Start of battery production in Nuremberg

Historic events deserve to be celebrated. And so, neither the Bavarian Minister-President Dr. Markus Söder nor the Bavarian Minister of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy Hubert Aiwanger, missed the opportunity to attend the start of battery production in Nuremberg. Together with MAN CEO Alexander Vlaskamp, Executive Board Member for Production Michael Kobriger, Executive Board Member for R&D Dr. Frederik Zohm, and Chairman of the Nuremberg Works Council Markus Wansch, they pressed the symbolic start button in the brand new M50 production hall – marking the start of the latest chapter in the story of this traditional site.

Where the production of powerful diesel engines was once the main focus, there are now also batteries for electrically powered buses and trucks rolling off the production line. Of course, the timing is no coincidence; series production of MAN eTrucks will begin in June, also marking a significant increase in demand for powerful, high-voltage batteries. In addition to batteries for the MAN eTGL, MAN eTGS and MAN eTGX truck models, batteries for the electric buses of the Lion’s City E family, which are successful throughout Europe, will also be produced in Nuremberg. “Today is a historic day for MAN,” says Vlaskamp. “With the start of battery production, the company that invented the diesel engine is marking the beginning of a new era.” We are very proud of what we have achieved here in Nuremberg and of what is still to come.”

But it is not just the batteries produced in Nuremberg that are state-of-the-art – the production process also boasts a technological highlight: MAN is implementing modular production – i.e. a system without a conveyor belt or cycle that can handle different product variants and be easily adapted to new variants. The decoupled stations can be operated and converted independently of each other, and the battery packs flow through the production system according to individual demand and status. Modular production is enabled by the high degree of digitalisation and automation in the production flow and in the provision of materials, which is fully automated with intelligently networked driverless transport systems. Two objectives are achieved at once: production is as flexible as it is profitable.

The start of series production in Nuremberg is just the beginning of MAN’s electric offensive at the site. “Today, we unveil another milestone in the transformation towards climate-friendly drives: MAN will invest a further 150 million euros in the expansion of battery production for future battery generations in Nuremberg,” announces Vlaskamp. Specifically, this also means that, for the next generation of batteries, the packs (which consist of several modules) and the modules themselves (which comprise several battery cells) will be produced in Nuremberg. Of the newly revealed investments, around 18 million euros of funding will be received from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action and the Free State of Bavaria.