When Tesla's Elon Musk isn't blowing rockets up or appearing on programs about our future beyond earth, he's making much more grounded advancements.
"Accelerating a sustainable energy future is only possible with high-volume factories," a statement from Tesla reads. "At very high production volumes, the factory becomes more of a product than the product itself."
Tesla has entered an agreement to acquire Grohmann Engineering, an engineering company in Prüm, Germany, which will become Tesla Grohmann Automation.
Led by founder and CEO Klaus Grohmann, Grohmann Engineering is a leader in highly automated methods of manufacturing. Grohmann's facilities will serve as the initial base for Tesla Advanced Automation Germany headquarters, with other locations to follow. Over the next two years, the company expects to add over 1,000 advanced engineering and skilled technician jobs in Germany.
To date, Tesla has increased the production rate at its Fremont Factory by 400% in four years. While the agreement is contingent upon clearance from regulators, including in Germany, both companies hope to have full approval and close the acquisition in early 2017.