In Demand
Audi upping production to meet huge demand for Q7 SUV in Europe
PHOENIX, Arizona, USA – Audi has an enviable problem. It can’t build its first SUV fast enough to meet demand.
Audi said it has 11,000 orders in Europe for its premium SUV – more than five times the German carmaker’s initial forecast.
Now the automaker is scrambling to figure out how to increase production at its plant in Bratislava, Slovakia.
Audi executives said they anticipated 2,000 initial orders.
“But we have so many orders, we are trying to figure out how to get production higher,” said Audi Chairman Martin Winterkorn at a recent press event here for the Q7. “The interest so far has surprised us.”
Boosting output
To alleviate the backlog, Audi engineers said they will try to increase production efficiency at the plant by designating one shift that will handle complicated or unusual orders.
Audi will continue to build the Q7 on three shifts but will reschedule the type of orders that are filled on each shift until it catches up with demand.
For example, Q7 orders that are loaded with uncommon option packages and take longer to build because they are more complex slow the speed of the line, Audi said. Those orders will be grouped together on one shift, Audi said.
Less complex orders would take up the bulk of the shifts for the short-term.
“We have some tricks we can use to squeeze out more units,” said Frank van Meel, Audi’s head of technical development for the Q7, in an interview with Automotive News Europe. “We didn’t expect [demand] to be that high. It is a good problem to have.”
Another way Audi might boost production is to reduce workers’ vacation time, van Meel said.
The Audi line is producing 300 Q7s a day on three shifts.
The Volkswagen Touareg and Porsche Cayenne also are built in Bratislava, but on different assembly lines.
Worldwide, Audi expected to orders for between 50,000 and 70,000 Q7s this year.
Said van Meel: “That is probably much too low.”
> Source: AutoWeek <
