Formel D Opens RMC – Refining Manufacturing Center

By opening its Refining Manufacturing Center (RMC®) in Brussels in June 2010, the Formel D Group has added a new innovative concept to its service spectrum. With the launch of the Audi A1, Audi AG has introduced a new product to the “small urban sports car” market segment. Formel D has been commissioned to carry out customer-specific refinements for Audi A1s by adding high-quality Audi Genuine Accessories and other finishing touches once the main production process has been completed. Formel D is fully re- sponsible for the work it carries out on Audi vehicles at the RMC.

The Refining Manufacturing Center (RMC) was created as a result of the continuous availabilty of specific serviced that customers request. Formel D was able to draw on its many years of experience in the automobile sector when developing this concept, which was then adapted to fit in with what was already in place in Brussels. Like the Quality Confirmation Center (QCC), the newly developed RMC has been registered as an independent brand of the Formel D Group. It increases the range of services offered by our CARing. business field, which deals with adapting and upgrading finished vehicles. The RMC takes on finished production series vehicles once they have passed an Audi AG quality inspection and then adds the touches to the vehicles at its own premises in the Brussels Automotive Park. The Audi Genuine Accessories department develops the items and then clears them after testing their quality.

Incoming vehicles undergo a further inspection for damage when they arrive at the RMC. Those that have been given the OK are then fitted with desired accessories in accordance with customer-specific requests. Formel D acquires the individual parts itself, and from that point forward assumes full responsibility for their installation and ensures that quality standards are adhered to. The many years of quality control experience in our QUALIFYing. business field come in useful here, and have enabled Formel D to develop a smooth accessory manufacturing process that produces items meeting all the applicable quality requirements. A cleverly devised reporting system also supports the workflow.

Adding the finishing touches to a vehicle can involve the exterior (front spoilers, side skirts, rear diffusers, exhaust covers, roof spoilers, and decorative car wrap) as well as the interior, where Formel D can install car mats with a printed design, add decorative covers to the air vents, centre console, door handles, and mirrors, and jazz up the sports steering wheel, gear lever, and handbrake with begonia red.

Including a final quality inspection, the entire finishing process is completed within 72 hours after car delivery to the RMC. The finished vehicle is then returned to Audi AG before being transferred to its next destination. The RMC perfectly demonstrates the complexity of Formel D Group’s services and expertise. Every business field contributes to the service offered here, and the complexity of the different departments is made particularly clear. Formel D also combines its departments in a manner that is unique and effective enough to result in synergy, which in turn creates significant cost benefits for the customer.

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