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ŠKODA AUTO has launched a mobile private 5G network in cooperation with VODAFONE at its Mladá Boleslav site. For the carmaker, the ultra-fast and reliable data transmission technology opens up new possibilities in production. The pilot project aims to comprehensively test and further develop the technology under real-life conditions.

Christian Schenk, ŠKODA AUTO Board Member for Finance & IT, says: “The private 5G network is a milestone for ŠKODA AUTO on its journey towards becoming a Smart Factory. The technology offers enormous potential for future innovations, for example, in predictive maintenance and optical inspections in body construction. Under the recently launched pilot project, we are testing 5G in everyday operations, and we will also be evaluating future uses of this technology to make us even more efficient and flexible.”

Michael Oeljeklaus, ŠKODA AUTO Board Member for Production and Logistics, adds: “The 5G standard also opens up new possibilities for autonomous transport in logistics, augmented reality in production and many other applications. One example is the FATA MORGANA application that enables remote support between maintenance and technical experts in two different continents by creating a real-time digital twin and communicating using 3D objects in augmented reality. This technology takes advantage of the much faster flow of data and lower latency of 5G connectivity. Microsoft HoloLens 2 glasses also improve the efficiency of the digital twin of the scanned area.”

The 5G research network allows data to be locally transmitted securely in real time. The solution uses 5G Standalone (SA) technology, which is one of the first SA 5G commercial deployments in the Czech Republic. ŠKODA AUTO’s network uses a private frequency spectrum, which is unique to the ŠKODA AUTO smart factory; it enables reliable, wireless data transmission and guarantees sufficient bandwidth even under high utilisation. Thanks to 5G, latency, which is the time it takes to transmit data to sensors, machines, vehicles or other devices, may drop as low as a few milliseconds. This makes 5G technology significantly faster than WLAN or other wireless communication technologies.

The mobile private 5G network makes new technologies possible within the framework of the Smart Factory concept, for example in the areas of Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence and shared data. The next step will involve uploading data to finished vehicles via 5G. Another field of application is the intelligent networking of robots and wireless assembly tools.

ŠKODA AUTO has integrated the private 5G network into existing data networks in order to ensure the necessary data security and gain experience with deploying this technology. The technology will soon be extended to all areas of production and logistics. In the future, it will be used to autonomously transport vehicles and in predictive maintenance, and it will also be tested in combination with various devices at the ŠKODA FabLab.

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

ŠKODA AUTO will again be supporting this year’s Tour de France (1 – 24 July 2022) as the official main and vehicle partner. This is the 19^th time the company has supported the world’s largest cycling event. 250 vehicles will provide mobility to the organisers and race management of the Tour de France or be used as support and service vehicles. The vehicle fleet also includes the all-electric ŠKODA ENYAQ iV that Tour Director Christian Prudhomme will be using as a command vehicle (‘Red Car’) on 16 of the 21 stages.

“Our long-standing commitment to cycling is one of the cornerstones of our sponsorship activities in elite international and grassroots sport. In the early days of our company, the founders Václav Laurin and Václav Klement began by designing and manufacturing bicycles – this makes for an ideal ‘brand fit’. We are delighted to be supporting this great event again this year.”

Martin Jahn, ŠKODA AUTO Board Member for Sales and Marketing

The 109^th run of the classic cycling classic starts on 1 July with the Grand Départ in Copenhagen, Denmark, the northernmost starting point in the history of the race. The 21 stages, including six mountain stretches, will take the peloton through four countries over a distance of 3,300 kilometres. On 24 July, the riders will reach their destination on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris.

ŠKODA AUTO is supporting the world’s largest cycling event for the 19^th time. As the official main and vehicle partner, it is also providing 250 vehicles to the organisers and race management, as well as service and support vehicles. Alongside the ENYAQ iV, the fleet includes OCTAVIAs and the ŠKODA SUPERB iV with plug-in hybrid drive.

Ahead of the field, Tour Director Christian Prudhomme will be travelling in an all-electric ŠKODA ENYAQ iV. He will be waving the yellow flag through the sliding roof of the ‘Red Car’ at the start of each stage. This is the third time the SUV has served as Prudhomme’s mobile command centre. On some stages, the ŠKODA SUPERB iV with plug-in hybrid drivetrain will be taking to the course as the command vehicle.

Now for the 12^th time, the Czech car manufacturer has designed the crystal trophy for the winner of the world’s largest cycling race. ŠKODA AUTO has also been sponsoring the green jersey for the leader of the points standings since 2015.

