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Starting at 8:00 p.m., DJ Oldschool will provide musical accompaniment, sending the visitors back to the 1970s and 1980s. On top of that, the employees at the Audi museum mobile have prepared a series of special tours. A children’s tour will start at 6:10 p.m., and tours at 7:30, 8:30 and 9:30 p.m. will go through the special exhibition “The Fifth Ring” – about the history of NSU, the oldest traditional brand that makes up today’s AUDI AG.

The detailed program can be found on the website of city of Ingolstadt, which is organizing the Night of Museums: ndm.ingolstadt.de.

Article source: www.audi-mediacenter.com

Audi announced its entry at a press conference at the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps. At the event, Markus Duesmann, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, and Oliver Hoffmann, Member of the Board of Management for Technical Development, answered questions in the company of Formula 1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali and Mohammed ben Sulayem, President of the International Automobile Federation (FIA).

“Motorsport is an integral part of Audi’s DNA,” says Markus Duesmann. “Formula 1 is both a global stage for our brand and a highly challenging development laboratory. The combination of high performance and competition is always a driver of innovation and technology transfer in our industry. With the new rules, now is the right time for us to get involved. After all, Formula 1 and Audi both pursue clear sustainability goals.”

The key to getting involved is the world’s most popular racing series is the clear plan to become more sustainable and cost-efficient. The new technical rules, which will apply from 2026, focus on greater electrification and advanced sustainable fuel. In addition to the existing cap on costs for teams, a cost cap for power unit manufacturers will be introduced in 2023. In addition, Formula 1 has set itself the ambitious goal of being a carbon-neutral racing series by 2030.

Actively Shaping Formula 1’s Transformation

Oliver Hoffmann, Member of the Board for Technical Development, says: “In view of the major technological leaps that the series is making towards sustainability in 2026, we can speak of a new Formula 1. Formula 1 is transforming, and Audi wants to actively support this journey. A close link between our Formula 1 project and AUDI AG’s Technical Development department will enable synergies.”

From 2026, the electric power output for the power units, consisting of an electric motor, battery, control electronics, and a combustion engine, will increase sharply compared to today’s Formula 1 drive systems. The electric motor will then be nearly as powerful as the combustion engine, which has an output of about 400 kW (544 hp). The highly efficient 1.6-liter turbo engines run on advanced sustainable fuel – also a prerequisite for Audi’s entry into the series.

High Popularity in Key Markets and with Young Target Groups

Globally recognized, highly emotional, and technologically advanced – that’s how Formula 1 has met Audi’s exact requirements. The series holds races in all relevant markets of the brand. As a spectacular platform for the most demanding electrified racing cars in the world, it is of particular interest to car manufacturers. Audi is taking on the challenge of proving its “Vorsprung durch Technik” in this competitive environment.

The great interest in Formula 1 is global and the racing series is one of the sporting events with the highest reach in the world. In 2021, more than 1.5 billion TV viewers watched the races. Formula 1 is popular in key markets such as China and the USA, and the trend continues to rise – even among young target groups. On social media, Formula 1 is now experiencing the highest growth rates among the world’s most popular sports.

Neuburg Site to Develop the Power Unit

The power unit will be built at Audi Sport’s state-of-the-art Competence Center Motorsport in Neuburg an der Donau, not far from AUDI AG’s company headquarters in Ingolstadt. “For the development and manufacture of the Formula 1 power train, we will build on the valuable expertise of our motorsport employees, continue to invest in our motorsports center, and also recruit highly specialized professionals,” says Audi Sport Managing Director Julius Seebach, who organized the entry into Formula 1 as part of Audi’s realignment of motorsport.

