Tesla will reportedly shut down production at Gigafactory Berlin to modernize the factory and add a shift to achieve higher production capacity.
Tesla’s top priority is ramping up production to keep up with customer demand.
The automaker does this at all of its plants, but the ramps are more significant at Gigafactory Berlin and Gigafactory Texas, which just started production.
Giga Berlin appeared to be doing relatively well thanks to the use of the 2170 cells that enable a battery infrastructure familiar from Tesla, reaching a production rate of 1,000 model vehicles per week in June.
Giga Texas appeared to be falling behind as it struggled to ramp up production of the 4680 battery cell and structural battery pack, but we reported that the factory ramped up production significantly last week as Tesla began building the Model Y Long Range the plant started with 2170 cells.
Now Tesla is looking to Gigafactory Berlin to catch up and will reportedly close the factory for about two weeks to upgrade.
The German Bild reported about it today:
According to BILD information, Tesla therefore wants to interrupt operations for two weeks starting next Monday. It is unclear how many of the 4,500 employees will be sent on vacation and how many technicians will be left to switch production.
The release also states that the automaker will put in a third shift and start producing electric motors at the plant instead of importing them from Gigafactory Shanghai:
According to the employees, work should be carried out in three instead of two shifts after the break in production. In addition, Tesla could then start manufacturing the drive in a neighboring hall.
While the upgrade could help, Gigafactory Berlin’s biggest bottleneck is reportedly its workforce.
There have been many reports in recent months that Tesla was having trouble hiring and retaining employees. Some of them pointed out that wages had been a particular issue and the local union IG Metall had started to get involved. But Tesla has increased salaries by 6% for many employees to address concerns.
It will take a significant hiring effort for Tesla to add a third shift at the plant after the factory restarts later this month.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Subscribe to Electrek on YouTube for exclusive videos and subscribe to the podcast.