FCA invests €50 million in new battery hub at Mirafiori complex

This strategy has been at the center of several major agreements in the field of electrification that have been signed in recent months. "The automotive industry is undergoing a period of profound change and one of the major trends is closely linked to electrification," says Pietro Gorlier, COO for FCA's EMEA Region, in a press release. "With its new car battery assembly center at Mirafiori, FCA accelerates its drive to electrify, adding now another element to the 'ecosystem' that starts from supply chain and ends with customer support." A complete battery assembly center will be created in a specially designed building, with the potential to be expanded for future projects. The company says that it will use technology that allows for a modular and flexible processes, including the use of collaborative robots working hand-in-hand with operators. The new "Battery Hub" will also have space for training courses as well as prototyping and experimentation during the pilot process. This initiative is said to allow FCA to respond quickly to the continually evolving electrification sector. The new "Battery Hub" will also have an advanced technology center dedicated to quality control and testing of components provided by industry-leading suppliers. After assembly, electronically-controlled systems will be used to test the efficiency of the batteries. Comau will be a partner of the initiative providing its expertise in the assembly process. The initial investment in place will be approximately EUR 50 million. The announcement comes a few months after FCA said it would build a new electric-powered Fiat 500 at the Mirafiori plant starting in the second quarter of 2020. Around 1'200 people will be dedicated to the production of this vehicle with initial production of 80'000 units per year, and the potential to increase production in the future. A few weeks ago, FCA also announced that the new GranTurismo and GranCabrio would be the first Maserati models to run 100% on electricity and they would both be manufactured at the Turin-based production hub.