factory
Latest
Elon Musk thinks unions are bad for Tesla
Last night, tunneling fan CEO Elon Musk sent an email to Tesla employees firing back against allegations of poor working conditions and low pay. He rebutted claims made by Jose Moran, a production worker at the company's Fremont factory, that mandatory overtime pushed the workforce there to suffer preventable injuries. Musk's message to the Tesla troops alleged that an internal investigation disproved the conditions claim and criticized the United Auto Workers (UAW) for inciting Tesla workers to unionize.
Intel finally plans to finish its Fab 42 factory in Arizona
Intel plans to complete Fab 42, a semiconductor factory in Chandler, Arizona, with an investment of more than $7 billion over the next three to four years. At its peak, the factory will employ about 3,000 process engineers, equipment technicians, and facilities-support engineers and technicians. Fab 42 will produce 7 nanometer chips and is "expected to be the most advanced semiconductor factory in the world" -- whatever that means.
Samsung factory fire triggered by discarded batteries
Samsung just can't catch a break when it comes to batteries. The company reports that faulty lithium batteries and other waste products triggered a minor fire at a Samsung SDI factory in Tianjin, China on February 8th. No one was hurt, the company says, and it's largely business as usual at the plant. You won't have to worry about (further) delays for the Galaxy S8, then.
Faraday Future impressed all the right people at CES
The world got its first look at the Faraday Future FF 91 SUV during a Las Vegas drag race last week. It was a fitting debut for a car that was designed and built in less than two years: It flew off the line in an event building, only to disappear out of sight a moment later. Everyone likes a good race, but for a company that's recently been hit by financial troubles and departing executives, the race it started at CES needs to be a marathon.
A whirlwind tour of Faraday Future's ambitious new SUV
"Just a quick reminder that there are no pictures during today's tour." Faraday Future has had its share of bad press. Right before Christmas it invited a group of journalists to tour its headquarters in Gardena, California. The new company was unveiling its first real car at CES in a few weeks. But instead of wowing the world with its nonstop teaser videos, the company's shedding of executives and reports about its financial turmoil drew the most attention. Faraday needed to make a big impression ahead of CES while also ensuring that the technology-drenched FF 91 SUV and the secret sauce behind it were kept under wraps until its big press conference, scheduled for Jan. 3rd in Las Vegas.
Cuba opens its first computer factory
Cuba is slowly opening up to technology, but it hasn't actually been making technology. Its exports are dominated by natural products like nickel, sugar and tobacco. The nation is about to diversify, however: it just inaugurated its first computer factory, which officials claim will "promote technology and digital literacy." It's a modest plant, to put it mildly. The factory is only capable of producing 120,000 devices per year, and Chinese electronics giant Haier is shouldering a lot of the responsibility by supplying equipment, tech and training. The facility is thoroughly modern, however, and will make modern laptops (using Celeron, Core i3 and Core i5 chips, Cuba eagerly points out) as well as 8- and 10-inch tablets.
Drone footage shows Tesla's Gigafactory taking shape
To deliver the Model 3 and its dream of an affordable, yet reliable electric car, Tesla needs the Gigafactory. The complex in Nevada will be used to produce batteries at an unprecedented scale, besting the might of every other factory in the world combined. Before that can happen, however, Elon Musk needs to build the darn place. Fresh footage by Matthew Roberts, shot with a DJI Phantom 3 drone in 4K, shows how far the project has progressed. As expected, there's still a long way to go -- only a handful of the 21 Gigafactory "blocks" have been completed so far. Even so, it's an enormous building that dominates the picturesque desert landscape.
Lucid Motors building $700 million EV factory in Arizona
Lucid Motors (formerly Atieva) has revealed that its upcoming EV, recently unveiled in Los Angeles, will be built in Casa Grande, Arizona. The Phoenix suburb will host the $700 million factory, which will start producing the first model by 2018. "Arizona stands to gain 2,000 new jobs by 2022," Arizona Governor Doug Ducey said. "Lucid has also made a commitment to training and hiring ... Arizona's veterans."
Tesla rival LeEco building $1.8 billion EV factory in China
China's EV industry hasn't produced many vehicles yet, but thanks to strong government incentives, it's on an explosive growth curve. One of the main players is electronics giant LeEco, which backs EV builder Faraday Future and recently showed off its own electric car, the LeSee. It unveiled plans for a $1.8 billion EV factory near the Chinese city of Huzhou that will pump out 400,000 EVs per year. The new plant "will be open to all LeEco's strategic partners including Faraday Future," says CEO Jia Yueting.
Ford's new robots can build cars, make coffee
This new robotic technology could be a big help to assembly workers and offer more design freedom. Ford Motor Company announced today its early testing of a new type of assembly line robot that were co-developed with German robotics company KUKA Roboter GmbH with the intention of assisting human line workers. Two of these three-foot-tall machines are in use at the Cologne, Germany factory, where they assist human workers to install shock absorbers on Ford Fiestas. These workers would have originally had to juggle the shocks and tools to install them, but now the robot helps them position and install the parts.
