Volvo Cars goes climate-neutral at its facility in Gothenburg

Industry

Published: 13 Dec. 2022, 06:00

Volvo Cars goes climate-neutral at its facility in Gothenburg

Workers and robots work at Volvo Cars’ Torslanda manufacturing plant in Gothenburg, Sweden, on Dec. 5. [SARAH CHEA]

GOTHENBURG, Sweden — Roughly 1,400 orange and grey robotic arms move systemically at Volvo Cars’ Torslanda factory in Gothenburg, Sweden, taking some 38 hours to complete each vehicle.

Some 300,000 Volvos are made in the Torslanda plant each year, but without emitting any carbon dioxide.

The 450,000-square-meter (4.84-million-square-foot) factory, which opened in 1964, is the Swedish automaker's first climate-neutral manufacturing facility. Since last year, half of the plant’s heating comes from biogas, while the other half is predominantly sourced from district heating through industrial waste.

“The very core of the plant is the cooperation between our some 6,500 very skilled staff and 1,400 robots,” said guide Franziska Vikgren, who has been working for Volvo for over 20 years, during a press tour on Dec. 5.

The tour started with its press facilities, where massive coils were being cut on a conveyor belt. They are then turned into smaller pieces that can be used in car components, then pressed with some 2,300 tons of pressure.

“Despite the extremely strong pressure, it makes relatively less noise than other plants,” said Vikgren. “We cooperated with Lulea University of Technology for the steel products, so I am confident with the good quality as well.”

The leftover remains of the coils are collected at the end of the facility to be recycled and reused as raw materials.

The tour then continued on to a body facility for welding. Hundreds of robotic arms were systematically welding steel, while some of the machines even inspecting the products to see if they were done correctly.

There were various areas in the body facility where employees could sit and rest with some drinks, which the company calls its quality control. Volvo said it intends to offer the best working conditions to its workers.

The quality control includes details ensuring workers' safety, down to the floor that was made with wood to help prevent workers from serious injuries.

A car body and roof are assembled together at the assembly facility of the Volvo Cars’ Torslanda plant. [SARAH CHEA]

Many trays carrying components were being hurriedly moved along by machines, which Volvo said is to minimize workers’ movements within the factory to guarantee their safety.

From the body facility, the vehicles are then transferred to a paint facility for coloring and then to an assembly facility. The press tour was not allowed into the paint facility as the area is highly strictly regulated to prevent any dust from entering that may interrupt the painting process.

In the assembly area, the work is mainly done by robots, but employees stand by to double-check the quality before passing vehicles off as finished products. Various employees were present at the assembly plant, and many were women.

“Of the 6,500 workers in the Torslanda factory, 32 percent are women, which is a very high number,” said Vikgren. "And most of them are working in the assembly facility, as precision is required."

But assembling cars is not yet the end of the story. Fully assembled vehicles are then transferred to a quality assurance facility, the very phase before a car is completely ready to be delivered.

There are five big box rooms through which all vehicles must pass for the final quality check. Cars that pass the quality test are left with the very last task, a test drive.

Fully manufactured Volvo cars wait in line for the final quality examination, the very last phase before being delivered to customers. [SARAH CHEA]

The ones that finished the test drive without any significant problems are the final products that can be delivered to customers.

“The phase is long and complicated, but this guarantees Volvo cars’ quality and safety,” said Vikgren. “A vehicle is completely made in 38 hours to be exported to some 2,300 dealer shops in 100 countries all over the world.”

“S60 is the most beloved vehicle for Volvo, with XC40 gaining huge popularity recently,” She added. “The most popular colors are white, blue and black.”

Earlier in the year, Volvo Cars announced that it will invest 10 billion Krona ($960 million) toward the Torslanda facility. Most of the money will be put into applying a megacasting system to the factory, which refers to a die-casting process for the production of oversized metal parts. It makes the casting process less complex and can cut costs and reduce time.

The new system will help simplify the manufacturing factory and contribute to the company’s goal of going carbon neutral.

Volvo Cars said it will shift all its vehicles to fully electric by the end of 2030.

“Establishing Torslanda as our first climate-neutral car plant is a significant milestone,” said Javier Varela, chief operating officer at Volvo Cars. “We are committed to having a climate-neutral manufacturing network by 2026, and this achievement is a sign of our determination as we consistently work to reduce our impact on the environment.”

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]