General Motors has squeezed savings of over 25% out of the build time for its redesigned Astra hatchback model, which is just going into production here in the UK at Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant.
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Each new car will take 15 hours of assembly time, a significant improvement over the 21 the outgoing model took.
As well as designing the Astra better for production, GM has also invested in new equipment to speed up the build process and improve quality.
“We have some unique machinery here and we really were brought in at the project’s early stages to work through the build process and make sure production was as good as we could get,” said Lindsey Wickens, Vauxhall’s production launch manager for the Astra.
Wicken reckons the most important piece of new assembly equipment is a robotised glazing cell. The new Astra has a four-light DLO (daylight opening) with small, bonded-in windows at the A- and C-pillars, as well as the large front windscreen.
Bringing computer-controlled accuracy to the installation of the small windows has saved time and improved quality, particularly in ensuring water leakage is eliminated, she said.
Other improvements came from trial build work done at Opel’s German R&D centre in spring 2008.
A key change made after that experience included designing a unique assembly line tool to install the pedal box.
On the previous Astra the pedal box was installed from inside the car, but on the new model it is installed in the engine bay, causing access problems for assembly line workers.
Plant director Tom Schmidt said Ellesmere Port now has capacity for 180,000 units a year on three shifts, although the early build is on two shifts, equivalent to 120,000 units.
Production will continue at the 120k level “for the foreseeable future”, although there are plans to lift production using the existing 2,165-strong workforce reorganised into a three-shift pattern.
“But discussions like this will have to wait until the whole Magna/GM ownership issue is fully sorted out,” the company said.
Ellesmere Port is the sole source of the five-door Astra until early next year when GM’s Gliwice plant also starts making some.
Both plants will then be boosted by additional variants in 2010/11. Ellesmere Port will be the sole source of the Astra sports hatch estate/wagon variant while Gliwice will take on the three-door hatchback, also exclusively.
The first production batches at Ellesmere Port will be slightly in favour of left-hand drive – 52% compared to 48% right-hand drive.
Ellesmere will also continue building the current generation Astravan light commercial until 2012 – no van version of the new generation car is planned.
Economic conditions and the age of the current model have supressed forecast production to just 3,200 for all of 2009 despite the plant having capacity for 12,000 units a year.
The Astravan has been taken off the lines remporarily for the new Astra ramp-up and returns to production in December.
Julian Rendell
Vauxhall bigs up Astra as Magna talks continue
