Overall winner at the first attempt ‑ following on from its habitual success in motorsport, the Mercedes-AMG performance and sports car brand has now pulled off a similar victory in the area of production: the AMG hand-built engine production facility at the company’s headquarters in Affalterbach is 2019 “Factory of the Year”. With this coveted title, bestowed by A.T. Kearny, the specialist journal “Produktion” and SV Veranstaltungen, a jury of experts rewarded the work of the engine Manufaktur (hand-finishing section) in Affalterbach. The new AMG four-cylinder high-peformance engine M139 is built on a new production line here. With an output of up to 310 kW (421 hp), the completely newly developed 2.0-litre engine is the world’s most powerful turbocharged four-cylinder in series production. On board the A-Class, CLA and CLA Shooting Brake compact models, it enables performance and driving dynamics on a par with high-calibre sports cars.
The Mercedes-AMG team has designed a completely new assembly line combining the tried and tested “One Man, One Engine” hand-finishing principle with cutting-edge “Industry 4.0” methods. In this way, the hand-finished character resulting from complete assembly of an engine by a single technician has been maintained while applying Industry 4.0 throughout all supporting processes, such as quality assurance, logistics or controlling. This means that people remain at the centre of all activities – but with effective support from new digital and intelligent technologies.
It was precisely this combination which won over the jury: “AMG has combined in exemplary manner the assembly concept which is focussed on human input with a high level of automation in the area of testing stations and the supply of materials, and applies a broad spectrum of digital technologies.” This has led to substantial improvements in ergonomics, workflows, quality assurance, sustainability and efficiency. Launched by the trade journal “Produktion” and the A.T. Kearney business consultancy in 1992, “Factory of the Year” is one of the most highly recognised awards for the manufacturing industry in Germany and worldwide. The jury is made up of renowned experts from the fields of industry and science.
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SOURCE: Daimler
