Renault Trucks, which recently began the assembly of the first trucks at its new assembly facility in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), operated by Arabian Vehicles & Trucks Industry (AVI), has witnessed the first vehicle roll off the production line in Saudi Arabia.
The first Saudi-built first knock-down C & K range Renault truck models have been assembled through the collaboration of Renault-trained technicians, engineers, quality and logistics personnel from Bourg-en-bresse and a highly trained local AVI team.
AVI is a JV between Zahid Tractor & Heavy Machinery and Volvo Trucks Corporation, which owns Renault Trucks.
Lars-Erik Forsbergh, president of Renault Trucks Middle East and Volvo Trucks Middle East, said: “Our facility in KAEC further cements our commitment of providing unrivalled transport solutions throughout the Middle East.
“We are delighted to see the first of many Saudi-built Renault Trucks roll off our assembly line. Although the facility layout derives from our group’s lean manufacturing production system, this milestone could not have been achieved without the efforts of our highly-trained Saudi workforce.”
AVI’s exemplary facility in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) was designed by a project team from the Volvo Group Truck Operations (GTO), comprised of engineers and process owners from brands under the group’s umbrella.
Implementing a new concept for an efficient and cost-effective truck assembly, the AVI facility is one of the first in the world to produce both Volvo and Renault trucks on the same assembly line, and one of the first and largest completed projects in KAEC.
The facility in KAEC has the capacity to produce up to 4,000 trucks annually between Volvo and Renault.
Forsbergh continued: “Through the support of our local importer Zahid Tractor and AVI we hope to continue to service the demanding construction, infrastructure and transport sectors in the region and set new standards in the region’s trucking industry.”
King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) is a 16,800ha megaproject and port on the coast of the Red Sea, just an hour from Jeddah, Makkah, and Madinah and poised to feed into the Kingdom’s economy across the logistics, manufacturing, shipping, finance, retail and education sectors.
