ProLine’s overhead gantry design keeps filling equipment out of the pit, supporting the coolant and refrigerant upgrades built into Košice’s final assembly line
(Image courtesy of Dürr)
Dürr is supplying the final assembly systems for Volvo Cars’ first fully electric plant, under construction in Košice, Slovakia. The turnkey package covers conveyor, filling, and testing technology through Dürr’s NEXT.assembly concept, and includes upgrades aimed at meeting refrigerant and coolant requirements under upcoming European legislation.
Filling systems built for future EU requirements
The Košice plant has a maximum capacity of 250,000 cars a year, with production planned to start in 2027 as Volvo Cars expands its European manufacturing footprint toward a fully electric lineup. Dürr’s filling technology at the site draws on systems already running at Volvo’s Torslanda plant in Sweden, which use special handling equipment and five parallel consoles. At Košice, the filling equipment has been adapted to integrate new low-conductivity coolants and next-generation air conditioning refrigerants required under future European legislation.
Precision inspection backs Volvo’s geometry standards
Košice follows the same geometry and headlight alignment standard Dürr applies across Volvo’s global sites. The x-wheel system, featuring Dürr’s x-3Dsurface non-contact sensor, performs high-precision, area-based chassis measurement and adjustment across any tyre or body shape. The driving axis it determines then sets the alignment reference for the vehicle’s headlamps and LED modules. For headlamp inspection specifically, Dürr’s x-light system uses camera-based measurement to check low beam, high beam, and fog lamp output, adjusting them semi-automatically in line with ECE and SAE standards.
Conveyor technology links the Košice final assembly line
More than three kilometres of conveyor technology connect the plant’s final assembly stations, combining electric monorail systems, skillet platforms, and modular chain conveyors to move car bodies and doors between stages. Dürr says the design prioritises robust, low-maintenance components to support high availability alongside cost-effectiveness.
“Volvo Cars has exceptionally high standards when it comes to measurement accuracy,” said Jörg Neumann, Director of End of Line Product Line at Dürr in Germany. “We are very familiar with these standards, as Dürr equips all Volvo sites worldwide with vehicle geometry and headlight alignment technology.”
Andreas Hohmann, CEO at Dürr Italy and Vice President of NEXT.assembly, described the system as combining precision engineering with automation to deliver quality and efficiency at scale.
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