Eco-Friendly Installation to Keep Kias Safe From Future Violent Storms
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A hailstorm roared through Western Georgia in March 2023, damaging over 13,000 vehicles that sat out in the elements at Kia Georgia, the car company's manufacturing plant, causing millions of dollars in damage.
Today, Kia Georgia produces some of the brand's most popular models, including the Telluride, Sorento, Sportage EV9 and EV6 SUVs. It has the capacity to make 350,000 vehicles annually.
Following the storm, Kia Georgia went looking for a creative way to keep future storms from causing so much damage. Enter VPS, a company that makes solar-integrated parking canopies.
Not only would the installation protect vehicles from future hail damage, but it would also create solar energy, making Kia's production facility greener in the process. Kia has the goal of mitigating the company's carbon emissions by 97 percent by 2045, based on 2019 levels.
A close up view of Vehicle Protection Structures (VPS) solar array covered structure at Kia Georgia.
A close up view of Vehicle Protection Structures (VPS) solar array covered structure at Kia Georgia.
VPS
"VPS hail protection systems are already considered the industry standard for weather protection of large areas of risk, and the integration of solar electricity generation helps manufacturers meet sustainability targets, reduce utility charges, and qualify for available tax credits. Kia Georgia not only believes in building sustainable products but also incorporating sustainable solutions that protect and promote efficiency and quality," Wade White, executive vice president of VPS, told Newsweek.
The project and its 17,000 solar panels have the ability to integrate over 10 megawatts of solar-generated energy into Kia Georgia's power system. That will account for up to 30 percent of the power the plant uses over the course of a year.
VPS has fabricated the entire project and is about 40 percent done with its installation. The project, which covers much of the northwest side of the West Point, Georgia, manufacturing facility, is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2025.
Vehicle Protection Structures (VPS) solar array covered structure at Kia Georgia.
Vehicle Protection Structures (VPS) solar array covered structure at Kia Georgia.
VPS
Kia Georgia isn't the only Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) manufacturing facility in the state.
Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA) opened in March, part of a $7.59 billion investment made in Bryan County, Georgia, by HMG. A joint venture 30-gigawatt-hour battery plant with LG Energy Solution (LGES) is located at the site. It joined the company's SK On battery plant in Commerce, Georgia, as a producer of batteries for HMG's electric vehicles. HMG's total investment in the state to date is $12.6 billion. HMGMA is the largest economic development project in the state of Georgia's history.
Also in March, HMG announced that it would invest $21 billion in manufacturing vehicles in the U.S. Of that, $9 billion will be spent to increase the company's production capacity to 1.2 million vehicles annually across its three brands (Hyundai, Kia and Genesis). Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama and Kia Georgia will receive improved production facilities.
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