Cooking in St. Petersburg: how an American car factory was restarted in Russia
The production of cars of the new Russian brand Jeland began in Shushary in April immediately after the full cycle, with welding and painting. For this purpose, a robotic production facility was created in the workshops of the former General Motors plant. Three models will be made there soon. The Izvestia correspondent visited the production site and found out the plans for the new brand.
I had to build anew
Production at the former GM plant in Shushary was mothballed 11 years ago. The use of the term "conservation" hinted at a possible return in the future, but the American concern never showed interest in its company and finally left Russia in 2022. Hyundai acquired the idle company in 2020, started re-equipment, but abandoned it halfway through.
The next owner, AGR Holding, had to start work all over again: some workshops lacked even flooring, and most of the equipment was dismantled. AGR CEO Andrey Karagin demonstrates photos taken in the past: workers are busily digging pits right in the workshops for the foundation of a new conveyor.
Restarting the plant in Shushary turned out to be more difficult than restarting the former Volkswagen plant in Kaluga. Andrey Karagin admits that at some point he had to work around the clock. A factory team was being created from scratch, and 2.5 thousand people had to be recruited. There were no special problems with this, given the number of car factories in St. Petersburg.
In a short time, in just eight months, AGR, with the direct participation of the Chinese Defetoo, was able to launch modern production, and now a brand-new car rolls off the assembly line every three minutes.
What does the factory in Shushary produce?
Jeland J6 crossovers are moving along the assembly line, and the finished product area is crammed with them. There are also Esteo MX crossovers, they are also made in Shushary, but the main products of the plant are the Jelands. Recently, the J6 was joined on the assembly line by a large crossover J7, and soon the production of an even larger crossover J8 will begin — all analogues of the Jaecoo models.
They will make up the so-called J-line, conventionally designed for travel. The production of urban "C-line" cars, analogues of Omoda models, will be left in Kaluga. Moreover, the C5 and C7 crossovers will be complemented by a more compact model.
Robots are working hard
Welding is almost completely automated, people perform a small number of operations and then pass the baton to robots, of which there are more than a hundred. Mechanical hands deftly connect the parts into the body, they do it very precisely, but just in case, one random body per shift is pulled off the conveyor and its geometry is carefully checked.
The number of welding points depends on the car version, explains Mikhail Shchelkunov, head of the production department. For example, the body of an all-wheel drive car has more amplifiers, and new welding points appear with new parts. Mikhail highlights the "red room" With a laser pointer After the main conveyor where carbon dioxide welding takes place — the seams on the body are applied in semi-automatic mode.
The welding line can assemble three or four models in several versions without any problems. Replaceable conductors are installed on the racks next to the robots, it takes only half an hour to switch to another model.
The bodies are not immediately sent to the paint shop, but create a buffer of several dozen. This allows you to create a reserve in case of any anomalies in the paint shop, and the logistics team will have time to prepare a set of parts for a specific modification and deliver it to the line. There is nowhere near the assembly line to store a large stock of components — they are delivered mainly in cardboard boxes.
How cars are protected from corrosion
Naturally, before painting, the body with the doors and hood hung, cleaned and carefully checked for dents and scratches, is phosphated and a cataphoretic coating is applied. This equipment was inherited from the previous owners, but has been upgraded. For example, the length of the baths has been increased, which allows the body to be completely immersed during phosphating.
The processes of applying sealant to the body and wax to hidden cavities are robotic. The paint line is also fully automated — there is even a robot that opens the door to paint the body inside. People only control the quality.
However, the journalists were not taken to the paint line, showing the process on video.
Before applying the base coat, the body is cleaned with ostrich feathers — this technology is also used in Kaluga. They paint lots of several bodies in the same color. The equipment allows you to quickly switch to another paint, but so far the J6 has only four color options. The wet-on-wet technology allows you to achieve good results, saving time and materials. According to representatives of the plant, the paint layer of the cars produced in Shushary is thicker than that of those assembled at Chinese enterprises.
In general, the body of the J6 should resist corrosion well. Currently, 80% of its parts are galvanized, but they plan to increase their corrosion resistance further.
What's with localization
There are more manual operations in the assembly shop, but robots are also helping people here. There's a line of robotic legs with front panels assembled, and someone's hand with a camera penetrates the finished car, checking the calibration of the data projector on the windshield.
The label on the boxes with the made in China parts shows that localization is still low. The tires are also mostly Chinese, although the exhibited J8 flaunts a Michelin.
Electronic components such as GLONASS, telematics, body electronics control unit, fuel tank, battery, exhaust system and some production fluids have already been localized. The plans announced by Andrey Karagin include a domestic stabilization system, a steering wheel, airbags, seat belts and wiper blades, as well as localization of 1.6 L and 1.5 L engines, including casting the block head.
Final check
Every released car has an electronic history that appears from the moment it begins its journey along the assembly line. If an equipment malfunction is detected at some stage, the error is transmitted to the quality control system, and until it is corrected, the machine will not reach the customer.
After all the checks have been carried out, the fluids have been refilled, the brakes and electronics have been checked, the finished car is shaken on special bumps and sent for a road test at the factory site — this is how extraneous noises and creaks are detected. Then the sprinkler chamber and another thorough check in the light tunnel for leaks. One random car per shift is sent to the audit station, where it is critically examined again.
They're preparing another shift
Currently, production is carried out in two shifts, 160 cars are produced for each shift. But soon the pretty girls involved in quality control will have more work to do — they are preparing for the third shift, which will allow them to reach the maximum plant capacity of 100 thousand units annually.
Even if Esteo occupies part of the capacity, it is not entirely clear how Jeland dealers will be able to sell so many cars, given that they play in the overpopulated crossover segment and will compete with the Tenet brand, another AGR project. The only hope is for prices: while the J6 is asking for a minimum of 2.3–2.7 million rubles, the J7 costs from 2.65 million rubles to 3 million rubles.
Localized cars are unlikely to become much cheaper, but prices for them will be more stable than for imported cars, says Maxim Kadakov, editor-in-chief of Za Rulem.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
