THE new era of Renault Trucks in Saudi Arabia started recently with the assembly of its first C & K range models at its newly built state-of-the-art assembly facility of Arabian Vehicles & Trucks Industry Co. Ltd. (AVI), based in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC). A milestone for Arabian Vehicles & Trucks Industry and for the French truck manufacturer, the first Saudi-built Renault Trucks have been assembled through the collaboration of a number of Renault-trained technicians, engineers, quality and logistics personnel from Bourg-en-bresse, and a highly trained local AVI team. Lars-Erik Forsbergh, Renault Trucks Middle East president, said: "Our facility in KAEC further cements our commitment of providing unrivalled transport solutions throughout the Middle East. 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. "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." Arabian Vehicles & Trucks Industry Ltd (AVI), is a joint venture between Zahid Tractor & ?Heavy Machinery Co. Ltd and Volvo Trucks Corporation, which owns Renault Trucks. 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. The new airconditioned assembly facility in KAEC has been ergonomically designed. Tooling, fixtures, equipment, driven line, crane structures, special racking on the assembly line, proven tightening tools and different lifting and moving fixtures help the facility to run efficiently and seamlessly at optimum performance, producing up to 4,000 trucks annually for both brands combined. 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. The facility's diversified workforce include trained engineers and operators as well as a number of qualified Saudi nationals, working across logistics, engineering, production and quality control. Primarily servicing the growing demands of the Saudi market, the facility will be producing the full line up from Renault Trucks' new range; the reliable and durable C Range for construction and long haul and the robust K Range for heavy construction. King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) has already laid down the foundation as a catalyst for significant social and economic growth in Saudi Arabia beyond oil revenue. The 168 million sqm KAEC is the perfect location to connect East and West. From its state-of-the-art deep-water port on the Red Sea shore, KAEC can handle the world's largest ships. In addition, with new road and rail networks, KAEC is just an hour from Jeddah, Makkah and Madinah. The city, with its growing industrial base, is poised to feed into the Kingdom's economy through diversity of innovative and dynamic opportunities across commercial, logistics, manufacturing, shipping, residential and educational fields. A gem in the heart of the industrial zone, AVI's knock down (KD) assembly facility is one of the first and biggest completed, fully functional projects in KAEC.
