Behind the Scenes at the Home of the Insignia

The Opel Insignia was conceived, designed and developed in Russelsheim, Opel’s state of the art facility, situated between Frankfurt and Mayence. But how does a plant like Russelheim operate? And what tests, processes and procedures does the Insignia undergo before it rolls off the Opel product line?

Russelshiem has a proud history of automotive production with the Lutzmann patent motor car produced there in 1899. Today, the modern facility has an output of 270,000 vehicles per year, and sets the standards in highest quality production, innovative processes and the use of a specially trained workforce. The ultra-modern factory, completed in 2002 at a cost of thre quarters of a billion Euro, is at the heart of Opel’s design and development programme. 

The 16,455 square metre body shop is almost entirely automated, featuring high tech laser welding operations. The body shop is highly robotized, with 600 machines programmed for welding, bonding and handling operations. Parts such as hoods and doors are made in production cells right next to their assembly position on the main line.

The most distinctive part of the new plant is the 48,000 square meters assembly facility which is shaped like a half star with five spokes. These spokes mark a departure from typical assembly plants. Four of these arms make up the main production line; while the fifth is where door and cockpit modules are prepared for insertion. At the centre of the star is the plant’s nerve centre, an area of meeting rooms and information boards.

The windows lining the outside walls of the plant provide sunlight, and also double as secondry loading docks, affording the plant unparalelled flexibility, and the ability to make alterations to the production line. Other innovations include the use of the bucket build concept in the assembly plant. This approach sees “buckets,” or quantities of vehicles added to the product run between the pre-pilot stage and the pilot stage. This allows for real-world tests to be conducted with the solutions obtained during the pilot phase at the plant. Russelsheim also features a business mall where components and materials are assembled before being deliverd via truck directly to the appropriate docking stations along the fingers of the assembly building. 

But Russelsheim’s most innovative element is the the team of designers and testers who created the Opel Insignia. The facility is home to over 350 design specialists whose artistry, advanced engineering, product planning and meticulous attention to detail has made the Opel Insignia the European Car of the Year 2009.