In Neuburg there are already test benches for F1 engine testing as well as for electric motor and battery testing. Additional necessary preparations are currently being made in terms of personnel, buildings, and technical infrastructure, with everything essential to be in place by the end of the year. A separate company was recently founded for the power unit project as a wholly owned subsidiary of Audi Sport. Adam Baker will take over the management of the company and thus the Formula 1 project as CEO. The trained engineer has held various senior positions for manufacturers and teams in motorsport. Before joining Audi in 2021, he worked for the FIA for three years.

Audi will announce a decision on which team they will be lining up with in 2026 by the end of this year.

Formula 1 Decision Governs Motorsport Focus

Audi Sport is pooling its strengths for the Formula 1 project and as a consequence is discontinuing its LMDh project. The motorsport division had recently suspended the development of the sports car for endurance racing. Alongside customer racing, Audi Sport will continue its innovation project with the RS-Q e-tron in the Dakar Rally. Next year, Audi’s aim is overall victory in the desert.

Whether the World Rally Championship, World Sportscar Championship, US motorsport, DTM, Le Mans, or Formula E – Audi Sport has set standards in many categories with numerous titles. “Formula 1 is the next major milestone in Audi’s motorsport history,” says Julius Seebach.

Rolf Michl to succeed Julius Seebach

Audi’s entry into Formula 1 marks the conclusion of its motorsport restructure, but also the close of a formative period at Audi Sport GmbH. Managing Director Julius Seebach will join AUDI AG on September 1, 2022, and will take on a new strategic business area in Technical Development, reporting directly to the Executive Board.

Hoffmann, who, in his role as an Executive Board member also serves as Chairman of the Advisory Board of Audi Sport GmbH, would like to thank Seebach for his performance: “Julius stands for strategic foresight, consistent action, and sustainable results in challenging times.” Under his leadership, Audi Sport GmbH has repeatedly achieved record sales and earnings figures. Sales doubled with the RS model offensive and the all-electric RS e-tron GT was successfully brought to market.

In 2020, Seebach also assumed responsibility for motorsport at Audi and resolutely made it ready for the future. Under his leadership, the most complex racing car in Audi history was developed in record time: the RS Q e-tron for the Dakar Rally. Following its successful debut with four stage wins at the Dakar Rally in January, the Audi RS Q e-tron achieved its first overall victory in Abu Dhabi in March – the first triumph of a car with an electric powertrain in a desert rally. Entering Formula 1 is the successful conclusion of his work.

Starting September 1, Seebach will be succeeded by Rolf Michl, who has been Chief Operating Officer Racing at Audi Sport since February. Together with Dr. Sebastian Grams, he will form the Management Board of Audi Sport GmbH. Michl has a degree in business administration and is a long-standing member of the Audi Sport family. After holding various positions in marketing at AUDI AG and Audi Sport, he took over as Head of Product Marketing RS Models in 2016. After moving to Abt Sportsline as Director Vehicle Customization, he returned to Audi Sport GmbH as Head of Sales/Marketing in 2019. Michl has played a key role in shaping the company’s portfolio and sales successes over time. Hoffmann notes that “Rolf is an authentic leader and brings with him the experience he will need from motorsport and series production.” In addition to his positions in marketing, Michl was responsible for devising and implementing the Audi Sport TT Cup in 2014.

Article source: www.audi-mediacenter.com

When sharp minds work together, a comfortable couch isn’t always necessary. Certainly not in Audi’s Production Lab. Anyone who enters the hall in Gaimersheim feels like they are in a combination of a shop floor and an IT lab. In one corner are the 5G antennas. Diagonally across from them, an industrial robot is sitting on its base. Behind that are the server cabinets. IT experts sit at desks looking at their computers. “We take an idea that worked once under lab conditions and get it off the ground so it can go into stable 24/7 operation,” Löser explains. “We don’t need a big sofa or a football table for that.”

For Löser, a real production environment is much more important. In the past, new technologies were inadequately assessed because Audi couldn’t try them out first. To change that, the company with the four rings created the Production Lab in 2012. Since then, Henning Löser's team has tested intelligent assistance systems that employees support with new variants in the mesh between the person and the machine. These systems conserve resources and continuously develop and improve procedural safety and workplace ergonomics. One example is modular assembly, Audi’s assembly and logistics concept that is the only one of its kind in the world.

