FOCUS ON TOOLING
Finished tools on display , with stamped part , at AUDI AG . Stamped parts and finished tools at AUDI AG . process ? Modern optical measuring systems provide exact data – but they still cannot replace the sharp eye of a human being , their sensitive fingertips and their sense of how the sheet metal behaves in the press ,” commented Audi .
Mass production
When mass production is up and running , the Zwickau press lines need a total of six production steps to form the side panel , each using a specific tool .
Grippers transfer the component from one tool to the next . The first one draws the sheet into the desired shape and the subsequent tools are used to trim the sheet e . g . in the area surrounding the side windows , to create the fine edges and lines , the assembly holes and the complicated undercuts ( folds and shapes on the inside of the sheet metal parts that are necessary for the subsequent joining processes in body construction ).
Because the sheet tends to spring back slightly , it is specifically reshaped in each work
step . What enters the forming process as a flat blank emerges at the end as a threedimensional component with a high degree of precision and an ‘ emotional ’ design .
Audi ’ s electric offensive continues to pick up steam , with the Q4 e-tron following in the footsteps of the large Audi e-tron and e-tron Sportback SUV models , as well as the high-performance e-tron GT . In Zwickau in Saxony , production of the Audi Q4 e-tron has finally started . The fully electric compact model is the first electric SUV to be produced by Audi in Germany . The Q4 e-tron features a Volkswagen-made modular electric drive matrix ( MEB ), a highly versatile and variable platform that is suitable for numerous fully electric models and offers considerable scope for leveraging synergies .
At the multi-brand plant in Zwickau , the Audi Q4 e-tron will be rolling off the same production line as the Volkswagen ID . 4 and , in the future , another Volkswagen model . Here , 1,400 assembly line employees of Volkswagen Saxony are also producing the compact electric SUV . Working alongside their colleagues from Volkswagen , more than one hundred Audi employees are prepared for the start of production – from production planning and technical development through to quality assurance . The press tools for producing the body parts all come from Audi ’ s own toolmaking shop .
The Audi Q4 e-tron will be launched in European markets in the summer of 2021 . As a result , the Audi brand ’ s electric offensive continues to pick up steam . By 2025 , Audi plans to launch more than 20 fully electric models and expand its PHEV offering . The two main Audi plants in Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm are also set to manufacture fully electric vehicles .
“ The Q4 e-tron plays a central role in the brand ’ s electrification strategy , launching in a particularly attractive and fast-growing market segment , the compact SUV class . For our customers , it offers a competitively priced entry into the world of premium electric mobility ,” concluded Audi . n
EDITOR ’ S NOTE
Scanning and inspecting the side panel of the Audi Q4 e-tron .
The Audi Group ( with its brands Audi , Ducati and Lamborghini ) is one of the most successful manufacturers of automobiles and motorcycles in the premium segment . It is present in more than 100 markets worldwide and produces at 19 locations in 12 countries .
100 per cent subsidiaries of AUDI AG include Audi Sport GmbH ( Neckarsulm , Germany ); Automobili Lamborghini S . p . A . ( Sant ’ Agata Bolognese , Italy ) and Ducati Motor Holding S . p . A . ( Bologna , Italy ).
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