Tesla is secretly developing a groundbreaking manufacturing process that has the potential to revolutionize the industry. According to The Verge, insiders reveal that the electric vehicle (EV) giant is experimenting with a bold new technique that could enable them to produce the entire underbody of a vehicle as one single piece. This innovative method will eliminate the need for assembling the car with hundreds of individual parts. Not only will this streamline production, but it will also result in significant cost savings for Tesla, assisting CEO Elon Musk in his mission to reduce production expenses by 50%.
According to two sources, this new process involves 3D printing and layering industrial sand to construct the underbody. By utilizing this technique, Tesla could potentially build an entire car from scratch within 18 months to two years, rather than the usual three to four years. Terry Woychowski, an expert from Caresoft Global engineering company, describes this development as an “enabler on steroids” with enormous implications for the industry. Woychowski, who spent over three decades at General Motors, cautions that this “gigacasting” technique is not without challenges, particularly when it comes to larger and more complex pieces. Additionally, implementing the necessary giant presses for this process would require significant investment and the construction of larger factories to accommodate them.
Despite these obstacles, the use of sand casting for design validation would be considerably cheaper compared to traditional metal prototyping methods. Sand-cast prototypes can be swiftly modified and reprinted within hours. Quartz reports that Musk has long been fascinated by the concept of “unboxed” production, which involves creating large sub-units of a vehicle and then connecting them together. Sources indicate that Tesla may make a decision on whether to implement this 3D-printing process for the underbody by the end of September. (Read more Tesla stories.)
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