Ever heard of Max Weber (1864-1920)? He was a German sociologist, historian, jurist and political economist. Weber is among the most important theorists on the development of modern Western society. He saw himself not as a sociologist, but as an historian. What did Weber write about bureaucracy:
That it constitutes the most efficient and rational way to organize human activity. Bureaucracy means systematic processes and organized hierarchies, which are necessary to: maintain order, maximize efficiency, and eliminate favoritism.
1. Non-elected government officials. Administrative policy-making group. 2. Specialization of functions, adherence to fixed rules, hierarchy of authority. 3.A system of administration marked by officialism, red-tape and proliferation. From French bureaucratie: bureau desk and –cratie a kind of government. (MerriamWebster)
Richard Hammond visits the Wolfsburg Volkswagen Factory in Wolfsburg, Germany, and gets an exclusive inside look on their new robotic arm tech, and their unique chairs built to quickly get human workers in and out of a car.
Volkswagen is known for its emphasis on quality and precision in its production processes, which is a key factor in the company’s success as a leading global automotive manufacturer.
BMW Car Factory Robots- Fast Extreme Automatic Production Manufacturing: BMW X2, i8, new BMW X7 and 5- Series Production Assembly Line.
YouTube comments:
“I am an industrial engineer and there us much more behind this than just the robots. The system had to be designed perfectly to prevent bottleneck. Imagine step 1 took 2 hours, step 2 4 hours, and step 3 30 minutes. In you only had 8 hours a day the maximum amount of cars you could output would be 2. They had to time every one of those stations perfectly to prevent production build ups and so cars can flow from station to station preventing waiting and excess motion. Very well done with much less variability than human systems.”
“I have noticed from several videos that German manufactures use more robots in car making compared to Japan where there seems to be a fine balance btwn human craftsmanship and robotics….could that explain the difference in reliability btwn Japanese and German cars?”
“I can’t wait till they’re poppin out terminators with that kind of speed and efficiency. All joking aside, there is something slightly unsettling about these machines. Hopefully when AI becomes self aware they don’t resent us for making robots our slaves.”
You can see how Audi R8, RS5, S5, A5 and Q2 is produced. There is even video of making E-engine of Audi.
https://youtu.be/fplEc51KLQ8
YouTube comments:
“Great video displaying the quality in manufacturing Audi takes in building their cars. Also, I did not know that Audi had supermodels working for them. ;)”
“The level.of automation in the factory is just amazing. The quality checks are spot on. The ergonomic set up of workstations are splendid.”
“Great content! I love this I absolutely love Audi and what they are going. They are a great company. I don’t think you would get this kind of quality from a Tesla. Keep up the great work!”
How MAN trucks are made. Production by robots and employees in Scania, Renault, DAF, MACK, Freightliner etc. Manufacturing video from start to finish.
https://youtu.be/MWa2U9Rqgy8
YouTube comments:
“Convincing efficient precision machinery and correspondingly qualified personnel. My admiration.”
“Just as Tesla is revolutionary car assembly and dominate in BEVs with its Gigafactories and Gigacastings it will soon be revolutionizing in SemiTruck production and dominate in BE Trucks.”
Elon Musk wanted the factory in Germany. Why? Great automobile culture. Largest economy in Europe. Central geographic location. And, perhaps most importantly, great engineers. It makes you wonder what Henry Ford would have thought of this.
YouTube comments:
“This might just be the coolest car related video ever made. I can just imagine the person in the production meeting that suggested this and you just know when Elon heard about it he was like ‘Yep that’s sick’.”
“Tesla makes the best car commercials without making car commercials.”
“One of the best process walkthroughs I have ever seen. Amazing footage. Amazing piloting. Amazing process. Well done!”
“I’m a Tesla employee in Berlin and I was there on our ceremonial day. I can say that I saw with my bare eyes the guy who is controlling the drone. He has some amazing skills, so this video is made by him and its not fake. Cheers!”
CNC Machine Shop Tour. Titan Gilroy takes you on a VIP Tour through the Haimer manufacturing plant in Germany. Epic innovation. 170 CNC Machines and a workforce that is highly skilled.
YouTube comments:
“We need more Titan videos. As a German I should add that we also need to bring manufacturing back. Our industry has been very keen on outsourcing production to other EU and non-EU countries. It starts with the identity and our core competences. Time to get that back, especially in the minds of the general public.”
“Glad to see a CEO who knows what he’s talking about and leading from the front….from tools to machining processes to tolerances etc….German engineering at its best….would love to walk through that shop.”
“Absolutely incredible, as a CNC instructor it’s been extremely difficult to get full classes going. Granted our program is 12 weeks and not 3.5 years but its fully funded. I feel like they pulled the trades out of schools and pushed college onto high schoolers when the trades are a more realistic approach for many teenagers. Honestly I wish I had known sooner how satisfying a career in machining could be now I’m trying to inspire a new generation who has no idea that there’s a career path for them that doesn’t involve 4 years of college.”