Based on this article, from Czech Automotive Industry, published by the Automotive Industry Association.
The Brandýs factory is one of the most state-of-the-art centers for the production of automotive electronics, not only within AUMOVIO but also across the entire industry. In addition to manufacturing state-of-the-art automotive technology, it is dedicated to development and strives to bridge the gap between the manufacturing environment and academic research. One such example is the AUMOVIO project, which aims to develop tools that analyze data from production and supply chains in real time and help respond to potential supply disruptions.
The Brandýs plant builds on the industrial roots of the former PAl company. However, its immediate predecessor was the production facility in Kbely, which became part of Siemens VdO Automotive after 2001. Following its acquisition by the Continental Group in 2007, production was gradually moved to the new plant in Brandýs nad Labem. The company adopted its new name, AUMOVIO, last year, when Continental’s automotive division was spun off into a separate technology company.
Currently, AUMOVIO has approximately 86,000 employees worldwide. In the fiscal year 2024, AUMOVIO achieved a turnover of 19.6 billion euros. The company’s headquarters are located in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Flagship product: OLED display
The Brandýs plant is one of the most state-of-the-art production centers for automotive electronics, not only within AUMOVIO, but also across the entire industry. The production portfolio includes large-format displays, multimedia units, instrument clusters, connectivity boxes, high-performance computers, and other key components for the automotive industry. Approximately 1,800 employees work at the Brandýs plant.
Among the most significant products of the Brandýs plant is the large-format curved OLED display. Production is highly automated and takes place in clean rooms that meet the ISO 7 standard. A unique combination of Hybrid Bonding and Display Closing technologies ensures absolute precision of joints, the quality of optical layers, and final lamination.
“I am proud to be part of this new chapter for our plant. The launch of the AUMOVIO brand is not just a formal change, but also a confirmation of our ability to grow, innovate, and set the direction for future mobility,” says Matthieu Turlure, General Manager of the plant in Brandýs nad Labem. The Brandýs plant is one of the largest at AUMOVIO and also confirms its leadership role through its membership in the Global Lighthouse Community, under the auspices of the World Economic Forum.
Global Leader in Digitalization
The Global Lighthouse Network (GLN) brings together the world’s leading manufacturing companies that actively utilize advanced technologies—from artificial intelligence and robotics to the cloud and big data. The GLN represents an international benchmark for the most advanced digital transformation.
“Applying to join the GLN was a logical step. We wanted to verify that our path to digitalization was the right one. It was a complex process, and just like digitalization itself, its preparation was a team effort,” says Michal Fichtner, Head of Digitalization Operations at IE UX. A private 5G network was implemented at the plant, which significantly speeds up communication between robots and enables the operation of autonomous vehicles. This is a key element of the strategy to become a fully digital factory according to the principles of Industry 4.0.
Key digitalization technologies at the plant include:
- Fully integrated ERP and MES systems
- Autonomous parts transport
- Machine vision
- Predictive maintenance
- Augmented reality
- Simulation tools in conjunction with a digital twin
- 5G mobile connectivity.
The RAASCEMAN Project
Of particular significance is the involvement of AUMOVIO in the RAASCEMAN project (Resilient and Adaptive Supply Chains for Capability-based manufacturing as a Service Networks, resilient and adaptable supply chains for manufacturing networks based on the principle of manufacturing as a Service), which focuses on increasing the resilience and flexibility of manufacturing supply chains. The project, funded by the Horizon Europe program with 4.6 million euros over a three-year period (09/2024–08/2027), involves nine partners from six European countries, including research institutions and industrial companies. The project is coordinated by the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI). One of the project partners is also CIIRC CTU. The goal of the project is to develop tools that analyze data from manufacturing and supply networks in real time and help respond to potential supply disruptions.
The key concept is Manufacturing as a Service (MaaS), a network of interconnected production capacities that enables flexible shifting of production and rapid replacement of failing suppliers. The solution also includes digital twins, artificial intelligence for production planning, and standardized data models that enable collaboration between different types of production. AUMOVIO is a key industrial partner in the RAASCEMAN project, linking research and technological activities with the real-world environment of modern manufacturing. Its main task is to ensure that project results are validated in operation, practically applicable, and ready for future scaling up to full-scale production.
