Gigacasting 2.0: Tesla reinvents carmaking with quiet breakthrough

FILE PHOTO: A part of a press machine is pictured at the IDRA group plant in Travagliato, Italy, January 25, 2023. REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo/File Photo

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Tesla has combined a series of innovations to make a technological breakthrough that could transform the way it makes electric vehicles and help Elon Musk achieve his aim of halving production costs, five people familiar with the move said.

The company pioneered the use of huge presses with 6,000 to 9,000 tons of clamping pressure to mold the front and rear structures of its Model Y in a "gigacasting" process that slashed production costs and left rivals scrambling to catch up.