All Bodyshop articles – Page 6
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ArticleAt the head of the convoy
Mercedes-Benz’s largest truck plant is piloting new production technologies and transitioning into the lead manufacturing facility for heavy commercial vehicles Gerald Jank, head of Wörth plant and production at Mercedes-Benz Trucks, has much to say about the challenges of producing a huge variety of models in series production while also ...
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Colour code
The north corner of Audi’s vast Ingolstadt plant has been transformed into a three-storey, environmental and ergonomic exemplar of the automotive paintshop Handling more than 650 car bodies a day, operations at Audi’s new paintshop at Ingolstadt, Germany, are shared across approximately 200 employees in a three-shift rotation, supported by ...
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Fastening future
Following the lead of their automotive customers, fastening technology specialists are responding to industry demands to find innovation in weight, strength and performance As OEMs develop lightweight construction and optimised materials, the challenge for fastening specialists is to provide solutions as small, light and adaptable ideas without compromising on strength. ...
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Revitalising a veteran
VW has been making vehicles at Puebla in Mexico since 1967, but a $1.7 billion investment has added new facilities for the Golf 7 and long-wheelbase Tiguan. AMS takes a look at a vast but still expanding footprint The automotive industry is a prime example of globalisation; major manufacturers ...
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Mazda: Growing in Guanajuato
AMS gives an update on the OEM's recently opened plant at Salamanca, Mexico – its first in North America In January 2014, Mazda joined the flood of vehicle-makers arriving in Mexico by opening a new plant in Salamanca, Guanajuato – its first independent production site in North America. The ...
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Interview: Alfons Dintner, Audi
The company's CEO for Mexico explains how it became the first premium brand with a plant in the country Joanne Perry (JP): San José Chiapa is Audi’s first factory in Mexico – and North America. Can you elaborate on its significance? Alfons Dintner (AD): This plant is a major building ...
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Nissan heads in a new direction
The OEM has been manufacturing vehicles in Mexico since 1966 but the new COMPAS collaboration with Daimler will add premium cars to the line-up by next year. AMS went to check on the progress so far The rush among carmakers to set up a manufacturing base in Mexico ...
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Kia's brave new world
The South Korean OEM has just opened a state-of-the-art factory at Pesquería in Mexico, but political problems are preventing this first Latin American manufacturing base from reaching its full potential A sun-scorched hilltop in Monterrey provides the perfect view of Kia Motors’ first Latin American factory: a gleaming white ...
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Audi inaugurates San Jose Chiapa plant
Mexico – The factory in the south-central state of Puebla will produce the Q5 SUV for all global markets except China, with an annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles. Audi’s investment in the site exceeds €1 billion ($1.1 billion) and has enabled it to become the first premium carmaker with manufacturing ...
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BMW Dingolfing prepares for 5 Series
Germany – Production of the seventh-generation vehicle will ramp up by the end of the year, ahead of a market launch in early 2017. An investment of several hundred million euros has enabled the refurbishment of the plant and the construction of additional facilities, including the adaptation of drivetrain installation ...
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Skid-free flexibility
With the energy savings it brings, the skidless paintshop is proving to be a popular idea There are some real heavyweights on the move inside automotive manufacturers’ production facilities: 200kg skids transfer 300kg vehicle bodies from the bodyshop to pretreatment, and on through the entire paintshop. Over 1,200 conveyor components ...
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Travel blog: The final frontier with Kia in Pesquería
And for my next mission... Mars! Or Monterrey in Nuevo Le ó n, which is similarly arid but uncomfortably hotter. At least I have the benefit of oxygen as I journey to Kia's new factory at Pesquer í a. I'd heard that Kia had been experiencing problems (Houston!) with this ...
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Exercise in efficiency
Toyota’s famed philosophy of constant improvement is well represented at its plant near Bengaluru It’s a given that all automotive manufacturing plants are continuously monitoring costs and efficiency, but at Toyota Kirloskar Motor’s (TKM) Bidadi plant there has been a real sense of urgency revealed in the detail of the ...
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Exercise in efficiency
Toyota’s famed philosophy of constant improvement is well represented at its plant near Bengaluru It’s a given that all automotive manufacturing plants are continuously monitoring costs and efficiency, but at Toyota Kirloskar Motor’s (TKM) Bidadi plant there has been a real sense of urgency revealed in the detail of the ...
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Pacifica progress
As FCA US smoothly implements a $744m upgrade at its Windsor plant in Canada, AMS focuses on the new equipment in the paintshop, including innovative oil separation technology and a robotic sealing system “What we were asking the Windsor team to do had never been done before,” said Brian Harlow, ...
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Keeping finishes up to scratch
As vehicle-makers add more innovative materials in body construction and change their production processes to meet new environmental regulations, paint suppliers are striving to match their requirementsThe majority of consumers take them for granted, but exterior coatings have to cover a lot of ground. Ray Schappert, global director of product ...
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Carry forward
State-of-the-art electrified conveyors contribute to production levels and offer a safer working environment Self-propelled electrified carriers, monorail systems and skillet lines with lifting platforms are state-of-the-art solutions in today’s automotive manufacturing process. Electrification with conductor rail systems has been in common practice for several years, continuously adapting to ...
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Monitoring vital statistics
As OEMs look to reduce energy consumption in their paintshops, the latest software can improve efficiency Paintshops account for the greatest energy use at any automotive manufacturing operation – around 70%, says Bill Sarver, senior consultant, Global Automotive at Rockwell Automation – and that makes efficiency in this area crucial ...
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Panamera made completely at Leipzig
Germany – The Porsche factory in Saxony will take over the production and painting of the new-generation bodies-in-white from Volkswagen Hanover, which has held this responsibility since the launch of the model in 2009. Previously, Leipzig undertook the pre-assembly and final assembly. Porsche has spent around €500m ($556.4m) ...
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Metrology meets automation
Portable systems have made high-accuracy measurement possible across all plant areas – the next step in this evolution is the integration of metrology with automation From the progressive assembly line to lean manufacturing principles, the automotive industry has always led the way in manufacturing technology. As the industry faces ...
