- Rivian’s factory in Normal, Illinois, can build an EV every three minutes.
- It currently assembles the R1S, R1T and Rivian Commercial Van (RCV), with the R2 SUV prepping for mass production next year.
- For a startup factory, it’s a very busy place, as shown in a new video from YouTuber JerryRigEverything.
Rivian is still very much a startup, but its first factory in Normal, Illinois, is anything but a boring place. In fact, it’s quite busy, as shown in a new video from famous smartphone durability tester and EV enthusiast JerryRigEverything.
He got a chance to visit the place where the R1S, R1T and commercial van are being assembled, and it’s pretty cool to watch an entire vehicle being brought to life under a single roof.
It all starts with several giant Komatsu sheet metal stamping presses that were originally installed in the factory three decades ago. And no, Rivian was not around back then, but Mitsubishi was, and it used the same factory and presses to build cars like the Eclipse and Mirage, before closing the facility in 2016 and selling it to Rivian in 2017.
Now, dozens of robots are being used throughout the plant for precision tasks and tough jobs, including gluing the two sides of the hood together, wielding entire side profiles through the air and welding all sorts of metal parts.
Laser welding is widely used for a bunch of different sections, from body parts to battery packs. Speaking of batteries, Rivian assembles the packs for the R1T, R1S and electric delivery van in-house in Normal. The electric motors are also made in the same factory, and it’s pretty mesmerizing to see how they‘re put together.
Rivian uses liquid nitrogen to cool the motor’s rotator shaft to a chilling temperature of -321 degrees Fahrenheit (-196 degrees Celsius), while the rotator body is expanded using heat. The components are then press-fitted together, and after their temperatures normalize, the two are bonded.
Final assembly is handled by humans, using all sorts of tools, so that employees don’t break their backs.
It’s a busy place, with three models being assembled under the same roof. As someone who has had the chance to visit several car factories around the world, I can say that Rivian’s plant in Normal, Illinois, is a hybrid between traditional assembly plants and the factories of the future. There are a lot of robots handling high-precision repeatable jobs, as well as tasks that require heavy lifting, but people are also involved in the final steps of assembly.
Either way, it’s always fascinating to see a car being built, even if it’s through a YouTube video. Plus, even the golf carts and robots are painted in Rivian Blue, which is quite cool.
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