Ivan Vicario Martin
Things have changed a lot since the 20 of October of 1963 Ferruccio Lamborghini will present his first car to the pressHe, the 350 GTV. Then began the adventure of the brand that bears his name and that this year celebrates its 60th anniversary. The factory that the Italian brand built in the town of Sant'Agata Bolognese also meets that figure. This was built in record time, since it was put on its feet between the winter and autumn of 1963, in just eight months.
The location of the new factory was not accidental, since Ferruccio Lamborghini chose a location a few kilometers from his hometown of Cento. The factory had 12.000 m2 cutlery and was considered at the time as one of the most advanced of the time. Curiously, just 35 kilometers separate it from Maranello, the epicenter of Ferrari, created by Ferruccio's nemesis, Enzo Ferrari.
For 1966, the year of presentation of the car that changed the history of the brand, the Lamborghini Miura, gearboxes and differential also began to be manufactured there. There were two assembly lines, one for engines and mechanical parts and one for automobile assembly.. There was also auxiliary machinery for the production of parts and tuning of the cars.
The offices were located along the façade and, in the center, was the office of the president and the offices of the technical and sales departments. To the right of the building were the testing rooms and to the left the customer service area and staff rooms.
TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED
One of the characteristics that Lamborghini always displayed was the use of state-of-the-art machinery. In fact, and this is something that has not changed over the years, the craft skills of the workers are combined with the most advanced technology.
The Lamborghini factory continued to grow over the years, and on October 18, 1968 the completion of three new industrial buildings was announced. These would add another 3.500 m2 of covered area to the original 12.000. In this way, not only was the production area reinforced, but also a state-of-the-art testing department was set up.
So things, production went from 67 units produced in 1965, to 425 in 1971, that is, it was multiplied by seven. It is true that, if originally only the Lamborghini 350 GT was assembled, by 1971 the brand's catalog included the Jarama, the Sword and the Miura. However, the successive crises of the 70s left the firm's production figure at a meager 55 cars in 1979. In fact, Ferruccio Lamborghini transferred the company in 1972 Georges-Henri Rossetti and René Leimer.
EVOLUTION OF THE LAMBORGHINI FACTORY
The brand had up to five different owners until, in 1998, it was bought by Audi AG, who has taken it to a different level. Before, production figures gradually recovered in the 80s, reaching 470 cars in 1987, to which 300 marine engines had to be added. In the 90s, the crisis hit again, with 209 units sold in 1997, a year before the arrival of Audi.
Thanks to the new "Esperienza Materiali Compositi" department, Lamborghini began working with carbon fiber in 1983. Direct help from Seattle was available with carbon fiber and Kevlar components that took advantage of studies done for the Boeing 767. The first car to use this type of material was the 1987 Countach Evoluzione., concept car which was used as a test car.
Already in 1990, the Lamborghini factory incorporated the necessary equipment for the development of the increasingly complex electrical systems. Also for the application of the aforementioned composite materials. In addition, a workshop was created for the development and control of emissions, a process that until then had been outsourced.
With the purchase by Audi in 1998, the growth of the Sant'Agata Bolognese brand has skyrocketed. If in 2000 they assembled 296 cars, in 2008 -before the crisis- it already built 2.430 units, a figure that was not recovered until 2014. Since then it has gone from record to record, up to 9.233 cars delivered last year 2022.
CONSTANT GROWTH
The Lamborghini factory has not stopped growing at the pace of a brand that has ended up finding its place in the market without losing its essence. In 2003, the Centro Stile was inaugurated, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the firm. An area was also opened to service Lamborghini classic cars and marine engines. The Finishing department began its expansion works in 2008, the year in which the new logistics platform was also inaugurated.
To make the carbon fiber monocoque for the Aventador LP 700-4, in 2011 the “CFK – Lamborghini Carbon Production” was launched. In this way, the bull brand became a leader in the development and production of composite materials. That same year, the Lamborghini Park was inaugurated, which allows the company to work on sustainability and environmental impact research. For 2012, a new building was built that accommodates the development of prototypes and the pre-series center.
With the arrival of the Urus SUV in 2018, a new production line totally dedicated to the model was launched. There is also a new Finishing department, the new office building, a test track, with thirteen different surfaces, a new logistics warehouse or a renovated "Energy Hub". The covered surface now reaches 160.000 m2. The paint plant for the Urus was inaugurated in 2019.
ELECTRICAL FUTURE
Stephan Winkelmann, CEO and President of Automobili Lamborghini, announced in May 2021 the launch of the “Cor Tauri Management” program. This is a plan that will lead the brand to electrify the entire range between 2023 and 2024, with the aim, in addition, of launching a new fully electric model at the end of the decade.
Meanwhile, the Lamborghini factory sure doesn't stop growing. If at the turn of the millennium it gave employment to 440 employees, in 2003 it already had 624 workers. At present, and as production has skyrocketed, This figure already exceeds 2.000 employees today..
With everything, the factory has never lost its original central structure. What's more, the long entrance façade, part of the original 1963 construction, with the Lamborghini sign on the roof, remains the most visible part of the company today. There, iconic cars continue to be created that preserve the DNA of the brand and that, surely, will be the classics of the future.
PHOTO GALLERY OF THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LAMBORGHINI FACTORY
Pictures of Automobili Lamborghini.
