http://en.people.cn/n3/2026/0603/c90000-20463491.html
Located in the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area, the AW-Volkswagen boasts a total investment of 19.5 billion yuan (about 2.9 billion U.S. dollars). Covering 1.08 million square meters, it has a planned annual production capacity of 240,000 vehicles.
Construction began in 2016, and it took only 23 months for the first batch of vehicles to roll off the production line, setting a record as Volkswagen Group’s fastest-built factory worldwide.
Today, this factory is undergoing a new round of transformation toward an AI-powered smart factory. So far, the Tianjin branch has developed 105 high-value smart manufacturing application scenarios, covering stamping, welding, painting and final assembly.
In the stamping workshop, AI-powered scheduling systems automatically adjust production rhythms based on order requirements and equipment status. Vision inspection systems perform millimeter-level inspections of components, while predictive maintenance systems use IoT data to identify equipment abnormalities before breakdowns occur. The intelligent upgrades in the stamping workshop alone have saved more than 3,000 man-hours.
In the welding workshop, visual inspection systems can automatically identify gluing defects, while smart energy management systems dynamically optimize energy consumption based on production loads.
In the assembly workshop, technologies such as AI visual recognition, robotic guidance and smart picking are also continuously improving production efficiency.
Company data show that the factory’s intelligent upgrades have increased overall production efficiency by 16 percent, reduced quality-related issues by 20 percent, and saved 8.52 million yuan in costs.
As the auto industry accelerates toward electrification and intelligent transformation, the Tianjin factory is also advancing upgrades in intelligent driving, smart cockpits and connected-vehicle technologies.
The factory is pursuing a diversified strategy covering gasoline, electric and hybrid vehicles.
“The Tianjin factory will continue to drive innovation through advanced technologies, deepen smart manufacturing, and accelerate its transition toward new energy vehicles,” said Hao Yanfei, deputy Party secretary of FAW-Volkswagen Tianjin branch.