Tesla Factory
Encyclopedia
The Tesla Factory is an automobile
manufacturing
plant
in Fremont, California
owned and operated by Tesla Motors
. The facility was formerly known as New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI
), a joint venture between General Motors
and Toyota. The plant is located in the East Industrial area of Fremont between Interstates 880 and 680.
, as a central location for shipping. Construction was supposed to begin in April 2007, but was canceled.
A separate greenfield
factory to be built in San Jose, California
was also announced. However, the cost was prohibitive, and the company looked for alternatives.
NUMMI was established in 1984 by General Motors
and Toyota at the site of the defunct Fremont Assembly
site. It was a joint venture
created to manufacture vehicles which would be sold under both brands. GM pulled out of the venture in June 2009, and several months later Toyota announced plans to pull out by March 2010.
At 9.40am on April 1, 2010, the plant produced its last car, a red Toyota Corolla S believed to be destined for a museum in Japan. Production of Corollas in North America moved to Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada
's assembly plant in Cambridge, Ontario
. Up until May 2010, NUMMI built an average of 6000 vehicles a week, or nearly eight million cars and trucks.
On May 20, 2010, Tesla Motors
and Toyota announced a partnership to work on electric vehicle development and collaborate on the "development of electric vehicles, parts, and production system and engineering support". This included Tesla's partial purchase of the former NUMMI site, mainly consisting of the factory building, for $42 million. Tesla CEO Elon Musk
said the Tesla S
sedan will be built at the plant.
Tesla Motors officially took possession of the site on 19 October 2010, and opened it on 27 October.
Over $17 million of manufacturing equipment and spare parts was acquired from NUMMI and Toyota in 2011, at significant discounts compared to new equipment.
Four other facilities on the site are idle:
full-sized battery electric
sedan, with future vehicles following in the coming years. The plant will eventually be capable of producing 20,000 vehicles a year and will employ 1000 workers to start.
Tesla Motors also announced in June 2009, along with their loans from the DOE, that they plan to build electric family-sized minivans, electric SUV crossovers, and electric fleet vans for municipal governments. The utility van and cabriolet are expected to be based on the Tesla Model S platform, along with the Tesla Model X
crossover SUV.
The Tesla BlueStar
, an affordable electric family car targeted for $30,000, is expected to enter production in 2015.
About 5,000 Model S sedans will be made in 2012, with production ramping up to 20,000 in 2013 if necessary.
Tooling is currently being installed for production of the Tesla Model S
, which will be followed by the Tesla Model X
battery electric
crossover SUV.
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
manufacturing
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
plant
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
in Fremont, California
Fremont, California
Fremont is a city in Alameda County, California. It was incorporated on January 23, 1956, from the merger of five smaller communities: Centerville, Niles, Irvington, Mission San Jose, and Warm Springs...
owned and operated by Tesla Motors
Tesla Motors
Tesla Motors, Inc. is a Silicon Valley-based company that designs, manufactures and sells electric cars and electric vehicle powertrain components. It was the only automaker building and selling a zero-emission sports car, the Tesla Roadster, in serial production...
. The facility was formerly known as New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI
NUMMI
New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. was an automobile manufacturing plant in Fremont, California, opened in 1984 and closed in 2010. On October 27, 2010 it reopened as a 100% Tesla Motors-owned production facility, known as the Tesla Factory...
), a joint venture between General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
and Toyota. The plant is located in the East Industrial area of Fremont between Interstates 880 and 680.
History
Tesla Motors had planned for an assembly factory in Albuquerque, New MexicoAlbuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
, as a central location for shipping. Construction was supposed to begin in April 2007, but was canceled.
A separate greenfield
Greenfield
-Engineering:* Greenfield land, a piece of undeveloped land * One of several related terms:* Greenfield project, a project which lacks any constraints imposed by prior work...
factory to be built in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
was also announced. However, the cost was prohibitive, and the company looked for alternatives.
NUMMI was established in 1984 by General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
and Toyota at the site of the defunct Fremont Assembly
Fremont Assembly
Fremont Assembly was a General Motors automobile factory in Fremont, California. It was the new site for production in the San Francisco area in 1962 with production moved from the older Oakland Assembly. Production continued through 1980 when the plant was closed...
site. It was a joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
created to manufacture vehicles which would be sold under both brands. GM pulled out of the venture in June 2009, and several months later Toyota announced plans to pull out by March 2010.
At 9.40am on April 1, 2010, the plant produced its last car, a red Toyota Corolla S believed to be destined for a museum in Japan. Production of Corollas in North America moved to Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc. is a Canadian automotive manufacturer and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation...
's assembly plant in Cambridge, Ontario
Cambridge, Ontario
Cambridge is a city located in Southern Ontario at the confluence of the Grand and Speed rivers in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It is an amalgamation of the City of Galt, the towns of Preston and Hespeler, and the hamlet of Blair.Galt covers the largest portion of...