Furthermore, ŠKODA AUTO is a partner of the Tour de France Femmes, which starts on 24 July. The participants will cover eight stages over a distance of 1,029 kilometres from Paris to La Planche des Belles Filles.

ŠKODA campaign ‘You have to love it. We do.’
To mark the Tour de France, ŠKODA is launching the campaign ‘You have to love it. We do.’ and is promoting it in TV commercials, on its social media channels and on the company’s website www.welovecycling.com where cycling fans will find exciting stories and information about the Tour de France as well as a competition. Prizes include tickets to the Tour de France, a signed green jersey, bicycles, cycling equipment and subscriptions to the fitness app Strava. App users can also take part in a cycling challenge and the winner will receive their own green jersey.

Extensive involvement in cycling sponsorship
As the ‘engine of cycling’, ŠKODA AUTO supports the Tour de France as well as numerous national and international cycling races and popular sports events. In addition to the Spanish tour ‘Vuelta’, this includes the amateur race L’Etape. Under the umbrella of the Tour de France, the worldwide racing series enables ambitious amateur cyclists to follow a race stage.

Committed to sustainability
In collaboration with its partners, ŠKODA AUTO is consistently working on innovative sustainability concepts. At the Tour de France, for example, the car manufacturer will be using tyres from its partner Continental for the ENYAQ iV fleet, which contain additives made from recycled materials. The carcass material consists entirely of recycled PET bottles. In addition to safety, this innovation also ensures exceptional handling characteristics with minimal environmental impact. The tyres for ŠKODA models are custom developed. Working closely with partners, the car manufacturer aims to use tyres produced from sustainable materials in series production in the future.

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

After being closed for more than two years due to the coronavirus pandemic, ŠKODA AUTO is now reopening its Czech production facilities to visitors. The guided tours of selected plant areas and final assembly are ideal for school groups and families with children aged ten and over. The tours are offered in various languages, including Czech, English, German and Dutch.

“We are delighted to finally be able to offer our factory tours again after more than two years. It’s worthwhile visiting because our plants have changed a lot in that time. In Mladá Boleslav, for example, we’ve started producing the all-electric ENYAQ iV family as well as MEB battery systems, and in Kvasiny we’ve continued to systematically modernise the production facilities. Meanwhile, the Vrchlabí plant became ŠKODA AUTO’s first CO₂-neutral production site at the end of 2020.”

Andrea Frydlová, Head of the ŠKODA Museum

The only requirement for a guided tour of the Mladá Boleslav plant is to pick up a ticket from the ŠKODA Museum. The admission for a guided tour in Czech is 180 CZK; for a plant tour in other languages, it is CZK 260. Guided tours at the Kvasiny and Vrchlabí sites are free of charge. The tours, which last around two hours, are often accompanied by the carmaker’s former employees.

The tours are aimed at technology enthusiasts as well as school classes and families with children aged ten and over. The ŠKODA ENYAQ iV family, the manufacturer’s first all-electric production models based on the Volkswagen Group’s Modular Electrification Toolkit (MEB) are now rolling off the same production line in Mladá Boleslav as vehicles with combustion engines based on the MQB. To achieve this, ŠKODA AUTO made major adjustments to the production line. The production of battery systems for various Group brands’ MEB vehicles has also recently been launched at the main plant, making Mladá Boleslav the only location in Europe outside Germany where these battery systems are manufactured.

Around 7,000 employees currently produce the SUPERB and SUPERB iV models as well as the KAROQ and KODIAQ in Kvasiny. By relocating the new-generation SUPERB to Bratislava, capacities will be created at the site for an additional 150,000 units of the SUV series KODIAQ and KAROQ.

The Vrchlabí plant plays a central role in component production for ŠKODA AUTO. This is where the DQ200 automatic direct-shift gearbox is produced; in early February this year, the four millionth DQ200 gearbox left the assembly line since production started in October 2012. Since the end of 2020, the site has been the Czech carmaker’s first CO₂-neutral production facility.

Article source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

ŠKODA Motorsport is assigning the legendary RS letter combination to its latest rally vehicle based on the fourth-generation FABIA. In this way, the ŠKODA FABIA RS Rally2 evokes successful predecessors such as the ŠKODA 130 RS while establishing a link to the sporty production vehicles that make up the Czech manufacturer’s RS family. The successor to the most successful rally vehicle in its category will be unveiled in Mladá Boleslav on 14 June at 19:00.

