20.1.2004
New combined cold-weather test center opens in Arjeplog

Opel/Vauxhall, Saab, Fiat, and FGP to open a new cold weather test facility at Arjeplog in Northern Sweden today.

An exciting development in our vehicle test and validation activities will take place on January 20 when Opel/Vauxhall, Saab, Fiat, and FGP open a new cold weather test facility at Arjeplog in Northern Sweden. Designed to provide facilities tailored to the needs of each company, the new facility will help ensure continuous improvement in vehicle quality whilst allowing significantly more efficient utilization of engineering resources.

"This is an outstanding example of how our strong working relationships can enable significant cost reductions while providing improved technical resources for our engineering communities," commented Rod Calvert, acting chairman of PGBenchNET, the new joint management organization established to develop and manage the facility, "and in recognition of this achievement, the PGBenchNET local operational management team has been awarded a prestigious GM Chairman's Honors Award."

Previously, each engineering organization had tested at various locations in Sweden using a combination of leased and hired facilities. The move to one customized facility provides superior resources and substantial opportunities for synergistic mutual support, particularly on joint programs, as well as the direct cost benefits of site consolidation.

The extensive specialized tracks and workshops have been built to the exacting requirements of the parties and provide a capability to support the majority of the cold weather testing requirements for the companies during the Northern Hemisphere winter. Saab and Opel/Vauxhall engineers will work together in a shared workshop, while a separate garage allows confidentiality to be maintained between GM and Fiat programs where appropriate. The service provider will be Colmis, with whom a five-year lease arrangement has been agreed.

"Considerable care has been taken to ensure that the new resource employs the best practices available to the test industry," continues Calvert. "We have benefited from the international experience of the GM Global Proving Ground Committee as well as the operational experience of cold-weather test specialists from each company. We have also taken advice from the management team at Millbrook, which has invaluable experience running a successful multi-client test operation."