Production of the Audi Q5

The Audi Q5 will roll off the assembly line at the recently constructed production site at San José Chiapa, Mexico. Over the 460 hectare plant area (including the Just-In-Sequence park), a state-of-the-art production site has been created for the company – and it is the plant located at the highest elevation within the Audi production network at 2,400 meters (7,874.0 ft). AUDI AG invested more than one billion euros in its facilities and infrastructure. Part of this sum went into building the most eco-friendly paint shop on the American continents.

The new plant, located around 200 km (124.3 mi) east of Mexico City, has been designed for an annual capacity of 150,000 cars. Audi has selected around 180 suppliers. At the production launch, Audi México will procure more than 65 percent of its supplies from local value creation, and the localization level will be further extended over the mid-term.

Audi México relies on smart logistics. The plant is equipped with RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) antennas, which enable flexible coordination of production and supplier chains. San José Chiapa is the first production site in the Volkswagen Group to use this technology for all of its material and container flows.

The new plant was built according to applicable Audi standards, and this also applies to sustainability and environmental protection. These areas were key focal points in planning. The production site is wastewater-neutral thanks to its mechanical, chemical and biological process water treatment facility. The same principle applies to CO₂ emissions from production (CO₂  neutrality). In the neighboring community of San José Ozumba, the company has already planted more than 100,000 trees over 100 hectares of land, thereby contributing to replenishment of groundwater reserves.

Corporate responsibility is a fixed component of the Audi strategy. The new Audi plant in Mexico, the world’s most advanced plant, promotes environmental, societal and economic sustainability and is actively shaping the future of the region.

By the end of 2016, around 4,200 people will be employed at the San José Chiapa site – a development from which the economy of the entire region will benefit. In addition, there are 320 apprentices, and 80 apprenticeship positions are planned per year.

Environmental balance

The environmental balance of the new Audi Q5 is very good. Thanks to weight reduction and more efficient engines, the Q5 yields good results in the life-cycle assessment – from procuring its raw materials to the production process and 200,000 kilometers (124,274.2 mi) of driving until it is recycled. Compared to the previous model, savings of six percent have been achieved in greenhouse emissions. Thanks to intelligent material selection, greenhouse emissions in the production phase are already lower than for the previous model. This environmental advantage is further reinforced over every kilometer during the product use phase.

The equipment, data and prices specified in this document refer to the model range offered in Germany. Subject to change without notice; errors and omissions excepted.