Elon Musk has likened future versions of Tesla’s Model 3 production line to an ‘alien dreadnaught’
Musk has said the facility, which is separate from the firm’s ‘Gigafactory’, will be ‘the machine that makes the machine,’ and told analysts it will stun people.
‘It’s like, ‘What the hell is that?” said Musk.
Musk revealed the in-house term for the manufacturing advancement he hopes to introduce is ‘alien dreadnought.’
‘The point at which that’s what the factory looks like, that’s when you know you’ve won.’
He also revealed the line will evolve in stages.
‘By version 3, it won’t look like anything else,’ he said.
‘You can’t have people in the production line itself, otherwise you drop to people speed.
‘So there will be no people in production process itself.
‘People will maintain the machines, upgrade them, and deal with anomalies.’
However, there will still be people working in the factory, though, mostly overseeing the robots and making sure everything is running at peak efficiency.
A Reddit user claiming to work for robot making company Kuka posted images last year of what he says are 467 robots being delivered to the car-making firm’s California HQ.
The photos show a large shipment of unmounted robots that will form part of the ambitious production line.
SoutheastTraders forum user Mac11FA, via the Tesla subreddit, said he is a Field Service Engineer for Kuka Robotics.
The robots captured in the photos appear to be largely manufactured by Augsburg, Germany-based Kuka robotics, according to Teslarati.
The robots, each costing anywhere between $50k to as much as $500k can manage multiple tasks by switching adapters and moving across multiple axes.
The first 30 models were handed over to customers during a glitzy ceremony at the company’s factory in California last Friday. It came two days after the environment secretary Michael Gove announced a ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars from 2040
‘Kuka is the world’s leading provider of production systems in the automotive industry,’ the firm boasts on its website.
‘With years of experience, we are the master in the design of flexible and efficient production processes.’
The company’s desire to move beyond its current position as a niche maker of luxury cars largely rests on the Model 3.
The lower-cost model, which will start around $35,000, is set to go on sale later this year.
Tesla said it is preparing its factory in Fremont, California, to produce 5,000 Model 3 sedans per week sometime before the end of 2017 and 10,000 per week at some point in 2018.
Palo Alto, California-based Tesla is also expanding its network of stores and charging stations to meet anticipated demand.
Tesla said it plans to open 100 retail and service locations worldwide this year, including its first stores in Dubai and South Korea.
It also plans to double the number of fast-charging Supercharger stations to 10,000.