Swiss High-Tech for the Volvo EX60

Most people will probably just drive past Uzwil on the A1 highway between Wil and St. Gallen. Yet this is the home of the company whose products and technologies are used, for example, to process 65 percent (!) of the wheat milled worldwide—and whose innovative Megacasting solutions help automakers around the world save massive amounts of money, time, and CO₂ can save money: Bühler. The family-owned company was founded back in 1860. Today, this “hidden champion” operates in 140 countries, has 27 production sites and 26 research and training centers worldwide, and generated 2.8 billion Swiss francs in revenue last year.

It's the details that matter

Impressive—just like the die-casting machines used to produce key components from molten aluminum for the new Volvo EX60, for example. Next to this industrial behemoth, the electric SUV—which is 4.80 meters long and 1.90 meters wide—looks almost dainty. Yet this is a much smaller version of the two-platen die-casting machines than those in use at the Volvo plant in Trollhättan, Sweden. «Building large machines isn’t all that difficult—it mainly just requires a lot of steel,» says Michael Cinelli, Director of Product Management & Marketing at Bühler, with a twinkle in his eye. «But the details are what matter, and that’s where we at Bühler are ahead of the curve. When it comes to dosing, for example, we started automating the process as early as the 1950s.» Swiss high-tech thus has a long tradition and was used primarily for engine block production in the 1980s. Twenty to thirty parts of an internal combustion engine come from die-casting presses, and many body parts—such as the front shock absorber mounts—were and are still produced this way.

Instead of 99, now only 1 item

So nothing groundbreaking after all? Far from it: Thanks to the latest process technologies, the Bühler machines—which close hydraulically each time with a force equivalent to the weight of the Eiffel Tower (!) and compress the two molds into which the molten aluminum, at a temperature of about 720 degrees, is precisely metered and injected within milliseconds— can produce much more complex and larger body parts. Mats Brodin, a Megacasting specialist at Volvo, reveals: «With the last Volvo vehicle platform, SPA2, we had 99 individual parts in the body section; with the new process, we now have just a single part for the SPA3, on which the EX60 is also based.» This enables massive savings, particularly in manufacturing and process steps, but also in logistics. Instead of taking weeks for the various work steps and quality inspections, it now takes just 120 seconds to produce a large, 43-kilo underbody component above the rear axle. «We were able to replace thousands of tools and about 300 robots that were previously needed to weld the parts together. The complexity of the supply chain has also been drastically reduced,» said Brodin.

A much more sustainable way to get around

The new process using the Swiss Megacasting machines is also much more sustainable: After the automatic inspection and cooling, the finished part is placed on the conveyor belt by a robot for further processing in the Volvo model. The excess edges and structures created during die casting can be immediately remelted. «And because we at Volvo use at least 50 percent recycled aluminum, we’re even more sustainable in that regard,» adds the Swedish engineer. «By the way, the best scrap aluminum comes from old engine blocks.» This is somewhat ironic, since it means that old internal-combustion engines, of all things, provide a significant portion of the raw material for the electric Volvo.

With the rigidity of a race car

And the compact SUV benefits from yet another advantage of megacasting: «We were able to significantly increase the body’s stiffness. We’ve achieved a structural stiffness of 51.7 kN/degree—a figure normally seen only in LMP race cars.» Mats Brodin explains: «This gives the chassis engineers a much wider range for vehicle tuning. The quietness inside a car also has a lot to do with the stiffness of its components.» Here, the Volvo also benefits from so-called “cell-to-body” technology, in which the battery is integrated directly into the chassis and is itself part of the load-bearing structure.

Three battery options and plenty of range

Incidentally, the EX60 is available with three battery sizes: 83, 95, and 117 kWh. This gives the Swedish rear-wheel-drive model with 275 kW/374 PS a range of 620 km. The all-wheel-drive version with 375 kW/510 PS has a range of 660 km, and the sportiest variant, with 500 kW/680 PS, can even travel 810 km on a single charge thanks to the largest battery pack. Thanks to its 800-volt architecture, it can go from 10 to 80 percent charge in just 15 minutes at a fast-charging station. The electric SUV also handles briskly on the road. While you can definitely feel the weight transfer during hard braking, the high body rigidity and precise steering encourage a dynamic driving style in the Volvo. At the same time, it’s also a pleasure to simply glide along comfortably in the interior, which features the brand’s signature high-quality craftsmanship and Nordic chic.

Incidentally, prices for the Swedish model—which benefits from high-tech expertise from eastern Switzerland—start at 72,000 Swiss francs. And anyone who wants the elegant Volvo EX60 in the more rugged off-road style of the EX Cross Country will have to wait until spring 2027. That’s when the version—based on the 510-PS all-wheel-drive model but equipped with air suspension—will arrive here, starting at 77,700 Swiss francs.