The modern, graphite-grey block can already be seen from several kilometres away. In the western part of Hungary, near the tranquil town of Zalaegerszeg, products are manufactured for the defence industry. At least from the outside, this is quite visible for everyone. Since January 2023, Rheinmetall Hungary has been building the Lynx infantry fighting vehicle here. The technology and defence group officially opened the factory in August 2023. The development, production, and testing centre, covering an area of 33 hectares, has been designed and built from the ground up according to the latest manufacturing and logistics principles.

“Yes, this facility is the most modern of its kind,” says Paul Walf, CEO of Rheinmetall Hungary, confirming visitor’s impression. “Here we exploit all the possibilities that the 21st century offers us.” Before the studied economist and political scientist went to Hungary, he was the assistant to Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger and then headed the central coordination office in Hungary. Right from the start, he was therefore able to focus on the construction of the factory: “I have known the project since the very beginning.” For his new role, the 37-year-old moved with his family from Düsseldorf to Zalaegerszeg. “It’s all or nothing – the manager has to be on site!”

A symbiosis of prestige and function

Rheinmetall Hungary is a joint venture between the Hungarian government, which holds 49 percent of the company’s shares, and Rheinmetall Landsysteme GmbH, which owns 51 percent. In simple terms, the Hungarians provided the location, while Rheinmetall contributed the technological expertise and modern equipment. The cornerstone of the partnership is the Lynx. Hungary is the first NATO and EU member state to rely on the state-of-the-art infantry fighting vehicle from Rheinmetall, which is now largely produced locally.

Even though the factory is primarily geared towards the demands of production, the building’s appearance is not neglected. The impressive lobby with its huge glass front is the entrance for employees and for guests. But it is only on the upper floor that the planners’ attention to every room and every work step becomes apparent. One example is the regulation of visitor traffic. Understandably, the majority of guests should see as little as possible of the actual production. That is why there are conference rooms in front of the offices. “For example, suppliers can be welcomed to meetings without having to walk through other departments,” explains Paul Walf.

These are located parallel to the so-called “master corridor”, a long hallway that crosses the entire upper floor. To the right, behind glass, are the offices of the so-called “white collar” departments, which are arranged according to workflows and communication structures. The development department, production, quality assurance, project management, and site management are located in the centre, followed by finance, controlling, commercial, and the company management.

Maximum precision in production

On the left-hand side of the master corridor, the view goes down to the production halls. On the left is the welding shop, on the right the final assembly, or as Paul Walf jokingly puts it, the “dirty” and the “clean” area. Because one thing has to be clear: even on the supposedly dirty side, everything is so spick and span that you could eat off the floor at any time. The production concept follows the principle of “everything under one roof”. The production layout itself is U-shaped, with the goods entrance in front of the welding shop and the mechanical processing and vehicle inspection behind the assembly. These areas are not visible from the master corridor.

The steel structures of the Lynx and Lance are manufactured in the welding shop. State-of-the-art equipment is used – for example, several 20-tonne rotators for all the tank hulls and several turret structures of the Lance. These enable the hull or the turret to be rotated into almost any conceivable position, so that the production workers can “set” the final welds in the highest quality and in an ergonomically optimised manner. The weld seams alone weigh more than 200 kilograms. A state-of-the-art machining centre and several painting systems as well as automated transport systems (FTS) complement the equipment in this area.

One of the centrepieces of this hall is the 3D measuring cell. A laser beam, controlled by a robot arm, measures the tub and tower to an accuracy of a tenth of a millimetre. “Every weld and every production step is checked here, and the slightest deviations are registered,” says Paul Walf.

The actual vehicle is then created in the final assembly. Here, the turret and hull of the Lynx are equipped in parallel production lines. First, the hydraulic system and electronics are installed. In a second step, mechanical and optronic systems and the latest sensor components are added. The production workers then integrate the engine and transmission unit and perform the “marriage” – the assembly of the turret on the hull. Finally, the infantry fighting vehicle is put into operation, thoroughly tested and handed over to the customer with its customised camouflage paintwork. Several thousand hours of work go into creating an IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) version of the Lynx from the individual parts and sub-assemblies.