Volvo Ghent shuts down temporarily to reshuffle production

Volvo Cars’ Ghent plant will temporarily lay off its workers for four days next week. The reason is not the lack of interest in electric cars but simply the need to adjust the production lines. The small electric SUV EX30 has to be slotted in. Meanwhile, the compact SUV has been awarded the Red Dot Design title.

Unlike some competitors, Volvo cars don’t seem to have problems selling their electric cars yet. The Ghent factory also has the advantage that it doesn’t assemble only electric cars – like the endangered factory of Audi Brussels – and that it is assembling several models.

EX 30 coming

The temporary pause is needed to adjust production lines for the venue of the newest Volvo electric product, the compact EX30 full-electric SUV. It will be made on the same lines as the current models in Ghent, the XC40 and C40, and their electric versions, EX40 and EC40.

The arrival of the new EX30 has to secure the future of the Ghent plant. Volvo expects a lot of its new product and, contrary to other manufacturers, is not laying off the temporary workforce. On the contrary, it’s still looking for new employees to join the Ghent plant. Last year, some 230,000 cars were assembled in Ghent; the perspectives are that this will increase in the coming years.

Red Dot Design award

Meanwhile, the small electric Volvo SUV  has been honored with the prestigious Red Dot Design award: Best of the Best Product Design 2024. The award recognizes excellence in design based on four basic principles of good design: the quality of function, the quality of seduction, the quality of use, and the quality of responsibility.

The jury of 39 experts from all over the world selected the EX30 as the winner in a competitive field with a total score of 93/100.

“The Volvo EX30 embodies Volvo Cars’ design values in a smaller format and is a showcase in premium Scandinavian design where form follows function,” says Jim Rowan, Volvo Cars’ CEO.

“The EX30 shows the lowest carbon footprint of any fully electric Volvo car to date and is designed to be as safe as you’d expect from a Volvo car. It is packed with cutting-edge technology and a perfect fit for today’s market as a growing number of car buyers switch to electric cars,” he adds.