German manufacturer Porsche announced today one of the largest investments it made this year. No less than EUR150 million ($203 million) will be poured into the Weissach research and development centre, more precisely in the facility's wind tunnel, state-of-the-art design centre and an electronics integration centre.
According to Porsche, the money will help it put in place today the technology it needs tomorrow. The wind tunnel for instance will be used with regards to future requirements on vehicle development, mainly to the need of making the vehicles more fuel efficient.
"The new system will help us to maintain Porsche's top position in the fields of aerodynamics and design and to further extend our lead. Outstanding design with optimal aerodynamic efficiency have always been classic Porsche strongholds," said Wolfgang Durheimer, Porsche member of the board for Research and Development.
As is the case with the design studio to be built with the money, the wind tunnel will not only be used by Porsche, but by its customer development as well. The design studio will be bigger than the existing one, providing more space for the designers working at vehicle design.
Porsche will also bring closer together the various divisions of the center, in the hope that proximity will help speed up problem solving.
“The close interaction of our suppliers' various electrical system/electronics experts and colleagues from related specialist fields during development will contribute significantly to the success of our work, particularly in the case of electronics, which now play a role in virtually every vehicle component," added Durheimer.
According to Porsche, the money will help it put in place today the technology it needs tomorrow. The wind tunnel for instance will be used with regards to future requirements on vehicle development, mainly to the need of making the vehicles more fuel efficient.
"The new system will help us to maintain Porsche's top position in the fields of aerodynamics and design and to further extend our lead. Outstanding design with optimal aerodynamic efficiency have always been classic Porsche strongholds," said Wolfgang Durheimer, Porsche member of the board for Research and Development.
As is the case with the design studio to be built with the money, the wind tunnel will not only be used by Porsche, but by its customer development as well. The design studio will be bigger than the existing one, providing more space for the designers working at vehicle design.
Porsche will also bring closer together the various divisions of the center, in the hope that proximity will help speed up problem solving.
“The close interaction of our suppliers' various electrical system/electronics experts and colleagues from related specialist fields during development will contribute significantly to the success of our work, particularly in the case of electronics, which now play a role in virtually every vehicle component," added Durheimer.