JAC's third factory to be completed in beginning of 2013, will manufacture new S5 SUV

Gasgoo.com (Shanghai December 16) - Construction work on Jianghuai Automobile's third passenger automobile production site is scheduled to be completed next January, auto.sina.com.cn reported today. The five billion yuan ($795.57m) factory's first product will be the upcoming Refine S5 SUV. Several in the media have expressed their high expectations for both the new factory and SUV.

The production site will raise the standards for own brand manufacturers, rivaling multinational enterprises' plants. Among its various facilities, the factory possesses a fully automated stamping line which uses a 2,500 ton servomotor stamping machine. The factory's welding facilities also possess several hundred robots working at the same time to maximize efficiency. Its painting facilities use the same technologies as those used at VW, BMW and other leading multinational manufacturers' factories.

The factory will be able to produce different models simultaneously in line with manufacturer demands. In addition to cutting production and labor costs, the site also boasts several measures to reduce pollution from automobile production. "The third factory uses a lot of state-of-the art equipment to ensure product quality," a JAC official working at the site stated. "[Our] quality control system will ensure product quality, helping raise JAC's vehicle quality to a new level."

Meanwhile, the Refine S5 (pictured), which was showcased at the recently concluded Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition, has also recently been the focus of media attention. The crossover SUV, which will be priced between 110,000 yuan and 150,000 yuan ($17,502-$23,867), will be built to European standards. Over four percent of its chassis will be made up of ultra high strength steel. The SUV also boasts a slew of different electronic safety systems.