and CUPRA.
Putting in the large gear required extraordinary engineering. To help the press’s 81,000 kilonewtons of pressure, engineers constructed a 9-meter-deep pit with concrete pile foundations extending 20 meters beneath floor, equal to a seven-story constructing’s peak. The whole improvement and development course of spanned 40 months and demanded cautious coordination throughout a number of departments.
Jose Arreche, director of the SEAT and CUPRA plant in Martorell, emphasised the collaborative nature of the undertaking. “Communication and cross-functional work among the many manufacturing course of, engineering, upkeep, manufacturing, logistics, IT, prevention and finance groups performed a key position within the success of this mega-construction undertaking,” he mentioned.
The ability’s connectivity units it other than conventional manufacturing gear. Every stamping operation generates roughly 3,000 knowledge factors, which the corporate plans to research for manufacturing management and predictive upkeep. Engineers are at the moment growing methods to interpret this knowledge circulate and optimize processes.
The technological transformation prolonged to the workforce as nicely. Staff working with the PXL press underwent in depth coaching to adapt to the brand new equipment and its digital methods. “Coaching was an important half in getting ready us for this modification in any respect ranges. We’ve modified our mindset, and now we’re prepared for the brand new electrical period,” Arreche mentioned.
This set up varieties a part of SEAT S.A.’s broader electrification technique. The corporate is investing €10 billion by means of its Future: Quick Ahead undertaking to determine Spain as a European hub for electrical automobiles. SEAT S.A., Spain’s solely firm that designs, develops, manufactures and markets automobiles, will start producing absolutely electrical automobiles on the Martorell plant beginning in 2026, together with the CUPRA Raval as a part of the Volkswagen Group’s Electrical City Automobile undertaking.
