Lidar maker Luminar Applied sciences’ new contract manufacturing facility is up and operating forward of schedule.

Anticipated to open later within the second quarter of this yr, Luminar’s Monterrey, Mexico, manufacturing facility is producing and transport its Iris sensors to Volvo, firm spokesperson Milin Mehta instructed Automotive Information.
They are going to be put in within the Swedish automaker’s EX90 electrical crossover, anticipated to be out there as a brand new mannequin in 2024.

Luminar’s Mexico manufacturing facility is owned and operated by Celestica, a Canadian multinational agency that gives corporations with provide chain electronics manufacturing providers. Luminar owns the manufacturing facility’s tools and automatic line.

Celestica operates one other low-volume manufacturing facility for Luminar in Monterrey.

The brand new manufacturing facility is 118,000 sq. toes. It has the capability to supply 250,000 sensors a yr, however that may be elevated to 500,000 yearly. The power options 40,000 sq. toes of fresh room area that meets Worldwide Group for Standardization specs.

A building mission underway will prolong the manufacturing facility by one other 200,000 sq. toes. This new wing will give Luminar more room to conduct efficiency and high quality exams on its lidars. It should additionally add manufacturing area to make hundreds of thousands of sensors yearly, the corporate stated in an announcement.

“This permits a rise in capability by properly over an order of magnitude as in comparison with our present guide line to satisfy our rising automaker necessities on quantity,” Luminar CEO Austin Russell stated. “The profitable bring-up of the automated manufacturing facility is a serious milestone and continues to indicate we are able to execute.”

Development of Luminar’s Mexico facility began in July 2022. The manufacturing facility was geared up in December 2022.

Within the coming months, the corporate will flip its manufacturing consideration to Asia. Luminar is anticipated to offer buyers an replace on its Asian facility, the placement of which has not been revealed, on its first-quarter earnings name Might 9.