Gigafactory? How About Microfactory? Arrival Rethinks How an EV is Built.
In the world of vehicle manufacturing, not just EVs, bigger is usually seen as better for economies of scale.
Gigantic Gigafactories pumping out thousands of vehicles. What if there was another way?
A new EV company on the scene is challenging that notion. Arrival’s microfactories are rethinking how an EV is built and producing electric vans and electric buses.
Microfactory is a small-to-medium scale, highly automated, and technologically advanced manufacturing setup, which has a wide range of process capabilities. Typically, it is a manufacturing facility whose output can be scaled up by replicating such setups in large numbers.
Microfactory requires less energy, less material, and a small labor force, owing to the high-tech automated processes. The concept of microfactory also promotes the miniaturization of production equipment and systems according to the product dimension.
This helps in reducing the size of the factory, which, in turn, needs less capital, as well as lowers operating expenses. Since the development of the first microfactory concept in 1990, it has witnessed technological advancements and has found applications in multiple commercial manufacturing processes.
