Volkswagen India's Chakan plant reaches 5 lakh units production milestone

Volkswagen India has announced today that they have achieved the milestone of producing five lakh units of their German cars in India. The landmark achieving car was the Polo GT TSI that was rolled out of the company's production facility at Chakan, Pune.

This manufacturing facility at Pune was inaugurated in March 2009, which now caters to not just the domestic market, but also globally. Cars not just from Volkswagen's line-up including Polo and Vento are made here, but the Skoda Rapid and Skoda Fabia were also produced here till the end of 2013. At present, the vehicles are being exported in both right-hand drive as well as left-hand drive versions. They are sold in 32 countries across three continents of Asia, Africa and North America.

Andreas Lauenroth, Executive Director - Technical, Volkswagen India Private Ltd., said, "We have successfully achieved a new production milestone. It is a matter of pride for us and it also mirrors the positive customer feedback for the cars produced in our Pune Plant. More than this, each one of the 5,00,000 cars produced is also an ambassador of the high capabilities of our workforce. I would like to congratulate the entire team of Volkswagen India on this historic achievement."

Volkswagen's production facility at Chakan is equipped with all the necessary equipment to maintain the German standards. These include processes like laser welding for roof, ultrasonic welding for trim as well as dash and hot stamped A- and B-pillars. The facility comprises of a body shop, paint shop and assembly area, while 123 Robots contribute to 35 per cent of automation.

The plant makes sure that all the cars manufactured stand for German engineering with robust build quality. At present this facility produces approximately 430 cars per day in a two-shift system and provides employment to approximately 3,200 direct and indirect employees.