Today we were up early for a visit to the MAN Trucks & Buses factory in Nuremberg, with a walking tour of the city center beforehand.

Nuremberg was full of character. We learned about the city’s religious history, especially between the Lutherans and Catholics, which I didn’t know much about. It’s clear how much the city values preserving its past. Before the factory tour, we had lunch at an old castle, eating sausage with sauerkraut and spätzle. Wow, it was good.

Inside the MAN facility, we wore neon vests and headsets, though photos weren’t allowed. The whole operation was incredibly efficient. Each worker had just 170 seconds per task, and everything moved like clockwork. It was fascinating to see how seamlessly people and machines worked together. I was also surprised to learn that production is demand-based, as they only build engines when orders come in. We saw the brand-new A30 engine, which just began production two weeks ago. Seeing something so new was a unique experience. They produce about 250 engines per 8-hour shift, which really puts the scale into perspective. It’s easy to forget how much work goes into making just one truck or bus. After a long but rewarding day, we headed back to Augsburg.