Automotive technology firm REE is to build its new electric vans in Coventry at the company’s new European Integration Centre.
The tech firm was founded in Tel Aviv, Israel, but has a European base at the MIRA Technology park in Warwickshire.
Last year REE unveiled a new autonomous delivery van concept based on its own modular EV platform, designed for last-mile deliveries.
REE’s Coventry facility will serve customer demand in Europe, with an initial production focused on the brand’s P7 electric platform for commercial vehicles, such as walk-in delivery vans, buses and recreational vehicles.
The Coventry site will also act as a blueprint for future REE Integration Centres, with expected capacity of 10,000 vehicle sets (40,000 REEcorners) this year.
REE says its factory in Austin, Texas is expected to double global capacity to 20,000 vehicle sets in 2023, by replicating the firm’s automated, cloud-based systems used in Europe.
The EV start-up has also announced a new partnership with Rockwell Automation and Expert Technologies for robotics and automated assembly, with REE’s first assembly line expected to become operational in the second half of 2022.
In 2021 the firm received £12.5 million in funding from the UK government as part of the country’s bid to accelerate the transition to zero-emission vehicles and decarbonise transport networks.
The new Integration Centre is approximately 130,000 square feet, includes industry 4.0 technologies and will be partially powered by solar energy.
“This is an important milestone on our path to commercial production next year,” said REE’s chief operating officer, Josh Tech.
“The automated and connected capabilities at our Coventry site are a great foundation for our global operations, as they will enable us to continuously fine-tune our assembly procedures and rapidly deploy them to other sites.”
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