Automotive supplier builds exterior parts for the new VW Golf VII
Magna International Inc. announced today that its Magna Exteriors and Interiors (MEI) operating unit has expanded its footprint in Europe by opening a new manufacturing facility in Meerane, Germany. MEI Meerane is located closely to Volkswagen Sachsen in Mosel, supplying sequenced, just-in-time exterior plastic parts for the automaker. A ceremony was held today, hosted by Magna leadership and attended by the Prime Minister of the Free State of Saxony as well as by executives from Volkswagen and BMW.
“Volkswagen Saxonia and Magna’s new facility in Meerane are producing based on a close partnership,” said Dirk Coers, Managing Director Department of Human Resources and Organisation, Volkswagen Sachsen GmbH. “Saxonia is a car state with tradition – together with Magna and our other partners, we want to ensure it also has a great automotive future.”
MEI Meerane covers a production area of 15,000 square meters and currently employs 140 people. The plant’s capabilities include injection molding, painting and assembly. Its first program consists of front and rear bumpers for the new Golf VII, recently named “World Car of the Year” by a jury of 66 motor journalists from all over the world. In late 2014, the plant is expected to start production of rocker panels for the next generation of the VW Passat.
“Our new state-of-the-art production facility in Meerane showcases many of Magna’s world-class manufacturing standards, from logistics that work with radio frequency tagging and a fully automated paint line up to just-in-time delivery,” said Albert Lidauer, President Magna Exteriors and Interiors Europe. “In addition, it further strengthens our relationship with our customer and provides opportunities for new business with multiple carmakers.”
“We are very proud that one of the biggest automotive suppliers of the world has chosen Saxony,” said Stanislaw Tillich, Prime Minister of the Free State of Saxony, during the ceremony. “The settling of Magna represents another boost for the motor of ‘car-country’ Saxony.” Among the reasons for the previous successful development, the Prime Minister listed the intensive collaboration between the industry and an application-oriented automotive research in the free state. “Together with our highly skilled and creative people, this constitutes the backbone and potential of ‘car-country’ Saxony.“
Magna Exteriors and Interiors Corp., an operating unit of Magna International Inc., is a full-service global supplier of automotive exterior and interior systems. We design, engineer and manufacture front- and rear-end fascia systems; exterior trim; class A composite panels; top systems; under hood and underbody components; structural components; sidewall and trim systems; cockpit systems; cargo management systems; and overhead systems for automotive, commercial truck, consumer, and industrial markets. We also manufacture sheet molding compound (SMC) material, EpicBlendSMC™, in multiple formulations.
