To manufacture a car, various processes must take place. Each of these steps helps ensure that when its finished, it will be an outstanding vehicle that works smoothly when delivered to its final destination.

At the core, car design requires careful thought. This includes making sure all its parts work seamlessly together and are compatible.

Design

Car design can be an intricate process requiring multiple iterations of its proportions, shapes and surface details. Market forces as well as functionality requirements must also be considered along with compliance regulations when designing vehicles.

Designing vehicles typically begins with manual sketches and digital drawings. As this progresses, industrial plasticine or digital models are gradually made from these drawings and images.

After refining their design, engineers use CAD software to produce the final product. Small scale models are created in 2D and 3D to enable engineers to test for safety, aerodynamics, fuel economy, electrical functions and costs before production begins.

Automobile manufacturers use flexible production lines to reduce production costs and increase efficiency, saving both time and money while guaranteeing each vehicle meets high quality standards. These production lines give auto workers time and money savings while simultaneously ensuring each car meets the necessary standards of build.

Development

Automotive design and production can be time-intensive and expensive endeavors, involving rigorous testing from component durability through to weather and road conditions.

Automakers work closely with suppliers early in the design process to help develop prototype parts and vehicles that meet their specifications, expediting production more rapidly at reduced costs. This helps automakers bring products to market more rapidly.

OEMs and suppliers must shift their product development steering approaches from material cost optimization targeting the SOP toward holistic development that optimizes vehicle business cases over the entire life cycle.

It can be challenging for automotive businesses to adapt quickly as the industry rapidly transforms, with new mobility technologies such as self-driving cars exerting pressure on incumbent players and an acute labor shortage to contend with. To stay relevant, managing these changes requires taking an integrated and innovative approach to manufacturing that leverages resources no longer contributing to profitability while eliminating outdated resources that no longer contribute.

Pre-assembly

Before any car can be manufactured at a factory, its design must first be created by its creators and engineers. This step alone may take months if not years to finish.

Once a vehicle design has been finalized, engineers conduct rigorous tests on various aspects of it to ensure it fulfills various criteria such as safety, fuel efficiency, hot and cold weather performance, electrical functionality and cost analysis.

Once the design has been approved, manufacturing begins in an assembly plant by producing and stamping sheet metal parts for the bodywork.

Once a vehicle design is finalized, engineers must thoroughly test various aspects of it before it goes into production. This may include aerodynamics, safety features, hot and cold weather performance, fuel economy, electrical functionality etc.

Final assembly

Final assembly for cars involves attaching various components, such as motor, chassis and tyres, to their body shell.

On an assembly line, cars move in an orderly sequence from station to station (see Figure 1). At each station, robotic lifters raise and place car frames onto body shell conveyors – saving both time and laborious manual work on this critical step in production.

Workers on both ground level and work pits beneath a conveyor attach the car body to its frame, and once that has taken place, continue with assembly line to receive final components such as batteries, tires, antifreeze and gasoline.

Traditional final assembly was handled manually; however, robotics are becoming increasingly popular to aid in some of the complex procedures associated with final assembly and screwdriving tasks.