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Weekly Gigacasting News 23
17/2/2025 - 2/3/2025
Luca Greco
March 02, 2025
GAC Group Follows Tesla’s Lead and Invests in Gigacastings and Unboxed Manufacturing
A subsidiary of GAC Group held a grand groundbreaking ceremony in Guangzhou for a new facility which will include a Gigacasting foundry. The project's total investment exceeds 1.2 billion yuan ($138 million), and it is scheduled for construction in two phases;
The first phase is expected to commence production in January 2026 and will produce battery cases, steel and aluminum subframes and more.
The second phase will emphasize Gigacasting technology and is projected to begin mass production in October 2026, boasting an annual capacity of 100,000 units.
The new GAC factory will be equipped with 10,000t die casting machines and aims to manufacture front and rear underbody (FUB & RUB) Gigacastings for various GAC brands, including Hyptec, Trumpchi, and Aion.
By implementing Gigacastings in its vehicles, GAC aims to reduce costs by 40% and weight by 20%. Additionally, GAC Group's vehicle assembly facilities will adopt the Unboxed Manufacturing process, which is expected to increase production efficiency by 30%.
Tesla estimates that thanks to the Unboxed Process, the factory footprint will be reduced by over 40%.
Watch Tesla’s Unboxed Process Presentation
Tesla's Gigacasting: Beyond Cost Reduction, a Cornerstone of Vehicle Safety
Tesla Cybertruck Lead Engineer, Wes Morrill shared an insight on X about the Cybertruck crash safety and the importance of its Gigacastings;
All the armchair experts claimed the Cybertruck has no crumple zone and I get it, the proportions seem impossible. It was a tough one and there is a lot of engineering that went into it. Let me break it down for you:
Here you can see the large single piece casting in action in a high energy crash. The plot is showing the Impulse (Y-Axis) over time (X-Axis) and we see a nice linear progression with no large spikes.
The bumper beam is crushed in the first few milliseconds and the vehicle senses and determines what type of crash is happening and how to best deploy the restraints (air bags and seat belt pretensioners).
As the crush continues, bending the steel of the drive unit cradle to move the drive unit down and out of the way. This enables the casting to progressively crush cell by cell, with a nearly linear crush energy, slowing down the vehicle smoothly and over a longer period of time which reduces the acceleration transferred to the occupants. During this time and in concert with the structural absorption, the restraints are deployed which further reduce the acceleration of the occupants, reducing probability of injury.
Amazingly you can see the accuracy of the virtual analysis compared side by side to an actual physical test. Getting these modeling details accurate expedites design iteration for all the various different crash cases to converge on the optimal geometry.
Click to watch the video
The Transformation of the Volkswagen Kassel Plant is in Full Swing
The Volkswagen Kassel plant, Germany, is a cornerstone of Volkswagen Group Components and one of the company’s largest production facilities. Employing around 15,500 people, the plant specializes in manufacturing key components such as transmissions, electric drive systems, and power electronics for both conventional and electric vehicles.
The company is investing 90 million Euros to modernize the Original Parts Center at the Kassel plant, focusing on enhancing logistics for electric vehicle parts. This project includes building a new high-rack warehouse and is set to start in 2025, with completion expected by the end of 2026.
With the opening of the Large Castings Competence Centre in February 2024, Kassel has become a hub for innovation in producing larger, more complex die-cast components, particularly for electric vehicles across Volkswagen Group brands like Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche.
Volkswagen expects that the increased use of lightweight components and the increasing electrification of vehicles will further increase the demand for large-format and complex aluminium castings. “We see die casting as a key technology for the production of lighter, safer and more efficient vehicles”. Said Mirco Wöllenstein, former Head of the VW foundry in Kassel. “We will produce large-format structural components for electric vehicles in particular. These parts will be installed in various models of our Group brands”.
On February 28, Thomas Schmall updated us on the progress of the Volkswagen Group Components plant in Kassel;
The transformation of the Volkswagen Group Components plant in Kassel is in full swing. I was able to see this for myself at today’s site symposium. The team impressively demonstrated the technological advancements in electric drive systems in preparation for the future unified electric platform – the Scalable Systems Platform (SSP).
🔋 Electric Drive – The production of our powerful APP550 electric drive is running at full speed. The team has managed to improve productivity to efficiently meet the growing demand for electric vehicle components. The electric drive is used, among others, in the fully electric Volkswagen ID. family, Audi e-tron, or Skoda ENYAQ.
🌐 SSP Readiness – The Kassel site is prepared for the next generation of electric mobility with state-of-the-art processing technologies and the expertise of our team. This is demonstrated, for example, by the electric drivetrain, the in-house developed pulse inverter, and the Power Electronics Competence Center. The Kassel plant has established the company’s first ISO Class 7 cleanroom, providing a controlled environment for sensitive processes and enabling the production of highly precise electronic components.
I was also able to convince myself today that the team is consistently pushing forward with productivity improvements and a focused product portfolio to ensure sustainable cost structures. This is crucial because only in this way can we future-proof Volkswagen Group Components and develop it into a system supplier for electric mobility.
My thanks go to all colleagues whose dedication and expertise are driving this progress – Challenge accepted! ⚡
#GroupTechnology #Elektromobilität
Source: Thomas Schmall on LinkedIn
SAG Group Invests 750,000 € on a New R&D Center for Rheocasting
Salzburger Aluminium Group (SAG) is establishing a new research and development center for Rheocasting at its original site in Salzburg. Construction of the cutting-edge facility, which will include test areas, a laboratory, and office spaces with completion expected by mid-2025. The initial investment for this phase is approximately €750,000, with additional funding planned for future expansions.
The new R&D center will focus on refining Rheocasting techniques and exploring new applications, particularly in the automotive sector. By replacing steel components, Rheocasting can reduce vehicle weight by up to 60%, enhancing range and cutting energy consumption.
We have always strived to think ahead and offer our customers advantages with new ideas, services or methods. This, together with our extensive experience in aluminum processing and series production, makes us valuable partners for OEMs
Founded in 1898, SAG has grown into a global player with 1,100 employees across nine locations in six countries, including Austria, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Spain, Mexico, and the USA.
About Rheocasting
Unlike traditional HPDC, which injects liquid metal into a mold under high pressure, Rheocasting starts with a partially solidified “slurry” that has a unique globular microstructure. This allows for better flow control, reduced porosity, and improved mechanical properties in the final component. The result is stronger, lighter parts with enhanced durability, making it ideal for producing complex, thin-walled structures in industries like automotive manufacturing.
Bole 4,000t Thixomolding machine quick update:
4,000t Thixomolding machine for Bymeto Advanced Materials
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