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2021 / Electrifying progress

Breaking new ground

    Klaus Kühner, head of the car body development department, is one of the longest-serving employees at the PSW facility in Neckarsulm, Germany and helped set up the company site there. When it was founded in spring 2007, nine people were employed on-site – today there are more than a hundred. The facility has continued to grow in many areas, especially as a result of receiving large-scale development work for the Audi e-tron GT. In this interview, Klaus looks back at the beginning of the project and explains what role Neckarsulm played in the development work.

    The Audi e-tron GT celebrated its world premiere in February this year. What were you doing when this happened?

    Klaus Kühner: I remember the day well. I was sitting with a couple of colleagues from Neckarsulm in front of my computer at home and we counted down the seconds until the start of the world premiere. That was a special moment for us. After all, we and everyone else involved had put a lot of heart and soul into this car over the past four years. For PSW, the project started in Neckarsulm.

    In what way?

    Since the vehicle was to be produced in Neckarsulm, I received a request from our management to check whether we had the necessary expertise to support Audi in the development of the car. And to be completely honest: at the beginning we all had enormous respect for this major task.

    What gave me a buzz the most: the more complex the tasks became, the greater the enthusiasm within the team. Along with the excellent collaboration between Audi and PSW, for me personally the Audi e-tron GT was a project that I think back to very fondly.

    Adrian Oliver Sub-project manager car body/doors, Neckarsulm

    Audi then commissioned PSW with important development work. How did that go?

    After several meetings with the specialist departments at PSW and those responsible at Audi, I developed a concept proposal together with my colleagues Günther Schinko and Cornel Schwab about how PSW could manage the project. We were then spurred on by ambition and an impressive dynamic developed within the team. One cog meshed with another and in the end, Audi and we jointly set up a collaboration approach that was an absolute novelty at the time.

    When we were finally commissioned by Audi, it was a very important milestone for the company and our colleagues in Neckarsulm as well as in Gaimersheim were fully committed to the project.

    I am very proud that the PSW site at Neckarsulm was the birthplace for the project.

    Interview ohne Worte: Welche Dynamik herrschte innerhalb des PSW-Teams bei der Konzepterstellung?
    Ein Audi-Mitarbeiter begutachtet die Karosserie eines Audi e-tron GT. Foto: © Audi Media Center

    In your opinion, what was the decisive factor that led to Audi commissioning
    PSW?

    We have broken new ground in many areas, which is why we approached the concept planning with a certain ease and sense of confidence. The great ambition of our colleagues also played a role. Audi placed its trust in us and we wanted to prove that we were up to the task.

    It was fascinating to see how a virtual model gradually becomes a real vehicle. I am proud to have made my contribution to this.

    Matthias Banholzer Development body parts, Neckarsulm

    The development of the body was very exciting: In order to master the balancing act between design, installation space and manufacturability of the body components, we worked with completely new concepts. The same applied to the connection technology. Here, too, we worked with new ideas.

    Andreas Rau Responsible for the body module, Neckarsulm

    In what way has the project changed the PSW site in Neckarsulm in terms of its skill set?

    Klaus Kühner: PSW Neckarsulm has always been strong in interior and car body development. The project enabled us to further deepen this know-how. In addition, we also took a leading role in the development of the exterior of the vehicle. Providing support during the production start-up was completely new to us. A lot was checked and safeguarded virtually, and we were also on-site at the assembly line in the Audi factory in Böllinger Höfe.

    What will PSW Neckarsulm take from the project into the future?

    A great deal of self-confidence. But I think this applies to the entire company. The Audi e-tron GT has laid the foundations for us to support Audi in the development of further vehicles. And the successful model of collaboration between the two companies can serve as a blueprint for the future.

    It was a new experience to take on so much responsibility in a project. We had to establish new processes, drive topics forward independently and always keep track of the entire development status. Companies and colleagues have certainly grown from this.

    Patrick Bopp Sub-project manager, Neckarsulm
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