Volkswagen’s “transparent factory”, protected by masses of glass, invited customers to view the entire assembly process of its luxury saloon.
On March 18, 2016, the last Phaeton left the Dresden factory, so the German company will be realigning the plant for electromobility and digitization purposes in the future. Starting April, the factory will remain open for events, as well for vehicle delivery and preparation following the modifications.
The "Gläserne Manufaktur" was created specifically to house the high-end limousine’s manufacturing process and, according to the Dresden location's Works Council Chairman Thomas Aehlig, “production of the highest-quality vehicles should be resumed here under the eyes of customers and visitors in the near future”.
It remains unknown when this will happen, however, Volkswagen planned to introduce a new, electric flagship at one point. And then “Dieselgate” happened...
In any case, the Volkswagen Group execs are devoted to the continuation of the transparent factory and work is already in progress on the realignment. Moreover, the jobs of the permanent workforce are secure, although 400 of the 500 employees will be reassigned to Zwickau or other locations, while the rest will continue to work in Dresden.