Renault Group

The Palencia plant, from father to son.

07 May 2018
Groupe Renault - Usine de Palencia - 120 ans
Palencia is a flagship of Spanish industry, a position it owes to all those who have worked at the site over the years. To mark its 120th anniversary, Renault talked to some of the people who have contributed to the plant’s success.
by Valérie Calloch

A shared sense of pride across the workforce

Fernando Pastor father starts in 1980 in Palencia. He is today responsible for parts modifications for Megane. Fernando Pastor son start in 2001, he is now team manager in charge of dynamic and static evaluation of cars.

Juan Antonio Moral González, Fernando Pastor father, Fernando Pastor son and Bernard Vernier-Palliez. Who are they and what was their role in the development of the Palencia plant? In their own way, each one has contributed to making Palencia ready to become a plant of the future.

The Palencia site owes its existence primarily to Bernard Vernier-Palliez. CEO of Renault in 1976, he saw the potential of Palencia in a region that was still based primarily on agriculture. The plant rose to the industrial challenge while meeting the needs of the local population.

Juan Antonio Moral González, appointed CEO of FASA (Fabrication d’Automobiles Société Anonyme, subsequently a Renault subsidiary) in 1992, worked at Palencia until his retirement in 2000.

“I worked with Renault in Spain for over forty years and I can still remember that day in June 1976. It was a real turning point for our country and for the history of Renault.”

A family affair

For the Pastor family, working at the Palencia site is a generational experience. Fernando has worked here since 1979.

“The opening of the new Palencia site was all over the papers at the time. For me, becoming part of a large international group was an exceptional opportunity.”

At the plant opening, 240 cars a day where produced among which the Renault 12. Today, more than 1300 cars a day are produced in the Palencia plant.

Years later, he was joined by his son, also called Fernando.

“As part of my life plan, I wanted to stay in Palencia, and the plant provided professional stability.”

From the use of the plate – a guide for easier assembly of vehicle parts on the production line – to the transformation of logistics flows, father and son have seen the plant undergo a complete change. And the process is set to continue! The plant is at the heart of the Plant of the Future project, a process placing the customer at the core of a connected, agile, competitive production process.

“Palencia is ready to handle all the changes taking place in the automotive industry,” they conclude.

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