Every day, experts research and test new high-tech solutions like Ingolstadt shop floor IT or 5G for mass production suitability in increasingly networked, digitalized production. “In the process, we are constantly in touch with our colleagues in production so we can be sure we can implement our ideas,” says Löser, who has overseen the P-Lab since 2016. “We show them exactly what we're working on. There’s no point in us developing something theoretical that nobody uses in practice. We test and learn.”

Stability Is Critical

Stable production is critical for Audi and the P-Lab. “Our goal is 99.9 percent reliability,” says Löser. “We must assess how good uptime is in daily use.” How good is the corresponding service concept? How should colleagues from maintenance be trained so that the new application operates without interruption? “We only transfer new technology into production when our colleagues say something truly helps them,” the P-Lab boss explains. Another important factor is whether a good area of application even exists within the production process.

Paradigm Shift in Automation

The technologies that have occupied the workers in the P-Lab over the past ten years have changed significantly. They operate on the principle of ‘higher, faster, further’. “Making production better is like a competitive sport,” says Löser. “That means we use more cameras, more sensors, and above all, more algorithms in production.” Nonetheless, the system must operate steadily. “Make things as simple as possible. Then they won’t break,” the P-Lab boss says.

Right now, a paradigm shift in automation is well underway. “If we use 100,000 cameras in production, we also have 100,000 industrial PCs that do the assessment,” he explains. “But then who takes care of maintenance and repairs on that equipment? Who updates the operating systems? At some point, the cost of maintenance exploded.” Driverless vehicles are another example. The more Audi uses, the more functionality and fleet managers it needs.

On top of that, there is also equipment maintenance and monitoring. “The overall efficiency has to be right,” says Löser. The solution: work based on software and cloud technology. Updates go via the server – with three mouse clicks. Löser says, “Right now, we're running our shop floor IT in the Ingolstadt Heifer via a central server solution.”

Experts Are Looking Toward the Future

The P-Lab plans and tests far in advance. According to Löser, traditional production planning did not allow that kind of leeway. 5G is one example. Since 2018, the P-Lab in Gaimersheim has operated a 5G base station. To use 5G as a radio network suitable for automated production, the standards that must be applied are not the same as those for downloading videos. For example, controlling the equipment requires URLLC (Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications). The tests in Gaimersheim enabled them to work out requirements for the global 3GPP standard and contribute them to groups that maintain standards. “We did our part to make 5G function seamlessly as a radio standard in automation,” Löser explains. The lab’s work ranges from controls for a safety cell with robots that must turn everything off within ten milliseconds to logistics applications that link containers using massive device connectivity. “We’ll need that when it comes to the future of production and logistics,” says Löser.

Direct Exchange Makes Pragmatic Solutions Possible

Today, more than 30 staff members from the Production Lab work closely with the various sites. Because inter-departmental colleagues from all production areas work simultaneously in the P-Lab on a range of projects, the number of workers is multiplied five or six times by temporary lab users. “Something is always going on in the P-Lab. Direct interaction with the users is important,” says Löser. Audi Production thrives on an open innovation culture, enabling the team to innovate. It makes the P-Lab an attractive employer for ambitious IT experts and engineers.

Löser says that technologies can drift to a certain point in a lab. The most recent mistakes only arise through use and must be eliminated on the spot. “To stay flexible, we need a smart factory that responds quickly to fluctuations in demand,” says Löser. “We can't just try out new ideas in serial production while it's happening. That would be disastrous. We’re in the P-Lab to do the necessary tests and take the next steps in smaller pilot projects. After that, we test out the technology, for instance, in the real lab of the Ingolstadt Heifer and take it to mass production from there.“