The ŠKODA FABIA Rally2 evo is the most successful rally car in its category. It has notched up almost 1,700 victories, including four triumphs at the legendary Rallye Monte Carlo, and earned a total of six world championship titles. ŠKODA Motorsport has delivered more than 450 units to its customer teams, giving it a global market share of one third in the Rally2 category. The successor, based on the fourth-generation FABIA and set to continue this unique success story, will be presented by ŠKODA in Mladá Boleslav on 14 June at 19:00.

The ŠKODA FABIA RS Rally2 is the first rally variant of the FABIA to feature the legendary RS designation in its name. These two letters have been synonymous with success on rally tracks and racing circuits around the world for 48 years. It was 1974 when ŠKODA introduced the designation RS, which stands for “Rally Sport”, and used it for its rally prototypes, the ŠKODA 180 RS and 200 RS. The following year marked the debut of the legendary ŠKODA 130 RS, which garnered numerous successes on international rally tracks and circuits until 1983. In 1977 the ŠKODA 130 RS achieved a one-two finish in its class at the legendary “Monte” and also made the top of the podium at the Acropolis Rally. On the race track, this was followed by an overall win at the 1981 European Touring Car Championship.

In addition, the new rally car’s name establishes a link to the ŠKODA RS family, which currently comprises the OCTAVIA RS, the KODIAQ RS and the ENYAQ COUPÉ RS iV. For over two decades now ŠKODA has been using the RS designation to identify its sportiest production models, starting in 2000 with the first OCTAVIA RS. Follow‑ups included two RS variants of the ŠKODA FABIA. In 2003, the first FABIA RS, based on the small car’s first generation, doubled as the homologation model for the FABIA WRC rally car presented at the same time. 2010 saw the arrival of another RS variant; based on the second-generation FABIA, it was also offered in COMBI estate format.

Articke source: www.skoda-storyboard.com

ŠKODA AUTO is contributing to the energy transition: In addition to developing and producing all-electric vehicles, such as the ENYAQ iV family, the car manufacturer is systematically supporting the advancement of renewable energies. For example, the Czech car manufacturer is also involved in constructing a new wind farm in Finland. With a calculated energy volume of 570 GWh per year, the plant will produce enough green energy in the future to supply around 150,000 households with electricity – or power ŠKODA electric vehicles with zero local emissions.

ŠKODA AUTO aims for 50 to 70 per cent of all its vehicles sold in Europe to be electric by 2030, depending on how the market develops. As part of the NEXT LEVEL – ŠKODA STRATEGY 2030, the Czech manufacturer is therefore planning to launch at least three more all-electric models by the end of the decade, which will be positioned below the ENYAQ iV family, both in terms of price and size. To ensure that these vehicles can be powered by green electricity, ŠKODA AUTO is firmly committed to the expansion of renewable energies.

One of the current projects ŠKODA AUTO is supporting in this area is a large wind farm operated by a Norwegian energy company in Finland. The 38 wind turbines from the manufacturer Vestas have been installed at three different locations, and each has a rated output of 4.2 MW. At the site in Välikangas, for example, 24 wind turbines generate a total of 100.8 MW, while the seven turbines each at Pithipudas and Sievi produce 29.4 MW per site. In total, the nominal capacity of the wind farm is 159.6 MW, which means that a calculated energy volume of 570 GWh can be generated per year. This amount of electricity could supply around 150,000 households.

ŠKODA AUTO has set itself the goal of minimising the environmental impact of its products and mobility solutions, i.e., the ecological footprint of the company’s operations. The car manufacturer combines all of its activities in this area – from the extraction of raw materials to the end of a vehicle’s life cycle – under the umbrella of its Green Future strategy. In addition, the company has again strengthened its ambitious environmental goals under the NEXT LEVEL – ŠKODA STRATEGY 2030: from 2030, the Czech and Indian plants will be net emission-free in vehicle production. The Czech plant in Vrchlabí is leading the way in this respect and has been ŠKODA AUTO’s first CO₂‑neutral production site since the end of 2020. In addition, the company aims to reduce fleet emissions by more than 50 per cent by the end of the decade compared to 2020. ŠKODA AUTO is also continuously reducing its energy and water consumption as well as the amount of waste per vehicle produced. Since the beginning of 2020, the carmaker has been recycling or thermally processing all waste resulting from production at its Czech sites.

Article source: https://www.skoda-storyboard.com/en/press-releases/skoda-auto-supports-wind-farm-project-in-finland/

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