- The carmaker’s Japanese plant can produce PHEV, hybrid, gas, diesel, and EV models.
- Automatic guided vehicles are used throughout the factory and help install powertrains.
- Mazda can quickly adjust production levels at the site depending on EV demand.
Mazda has copped some flak for its slow introduction of any compelling EVs, but with the EZ-6 and EZ-60 it finally has a pair of sleek ones in its range. It’s now confirmed that its first new EV will be built at its existing Hofu 2 assembly plant in Japan from 2027, but unlike some other rivals, Mazda won’t need to establish a dedicated EV line to make it happen.
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The automaker has a flexible new production process that will enable its EVs to be manufactured on the same line as its existing PHEV, hybrid, gas, and diesel-powered models. This will help slash investment costs by 85% compared to establishing a separate EV line, and also reduce production lead time by 80%.
Read: Mazda’s New Pure Electric SUV Has Spilled Its Secrets
The Hofu H2 site currently produces the CX-60, CX-70, CX-80, and CX-90. It no longer uses fixed conveyors; instead, it utilizes flat pallet platforms that slide across the factory floor. Automatic guided vehicles are then used to transport a vehicle’s powertrain and guide it into place, regardless of whether that vehicle is a PHEV, a diesel, or an EV.
This flexible setup also means Mazda only needs seven days to extend a production line, whereas it previously took six weeks.
Mazda is also adopting a lean asset strategy that will enable it to maximize the utilization of its existing production facilities. According to the managing executive officer in charge of production engineering at the Hofu 2 factory, Taketo Hironaka, Mazda will keep capacity utilization at the factory near 100%. The flexibility will also allow it to quickly adjust production levels of hybrids and EVs should demand for EVs ever temporarily slump or spike.
“Doing mixed production means our BEV ratio will change according to customer demand at a given time,” Hironaka told Auto News. “We may see a BEV ratio of 100 percent, or it could be 0 percent. We have been able to build such a flexible production system this time. For a small player like us, we think using our production lines 100 percent by employing mixed production is a smart way to go. Under our lean asset strategy, we will maximize the use of our existing production facilities to ride out the initial stages of shift to electrification.”
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