Komax Group demonstrates automation expertise in Next2OEM project with Audi

Dierikon, 27 January 2026

Media release

Since 2023, the Komax Group has been part of the innovative Next2OEM research project, which aims to achieve a maximum degree of automation in wire harness manufacturing and thus revolutionize automotive production. The project will be successfully completed in the next few days and officially presented today at the consortium leader Audi in Ingolstadt.

Since February 2023, the Komax Group has been involved in the Next2OEM research project together with partners from the automotive industry and under the leadership of Audi. Funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the European Union, the future-oriented project shows how digitalized, automated wire harness production and assembly can succeed along the entire value chain – from the development and production of the wire harness through to final assembly in the car body. 

In the project, a wire harness for the center console was taken from a current Audi vehicle and manufactured automatically. In an interlinked process, the consortium partners have built a technical feasibility demonstrator at the Audi plant in Ingolstadt in an area covering 400m², whereby technology from the Komax Group is used: The fully automatic wire harness manufacturing machines Zeta 640 and Omega 850 with an additional ultrasonic welding station, an automatic twisting unit for the production of unshielded twisted pair wires in sequence, a forming board including housing holders and integrated testing modules, and a robot cell for spiral and spot taping, and attaching clips, as well as an integrated inline vision inspection unit. 

During the project period of around three years, numerous experts from the Komax Group contributed their expertise and significantly influenced the success of Next2OEM. The goal was a maximum degree of automation. The advantages of an automated process chain have been clearly demonstrated: Lower logistics effort, fewer manual work, error reduction, shorter response times for adjustments, greater resilience in the supply chain, the reduction of necessary test steps, a continuous data process and – specifically for the consortium leader Audi – an increase in vertical integration while maintaining the same direct material costs. The project will be officially presented today at a media event at Audi in Ingolstadt. 

More information on the Next2OEM project on Komax Stories: see an interview with Audi.

Contact
Roger Müller
Vice President Group Communications / Investor Relations / ESG
Phone +41 41 455 06 16
roger.mueller@komaxgroup.com
 

Komax is a globally active technology company that focuses on markets in the automation sector. As a leading manufacturer of innovative and high-quality solutions for the wire processing industry, the Komax Group helps its customers implement economical and safe manufacturing processes, especially in the automotive supply sector. The Komax Group employs around 3,400 people worldwide and provides sales and service support via subsidiaries and independent agents in more than 60 countries.

Komax Stories
Topics and insights from the world of automated wire processing: www.komaxgroup.com/stories

Komax Holding AG, Industriestrasse 6, 6036 Dierikon, Switzerland
Phone +41 41 455 04 55, komaxgroup.com