Around the same time as CKD kit assembly of the latest Mercedes E-Class saloon kicked off in Indonesia, series production of the Coupé variant has started at Bremen in Germany.
This latest version follows the saloon, estate and all terrain variants built at the Sindelfingen plant since last year. A long-wheelbase sedan is built for China in Beijing.
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“The production start of the E-Class Coupé is part of the ongoing rejuvenation of our model range and continues our growth path,” said Markus Schäfer who heads Mercedes-Benz Cars’ production and supply chain management.
“During the start-up phase, we were able to benefit from the excellent collaboration between the plants in Sindelfingen and Bremen.”
First coupé models will be delivered in spring 2017.
The coupé is produced at Bremen as part of a flexible system alongside the C-Class Coupé and Cabriolet. Engineers were able to integrate a further start-up into the running series production in a very short time while the plant is working to full capacity.
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By GlobalDataPeter Theurer, Bremen plant site manager, said: “The ability to build such a diversity of models is made possible by a highly flexible production system and intelligent manufacturing concepts, for example by producing all our coupés and cabriolets on one line. Once again, the team has demonstrated superb flexibility and speed while also, from the very start, delivering Mercedes quality.”
Bremen currently produces 10 different models, and thus the highest number of variants of any plant within the automaker’s production network.
During the development phase, the feasibility of the various steps of the production process was tested through a virtual assembly. A start-up team contributed to optimise the efficiency and ergonomics of the production process with experience gained with previous models.
Production of vehicles to customers’ individual specifications is underpinned throughout the assembly process by intelligent logistics. Driverless transport delivers baskets containing the precise components and parts required for the individual vehicle to the production line where they are fitted without the need for intermediate buffering. The high level of variance means that almost every vehicle is unique.
Close cooperation between two plants saw the Bremen team drawn on experience gained by Sindelfingen colleagues with the other E-Class variants, for example new testing procedures for the complex electronic systems in the coupé.