The plant in Brandýs provides an exceptionally comprehensive testing environment comprising an extensive production chain with interconnected lines covering the entire process from material preparation through assembly operations to final testing and shipping. In this dynamic environment, the robustness, stability, and actual benefits of all technological solutions developed within the project. An important part of AUMOVIO’s role is also the validation of data models and algorithms through a digital twin, which allows the simulation of various operational situations without interfering with ongoing production and confirms the accuracy of system outputs.
At the same time, AUMOVIO provides the project with detailed knowledge of the manufacturing environment, extensive datasets, and expert input in the fields of process engineering, logistics, automation, and ERP/MES integration. This enables the modeling of manufacturing processes, the training of algorithms, and their subsequent online verification in real time. AUMOVIO’s active participation is also crucial during the implementation phase, where it provides ongoing feedback on the solution’s functionality, compares the project specifications with actual results, and helps adapt the technologies to ensure they are fully compatible with production needs. The Brandýs-based company AUMOVIO also views the project as an opportunity to develop its own teams and technologies. “Thanks to collaboration with leading European development centers, AUMOVIO has the opportunity to develop its engineering teams and improve manufacturing processes to increase competitiveness in the future,” says Jakub Hamerník, Smart Manufacturing Manager at AUMOVIO Brandýs.
“The use of digitalization and robotization opens the door to predictive production management. Our goal is to ensure that future production is not merely reactive. Thanks to intelligent technologies, we can identify potential problems even before they occur.” – Smart Manufacturing Manager Jakub Hamerník.
Collaboration with CIIRC CTU
The RAASCEMAN project works closely with another European project, RICAIP (Research and Innovation Center for Advanced Industrial Manufacturing), which is coordinated by CIIRC CTU and utilizes the research infrastructure of European testbeds in Prague, Brno, Ostrava, Kaiserslautern, and Saarbrücken to validate solutions in real industrial environments. RAASCEMAN tests its technologies on specific “use cases” in the automotive and cycling industries and lays the groundwork for a more flexible, resilient, and eco-friendly European industry. RICAIP Testbed Prague (CIIRC CTU) is collaborating with AUMOVIO as part of the RAASCEMAN project to verify the practical applicability of tools for flexible and resilient manufacturing. The testbed provides access to advanced research infrastructure and enables the simulation of production scenarios and potential disruptions in supply chains, while AUMOVIO tests and applies the proposed solutions in a real-world environment.
“We have been working with AUMOVIO for a long time. We’ve progressed from smaller contract research projects to collaborating on two major projects: first, the European RAASCEMAN project focused on manufacturing resilience against supply chain disruptions, and second, the Precise Layers from the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic, focused on advanced methods in robotic 3D printing,” explains Pavel Burget, director RICAIP Testbed Prague, adding: “Thanks to this collaboration, we can not only consult on the concepts verified at RICAIP Testbed Prague, but also validate them with the AUMOVIO team under real-world industrial production conditions.” The project thus provides AUMOVIO with access to a network of European testbeds at leading institutions, thereby promoting the sharing of knowledge, methodologies, and data across all of Europe. This type of collaboration connects global industrial partners with leading scientists and academics, creating a synergistic effect that is much broader than local initiatives and ensures that research and innovation have a real impact on industrial practice on a larger scale. According to Jakub Hamerník, the collaboration with CIIRC has another dimension: “It provides young engineers with a unique opportunity to gain a deep understanding of modern manufacturing processes, working with data, and the practical aspects of industrial digitalization. By participating in projects such as RAASCEMAN, they learn to view manufacturing not only from a technical perspective, but in the context of the entire industrial ecosystem — from planning and automation through quality control to logistics and complex supply chains,” says the Smart Manufacturing Manager at AUMOVIO Brandýs.
