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Since 1961, it has been an emblematic industrial site in the Rennes area. The La Janais factory, near Rennes, originally Citroën, which became PSA, then Stellantis today, has decided to reopen its doors to the public. Visits organized with Destination Rennes, for the Métropole, from this Thursday, May 4. An opening, which responds to a demand for industrial tourism. Discovery of the production lines in preview.
The car bodies scroll at low speed on the production lines. Around, the workers are busy to screw a nut, to install an element. A little further on, flashes of light shoot out, it is robots, with their large arms, which intervene for welding operations on the doors, while small wagons circulate completely independently to supply the various assembly stations. . And then, looking up, another line several meters above the ground, where they pass the chain, gleaming. These cars, not yet fully equipped, have gone through the painting stage.
The factory has just started operating again after several interruptions due to a shortage of electronic components arriving from China. This must have required “an adaptation of the supply chain to adapt and be less dependent”, notes Étienne-Martin Commandeur, the site director. A stimulating reboot.
The Rennes Stellantis factory will open its doors to the public • © Krystel Veillard – France Télévisions
The Stellantis factory in Rennes – La Janais, encouraged by Destination Rennes, the city’s tourist office, has decided to open its doors to the general public. Visits that had been abandoned for years, following economic difficulties, then the health crisis. But faced with strong demand from the public and following the success of the last two weeks of Economic Tourism, the company made the decision “to open up and reconnect with its environment. It was an imperative for us”, indicates Etienne-Martin Commander.
Visits, from this Thursday, May 4, 2023, are limited to 12 people, for a 1h30 tour. They will take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9:45 a.m. and 1:45 p.m., at a cost of €15, with the need to register in advance on the site.
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Visit of the Stellantis factory in Rennes La Janais before it opens to the public. • ©Krystel Veillard, Myriam Thiébaut and Guillaume Lancien – France Télévisions
It is Claude Pihery, in the communication of the company, which ensures the visit of the day, to the future guides of the Metropolis. He explains to them the stages of manufacture, stamping, fitting, painting, assembly. This is the fourth time that these six guides, who will ensure the discovery of the site, have followed the tour.
And you need that to understand the place, very vast and where the sequence of operations is not linear. “Already, you have to find your bearings, assures Philippe Bohuon, animator of heritage, it is only after a while that you realize that you have made a loop. It is true, that you have to some time to understand the place, he adds, because we can have images of the vehicles moving forward, first the body, etc., but here everything is done a little at the same time, the wheels arrive from on one side, the doors on the other… the vehicle moves forward, backwards and climbs gradually. Before arriving at the 1500 checkpoints that we see at the end of the visit, there is a whole journey. , it starts again, we are going to install the doors, it goes to painting and after, we remove the doors to be able to work on the interior of the vehicle, it can be assembled, it can be disassembled, so it’s very special!”
Stellantis Rennes now has 2,000 employees, who produce 410 cars a day. Two models are produced there, Citroën C5 Aircross and Peugeot 5008.
The company prepares the arrival of a new Citroën vehicle for 2024 on the Rennes site, an electric SUV, code name CR3. “A new project, which will allow us to offer our customers the four possible energies, including electric, explains the Rennes director, and we are already transforming the factory for this Citroën project.
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The Rennes site produces C5 Aircross and Peugeot 5008 • © Krystel Veillard – France Télévisions
A factory in the midst of energy transition, which wants to halve its energy consumption, “which requires a reduction in surface area, assures Étienne-Martin Commandeur, we must preserve the smallest square meter. So, we have been committed for several years, helped by the territory, to the reduction and compaction of the site. We are also in the process of transforming all the technologies to optimize and preserve energy yields, and we have an energy autonomy plan for 2025, to be at 50 % autonomous. This requires the installation of a biomass (renewable energy source), in progress this year.”
After complicated years and a turn still difficult to negotiate for the automotive industry, it is therefore a new impetus for the Rennes site, confirmed with a desire to respond to the aspiration of the public, for this type of industrial tourism.