Faraday Future is already prepping for its second EV factory
Faraday Future hasn't even released its first vehicle yet, and it's already thinking about expansion. Vallejo's city council has approved the electric car maker's acquisition of 157 acres of land on Mare Island to establish both its second factory as well as an experience center for test drives and pickups. It's uncertain just why FF believes it needs the extra manufacturing capacity so soon, but the city isn't likely to second-guess the move. Vallejo declared bankruptcy back in 2008, and it hasn't been in the greatest of financial health since -- an EV company setting up shop would be a gift. It's still something of a gamble for the town, but it beats watching helplessly as a rival Bay Area city (Fremont) gets Tesla's attention.
Tesla hosts a grand opening for its Gigafactory on July 29th
Tesla's sprawling Gigafactory has yet to kick into full swing, but that isn't stopping the electric car maker from giving its plant an official debut. It's inviting its biggest fans (including those who referred buyers) to a grand opening for the Gigafactory on July 29th, even though the Nevada facility is still well away from being finished. There's no mention of what's on the itinerary, although it's reasonable to suspect that this could be the first truly revealing, officially sanctioned peek inside the factory. Motor Trend got a tour in April, but mainly showed the outside.
Inside Moog's Minimoog Model D synth factory at Moogfest
When Moogfest kicked off in North Carolina this week, the company announced that the iconic Minimoog Model D was going back into production during the festival. What's more, the analog synths are being assembled on-site at the event right in the middle of a temporary Moog store that's chock full of audio gear. Being the curious folks that we are, we went to check it out the process inside the pop-up factory and watched a little bit of the magic happen in Durham.
Tesla accused of exploiting cheap labor to make its factories (updated)
Tesla may pride itself on making the world a better place through eco-friendly electric cars, but it's not immune to ethical concerns. Mercury News has discovered that at least one of Tesla's contractors has been using sub-contracted, low-paid labor (as little as $5 per hour) from eastern Europe to work on the automaker's facilities. The partner companies have avoided offering overtime pay and even compensation for injuries -- one man is suing his employers after he fell three stories while working on a Tesla paint plant in Fremont. The practices let those contractors finish crucial factory work at a fraction of the cost of using American labor, which could cost as much as $52 per hour for similar tasks.
Hyundai is working on a real-life 'Aliens' exoskeleton
Lots of companies are working on exoskeleton suits, but most are designed to slightly increase your lifting capacity, prevent injuries or help you empathize. Not Hyundai, though -- the South Korean automaker is aiming for something more extreme with a "wearable robot" that it likens to an Iron Man suit. Workers piloting the device can lift objects weighing "hundreds of kilograms," according to the company. Soldiers can also use it to pack up to 50 kilograms (110 pounds) over long distances.
Mercedes replaces robots with people on its assembly line
We've all heard stories about how the robots are taking our jobs. While that may be true, Mercedes-Benz is replacing some of its high-tech workers with real live humans. As it turns out, robots can't keep up with the degree of customization that the automaker offers on its S-Class sedans. To be fair, there are four different types of caps for the tires alone, not to mention options for carbon fiber trim and temperature-controlled cup holders.
Samsung lets inspectors into its factories following deaths
Samsung has agreed to allow inspectors into its plants as part of a deal with plant workers who contracted cancer and other workplace maladies. The company signed the document with two groups that represent ailing workers and their families. All three sides chose a labor law professor as ombudsman to head up and choose the inspection team, and checks will run for three years, with an option for three more. The company also agreed to disclose more info on chemicals it uses in its chip and display plants, and will open a clinic for workers.
Adidas has a 'Speedfactory' in Germany staffed by robots
Adidas, like most big companies, brought most of its production to China and other Asian countries in recent years. Now, it wants to bring production back closer to its German headquarters in order to cut down on shipping costs and be able to restock shoes more quickly, so the corporation built a factory in the country -- one staffed mostly by robots. This facility called the "Speedfactory" will start by making 500 pairs of running shoes for the brand in early 2016. From what we can tell, these are new models with machine-knitted uppers and springy, bubble-filled polyurethane foam soles. There will still be around 10 people helping the manufacturing process during the factory's pilot phase, but it will eventually be fully autonomous.
Tesla claims trespassing journalists attacked Gigafactory workers
As a news editor, I can understand the desire to get a scoop about Tesla's mysterious Gigafactory by pushing boundaries... but this is very much beyond the pale. Two Reno Gazette Journal staffers are facing charges after they not only trespassed at the battery plant, but attacked the staff that caught them. Reportedly, they ignored requests to stay put and used their Jeep to ram two Tesla employees that responded to the incident. While only the driver has been charged with assault, it's safe to say that both of the journos knew what they were doing.
Smoother movements help robots save a lot of energy
Eliminating the herky-jerky movements of robots isn't just good for comforting nervous humans... it helps the robots, too. Researchers have developed smooth movement algorithms that slow the acceleration and deceleration of robots, saving as much as 40 percent of the energy they'd normally use. The trick is to order tasks in a way that lets robots move at their own pace without colliding into each other. Factory robots typically rush through tasks in a rigid order, only to wait for their fellow automatons to catch up. Here, they're more flexible as to when and how quickly they get things done.