. Up until May 2010, NUMMI built an average of 6000 vehicles a week, or nearly eight million cars and trucks.
On May 20, 2010, Tesla Motors
Tesla Motors
Tesla Motors, Inc. is a Silicon Valley-based company that designs, manufactures and sells electric cars and electric vehicle powertrain components. It was the only automaker building and selling a zero-emission sports car, the Tesla Roadster, in serial production...
and Toyota announced a partnership to work on electric vehicle development and collaborate on the "development of electric vehicles, parts, and production system and engineering support". This included Tesla's partial purchase of the former NUMMI site, mainly consisting of the factory building, for $42 million. Tesla CEO Elon Musk
Elon Musk
Elon Musk is an American engineer and entrepreneur heritage best known for co-founding PayPal, SpaceX and Tesla Motors. He is currently the CEO and CTO of SpaceX, CEO and Product Architect of Tesla Motors and Chairman of SolarCity...
said the Tesla S
Tesla Model S
The Tesla Model S is a full-sized battery electric sedan developed by Tesla Motors. It is an electric car that was initially codenamed WhiteStar during research and preliminary development. Model S was announced in a press release on June 30, 2008...
sedan will be built at the plant.
Tesla Motors officially took possession of the site on 19 October 2010, and opened it on 27 October.
Facilities
The 370 acre site is mostly unused, with most activity concentrated in the 5500000 square feet (510,966.7 m²) main building that does the final assembly of vehicles. The passenger vehicle paint facility will be modified through late 2011.Over $17 million of manufacturing equipment and spare parts was acquired from NUMMI and Toyota in 2011, at significant discounts compared to new equipment.
Four other facilities on the site are idle:
- Plastics facility fabricating bumpers, instrument panels, interior panels, and others
- Stamping facility that fabricates all visible sheet metal parts
- Welding facility that assembles all metallic parts into one rigid unit
- Paint facility for truck cabs.
Employees
Tesla Motors will hire up to 1,000 workers in order to begin production of the Model S.Production
The plant will first be used to produce the Tesla Model STesla Model S
The Tesla Model S is a full-sized battery electric sedan developed by Tesla Motors. It is an electric car that was initially codenamed WhiteStar during research and preliminary development. Model S was announced in a press release on June 30, 2008...
full-sized battery electric
Battery electric vehicle
A battery electric vehicle, or BEV, is a type of electric vehicle that uses chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs. BEVs use electric motors and motor controllers instead of, or in addition to, internal combustion engines for propulsion.A battery-only electric vehicle or...
sedan, with future vehicles following in the coming years. The plant will eventually be capable of producing 20,000 vehicles a year and will employ 1000 workers to start.
Tesla Motors also announced in June 2009, along with their loans from the DOE, that they plan to build electric family-sized minivans, electric SUV crossovers, and electric fleet vans for municipal governments. The utility van and cabriolet are expected to be based on the Tesla Model S platform, along with the Tesla Model X
Tesla Model X
The Tesla Model X is a proposed full-sized battery electric crossover SUV being designed by Tesla Motors. Current plans are for a market launch by 2014, with an unveiling in late December 2011....
crossover SUV.
The Tesla BlueStar
Tesla BlueStar
The Tesla BlueStar is the proposed third battery electric car to be manufactured by Tesla Motors, with a production goal of 2015. Tesla wants the car to cost between and...
, an affordable electric family car targeted for $30,000, is expected to enter production in 2015.
Model S
In 2011, Tesla Motors will transition from hand-assembled “alpha builds” to “beta builds,” production-validation vehicles built entirely at the Tesla Factory. These cars will also be used for system integration, engineering testing, and federal crash-testing and certification.About 5,000 Model S sedans will be made in 2012, with production ramping up to 20,000 in 2013 if necessary.
Tooling is currently being installed for production of the Tesla Model S
Tesla Model S
The Tesla Model S is a full-sized battery electric sedan developed by Tesla Motors. It is an electric car that was initially codenamed WhiteStar during research and preliminary development. Model S was announced in a press release on June 30, 2008...
, which will be followed by the Tesla Model X
Tesla Model X
The Tesla Model X is a proposed full-sized battery electric crossover SUV being designed by Tesla Motors. Current plans are for a market launch by 2014, with an unveiling in late December 2011....
battery electric
Battery electric vehicle
A battery electric vehicle, or BEV, is a type of electric vehicle that uses chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs. BEVs use electric motors and motor controllers instead of, or in addition to, internal combustion engines for propulsion.A battery-only electric vehicle or...
crossover SUV.
External links
- The Tesla Factory: Birthplace of the Model S Tesla Motors photo tour
- Photo Tour of NUMMI from Edmunds.comEdmunds.comEdmunds.com is a provider of automotive information via Web sites, books, and other media. The company is headquartered in Santa Monica, California and maintains an office outside of Detroit, Michigan...
- NPR's This American Life's full hour story of the creation and demise of NUMMI - episode #403 from This American LifeThis American LifeThis American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...