Hexagon and SEAT S.A. Announce Strategic Partnership

Hexagon, a global leader in digital reality solutions combining sensors, software and autonomous technologies, has expanded its 25-year partnership with automotive manufacturer SEAT S.A. through a strategic collaboration agreement implemented via its Manufacturing Intelligence division.

Under this agreement, SEAT S.A. will employ Hexagon's advanced digital twin manufacturing technology to optimize processes for greater productivity and reduced waste. Hexagon will deepen SEAT S.A.'s digital transformation while increasing productivity by leveraging high-quality data from quality control systems and manufacturing optimization it has implemented throughout the 25-year partnership.

Global technology leader Hexagon, which has played a significant role in SEAT S.A.'s manufacturing processes by implementing measurement and quality control systems for many years, has signed an important collaboration agreement with automotive manufacturer SEAT S.A. Through this new strategic partnership, Hexagon will bring a new efficiency-focused dimension to SEAT S.A.'s digital transformation. Within the scope of this strategic collaboration, Hexagon will enable optimization of SEAT S.A.'s production and real-time decision-making regarding process adjustments, encompassing digitalization of vehicle components, advanced process simulation, data management, and reporting for the entire organization. The joint project team established for this purpose will integrate a digital twin that applies metrology data to process simulations to predict outcomes and increase manufacturing efficiency. SEAT S.A. will leverage Hexagon's innovative systems to digitalize vehicle body and components, manage data, and obtain reports and analyses that will help increase employee productivity and reduce costs.

Partnership built on three core elements…

The strategic collaboration agreement signed between Hexagon and SEAT S.A. is built on three core elements: digitalization of vehicle parts produced, management of digitalized information, and process simulation. This agreement reflects SEAT S.A.'s confidence in Hexagon's quality inspection and 3D digitalization solutions applied in inspection and manufacturing processes for body components. Under the new agreement, Hexagon's PRESTO system will fully automate high-speed robotic inspection and high-precision 3D laser scanning of the entire body, enabling real-time measurement and evaluation of every detail of the vehicle.

"We will implement innovative digital processes that transform manufacturing agility"

Josh Weiss, Head of Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence Division, commented on the partnership: "We are committed to supporting SEAT S.A. in remaining at the forefront of the automotive industry by implementing innovative digital processes that transform manufacturing agility and ensure quality control from the outset. Through this collaboration, SEAT S.A. will combine automated quality inspection, connected quality workflows and virtual manufacturing technologies, enabling control of every stage of production while achieving significant savings in time, material waste and costs."

"We will improve manufacturing performance"

Daniel Cortina, Director of Quality at SEAT S.A., said: "We are undergoing an unprecedented transformation toward smarter, more connected and efficient manufacturing that includes the digital transformation of our manufacturing processes. We will no longer simply obtain data regarding the quality of our parts faster and more accurately, but we will also be able to improve manufacturing performance. By obtaining data on the quality of our parts faster and more accurately, we will also be able to improve manufacturing performance."

Will facilitate informed and efficient decision-making

The second component of the agreement will be management of digitalized information using Hexagon's eMMA data management, quality planning and analytics platform. Through this solution, Hexagon will automatically capture and manage metrology data from other third-party measurement systems in a standardized manner. Centralization of all 3D measurement data captured during the digitalization process will help SEAT S.A.'s manufacturing and quality managers monitor the condition of parts and optimize quality across all assembly stages, facilitating informed and efficient decision-making.

Will reduce costs and minimize material waste

The important third component of the partnership will be process simulation, which will enable SEAT S.A.'s quality analysts to accurately predict problems and optimize critical vehicle manufacturing processes such as part alignment, assembly and subsequent welding operations. Through Hexagon's simulation solutions, SEAT S.A. will be able to optimize production and adjust manufacturing settings using a virtual prototype of the product. It will accelerate the process of fine-tuning manufacturing methods to be used in the series production phase. Thus Hexagon will achieve significant cost reductions, minimize material waste, and improve time-to-market for new vehicle models.