Shanghai (ZXZC)- On April 29, NIO saw the first tooling trial (TT) builds of the NIO ET5, its fifth production model, roll off the production line, according to NIO's press release.

ET5; photo credit: NIO

The ET5 was formally launched in December last year at the NIO Day 2021 with its presale starting at the same time. The model is expected for delivery in September this year.

The mid-sized all-electric sedan is the first model manufactured at NIO's second car manufacturing plant. The latest milestone means that assembly lines at the new base are completed and ready for production validation.

The significant TT builds were born exactly one year after NIO broke ground on its second production base. The new manufacturing facility will officially start volume production in the third quarter this year.

According to NIO, the manufacturing base covers an area of about 11.3 square kilometers. It will adopt quite a few advanced technologies, such as smart AS/RS with RGV, assembly island with AGV, and end-to-end paperless manufacturing. The automaker expects the base to lead the industry in deep IT/OT integration, flexible process design and smart equipment.

The second manufacturing base of NIO is located at the NeoPark in Hefei city, which is a smart EV industry park featuring three major functional areas—smart manufacturing, R&D and living community, and eco-cultural space.

Another important event taking place this week is that NIO's 200,000th mass-produced vehicle came off the production line.