When don’t we build things at our headquarters? Never. Basically, everything we build comes from the KW headquarters. Even while we are expanding, we continue to produce suspension kits specific to each order from customers all around the world.
On one side of our headquarters, we are expanding our modern machine shop, and on the other, the cornerstone for a production complex. The first construction and groundwork has already begun with the excavation of 16,000 cubic meters of soil.
By the end of 2023, KW automotive will have invested eight million in buildings and seven million in machines and equipment alone at the KW Headquarter in Fichtenberg. Today, almost 95 percent of manufacturing for various suspension applications of the KW and ST brands, as well as coilover kits for customers in the automotive and aftermarket industry is completed in-house.
The production area will grow by an additional area of 3,000 square meters. The new company building will also include areas for production control and development as well as a training center for the national and international approved KW automotive dealers.
1,800 square meters of the building will feature 60 newly created modern offices. One of the key features of the new production hall will be the order-based manufacture of adaptive suspension kits like KW DDC systems. This vertical expansion of production will make us even more independent in the future.
In 2011, we were one of the first suspension manufacturers to offer adaptive coilovers to the aftermarket. We now deliver active and semi-active dampers plus the entire portfolio of electronics, sensors, control units and control algorithm for damping curves from our facility.
In addition to automotive enthusiasts, our customers include small series manufacturers and for select vehicle models of the automotive industry. For example, we equipped the Mercedes-Maybach G 650 Landaulet, Rimac Nevera and other models with our adaptive KW DDC technology.
We work closely with DLR (German Aerospace Center) on the topic of artificial intelligence for chassis control systems. Together with the Institute for Digitalization and Electric Drives (IDA) at Heilbronn University (HHN) at the Künzelsau campus, our colleagues are developing new technologies for the automotive industry and the independent aftermarket.
Photos KW, Text CS
