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VW expanding in Chattanooga, hiring workers ahead of SUV production

Hey, look! We're writing about Volkswagen's Chattanooga, TN factory and the focus isn't on yet another unionization effort. That's because the big news at the still-new factory is VW's plan to expand and increase its workforce in preparation for the arrival of the German brand's long-awaited midsize crossover. The expansion, which will add over half a million square feet of factory space, overhaul the assembly, body and paint shop and add 2,000 employees to the factory's ranks, officially kicked off last month. "This is a very exciting time in the history of Volkswagen Chattanooga," president and CEO of operations at the plant, Christian Koch, said in a statement. "A lot of hard work is going into adding this second vehicle line to the plant, but it is crucial to our efforts to move forward in America." "Not only will Volkswagen's expansion create thousands of new jobs, it will strengthen their roots in our city," Chattanooga's Mayor, Andy Berke, said in a statement. "From the construction at the plant to the development of a visitors center, there is no doubt that Volkswagen is invested in Chattanooga." VW Chattanooga has been a constant in the headlines over the past few years as pro-union and pro-business interests have battled over the souls representation rights of its roughly 1,500 workers. Just over a year ago, the UAW was defeated in its initial unionization bid, although pro-labor interests have not gone quietly into the night. Construction is expected to continue for two years, with production of Chattanooga's second vehicle expected to commence in 2016. Scroll down for the official press release from Volkswagen. VOLKSWAGEN CHATTANOOGA'S PLANT EXPANSION UNDERWAY Feb 24, 2015 Construction Will Add 2nd Vehicle Line: New Midsize SUV CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (Feb. 24, 2015) - Construction is underway at the Volkswagen Chattanooga manufacturing facility in preparation for production of an all new Midsize SUV. The first phase of construction started in early January 2015 and will continue for the next two years. Volkswagen Chattanooga CEO and President Christian Koch gave a site tour to Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke and Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger on Tuesday, highlighting the necessary expansion of the production areas in the body shop, paint shop and assembly areas.

An inside look at VW's new California R&D center

Less than two months ago, the Volkswagen Group opened a new facility in Oxnard, California (about an hour's drive west of Los Angeles). The $27 million investment, touted as Test Center California (TCC), serves as a research and development lab testing emissions for all brands under Volkswagen's umbrella, including its newest member, Porsche. While still not fully operational, we toured the new 64,000-square-foot building last week and had a first-hand opportunity to see just how much work is involved testing engines and meeting increasingly stringent government emissions standards.
Replacing a similar facility established in 1990 in Westlake Village (about 20-minutes east of the new location), our guide explained how Oxnard was chosen for its temperate climate, varied regional terrain for test drives and low altitude. (The area is only a few feet above sea level - a critical parameter when instrument testing emissions.) The new facility is capable of analyzing hundreds of vehicles, prototypes and customer-owned vehicles, annually.
Most interesting to us was the huge stainless steel climate chamber, with a massive four-wheel dynamometer that allows VW to test running vehicles in both scorching desert and freezing climates without ever leaving the building (an Audi Q7 was running in place during our visit). We were also mesmerized by the countless storage tanks and intricate plumbing of chemicals, stored in both liquid and gas states, needed to perform the variety of tests. Lastly, we took a look at Bugatti's service center on the west coast, located completely within the new center. While there were no supercars on site, the facility is equipped with plenty of spare forged wheels (mounted with expensive Michelin PAX tires) and a Veyron-specific repair jig that allows the vehicle to be completely disassembled, if needed. It is a shame that the facility, which set off all of our automotive geek alerts, is closed to the public.

The Volkswagen Group switches official language to English

The Volkswagen Group can't be fairly thought of as entirely German anymore, so the news that the company is switching its official language to English to help attract managers and executives is a rational, if surprising, decision. While many VW Group companies are still staidly German in character and culture, consider the other companies that it controls: Bentley (British), Bugatti (French), Ducati and Lamborghini (Italian), Skoda (Czech), Scania trucks (Swedish), and SEAT (Spanish). Not to mention the large Volkswagen Group of America operation, which constructs cars in Chattanooga, TN. Volkswagen's explicit motivation is to improve management recruitment – making sure the company isn't losing out on candidates for important positions because they can't speak German – and that's inherently sensible in a globalized economy. Particularly considering, like it or lump it, that English is the lingua franca of said global economy. It also should make it inherently easier to communicate between its world-wide subsidiaries and coordinate operations. It's hard to say for sure if this will have any impact on the consumer, although it's easy to see the benefits if, say, VW Group hires some American product planners or engineers and they push for features and designs that more closely suit American needs. After all, the US is a hugely important market for any manufacturer, and so the switch to English almost certainly has something to do with the outsized influence of the US in the global economy. And there doesn't seem to be a downside from a purely rational perspective, although it could mean that the Group's corporate culture becomes less German. Whether that's a good or a bad thing depends on your perspective. Related Video: Image Credit: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images Plants/Manufacturing Audi Bentley Bugatti Porsche Volkswagen SEAT Skoda