Five years of Audi Neuburg – a true success story
- Audi demonstrates involvement in and commitment to the Neuburg region
- Shared home to Audi Motorsport, customer racing, Audi driving experience and Technical Development
- Sustainability a crucial element of the site strategy
Motorsport, driving events and biodiversity; all part of Audi Neuburg. The land was acquired in January 2010, groundbreaking took place in summer 2012, and the 47-hectare high-tech facility was officially opened in summer 2014. Five years later, Neuburg at Danube is not only an Audi site but also a magnet for visitors. In that time, 115,000 people have dropped by, and around 60,000 customers from more than 50 countries have taken driving and safety courses. Audi Neuburg is the home of the Audi driving experience and the Motorsport Competence Center with Audi Motorsport and Audi Sport customer racing. Technical Development also tests driver assist and safety systems here. There are roughly 400 employees working at the site, which has a carbon-neutral energy supply. Habitats for numerous species of animals and plants have been created on the site.
The high-tech Audi Neuburg site is an integral element of the Neuburg region. It offers everything under one roof, with motorsport engineers designing, building and testing racing cars, technical developers testing assist systems for future use and customers having great fun driving the latest Audi models. On average, 750 driving events are held every year. The central customer building is very much in demand as a venue, with state-of-the-art conference rooms and a restaurant open to the public. DGNB, the German Sustainable Building Council, has honored this building with the platinum DGNB certificate for ecological construction. The facility’s energy supply is sustainable, too. Right from day one, Audi Neuburg has been supplied with carbon-neutral waste heat from local industry.
New to the off-road course this season is the Audi e-tron*, Audi’s first all-electric series-production car. All racing cars and Audi R8 models are run with low-noise exhaust systems. A range of different measures have been implemented to reduce noise on the site. The track surfaces are quieter thanks to protective coatings in the corners, while the wetted dynamic driving area creates less tire noise. A six-meter wall landscaped wall lines the stretches of track. A biodiversity strategy has been put into practice on the extensive site to protect the natural world. Native shrubs and hedgerows provide new habitats and sources of food for birds and wild bees. Audi’s involvement in the local community ranges from fundraising campaigns for organizations in Neuburg to free training for volunteer firefighters from the region and special courses for novice drivers.
What they say about Audi Neuburg:
Dieter Gass, site manager and head of Audi Motorsport: “When Audi Motorsport moved to the new site in Neuburg, it was the start of a new era for the works racing department. We think the working conditions here are ideal, and we can work extremely efficiently here thanks to the short distances involved and having a track right on our doorstep. Exactly what all the efficiency and productivity that the site offers means in terms of results has been demonstrated very clearly by our dominant victories in all three DTM championships this year. Combining works racing, customer racing and the driving experience in one place is the ideal way to make use of the synergies available to us.”
Mate Beric, site supervisor at Audi Neuburg: “Audi Neuburg is a one-of-a-kind location as far as I’m concerned and an impressive showcase for how the environment can be compatible with technological development and top-level motorsports.”
Chris Reinke, head of Audi Sport customer racing: “Here at Neuburg, we develop all customer racing derivatives up to the homologation stage. From testing the quality of incoming components to coordinating manufacturing at several international locations, all the necessary skills are in place here at our headquarters. We also manage racing car sales and parts logistics for our global customer base from here. Neuburg is the beating heart of Audi Sport customer racing, and we couldn’t hope for a better home.”
Klaus Demel, head of Audi driving experience: “It’s always nice for us to see how enthusiastic our guests are about the driving events here in Neuburg. That undoubtedly has something to do with the great location, our motivated employees, the emotional appeal of our products and the level of interest among the participants. The Audi Driving Experience Center in Neuburg, with its unique combination of the driving experiences themselves and the Motorsport Competence Center, is a true success story.”
Ludwig Herzner, course supervisor at Audi Neuburg: “Everyone supports everyone else here, straightforwardly and no matter what the department. I am proud to have been here since day one, and I really enjoy working with my colleagues to help shape the team spirit at the site.”
