All Knowledge Bank articles – Page 7
-
ArticleStop problems from the root
Addressing risks within your automation infrastructure can help protect your operations and reputationBy Larry Smentowski, senior industry consultant, automotive and tire, Rockwell AutomationEN EMEA Jaguar Land Rover HANNOVER MESSEBuilt with Rockwell Automation and Cisco Technology and demonstrating validated scalable and secure network architectures where data is managed to improve business ...
-
ArticleMinding Maserati
A pre-treatment technology from Chemetall is helping the luxury carmaker reduce environmental impact levels at its Grugliasco plantAs a brand, Maserati stands for a tradition of high-performance cars – style, performance, luxury and safety. It is a marque that underlines the FCA strategy for responsible production practices. To further support ...
-
ArticleScan the van
At Volkswagen’s new plant in Poland, production quality for the Crafter van is ensured using ground-breaking measuring technologyOfficially opened in October 2016, the new plant in Wrzesnia, Poland, is a highly modern production facility operated by VW Commercial Vehicles. It will be used for building the VW Crafter van, with ...
-
ArticleA world of possibilities
Advanced high-strength steel offers advantages for cost and sustainability in automotive manufacturing Looking into the future of automotive manufacturing, some challenges are clear. Vehicle weight, environmental impact and the number of injuries due to accidents must all be reduced, yet costs cannot be allowed to rise. Advanced high-strength steel ...
-
ArticleThe 60% saving challenge
South Korean automotive parts manufacturer Ecoplastic and special-purpose machine supplier B+R Maschinenbau have both had their stringent demands met by ABB RoboticsIn South Korea, 370km south-east of Seoul, the coastal city of Gyeong-ju is located among widespread low mountains at the East Sea of Korea. Commonly referred to as “the ...
-
ArticleLiquid pro quo
Non-anaerobic silicone beading has gradually replaced solid gaskets on powertrain assembly lines. Christoph Denis-Bosio of Kremlin Rexson Sames explains the importance of application for the solution’s better performanceIn 2016, a total of 90m engines and 90m gearboxes were produced for light passenger vehicles the in 371 engine plants and 309 ...
-
ArticleA kanban plan
eFlex vice-president George Jewell explores the software development collaboration tools that companies can use in manufacturingAfter working for many years at a vehicle manufacturer, I moved to a manufacturing software company. At first glance, you would assume they have very different processes, but in many ways they are similar. Both ...
-
ArticleGet the insight inside
With shorter lead times and constant cost pressures, OEMs are adopting CT scanning to analyse internal structures without the disassembling of countless prototypesToday’s automotive OEMs and suppliers face ever shortening lead times for introducing new products at a lower cost. Consequently, fewer prototype iterations are required and destructive testing is ...
-
ArticleThe smooth gear change
As transmission design grows more complex, the challenge for OEMs is to produce a greater range of gears in higher volume while ensuring qualityUp until a few years ago, five-speed transmissions reigned supreme in automotive design but in the last decade gear numbers have increased dramatically. With this change, 9- ...
-
ArticleEnsuring global productivity
With low heat input, high welding speed and short weld-to-weld times, laser welding is helping meet the demand for increased output and use of lightweight materialsAs a system integrator of high-end automatic welding equipment, the Dutch company AWL-Techniek has grown into a global partner for its customers with branches in ...
-
ArticleParts makers in the driver's seat
Using ABB robots, an IAC Group facility in Sweden has streamlined its production of interior plastic components for VolvoThe town of Skara in south-western Sweden is home to a manufacturing plant that has produced plastic goods since the mid-1930s. “In the beginning, the plant produced household goods, before shifting its ...
-
ArticleMetrology 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 automationIn years past, automotive manufacturers have been forced to choose between very different paradigms in the search to improve the quality, shorten design-to-launch times and better ...
-
ArticleA red e-volution
From NY to KL, cities all over the world are jumping on BYD’s electric bus It looks like any of the other thousands of red double-decker buses proceeding through the loud traffic on London’s streets, but if you listen closely you’ll soon realise that some buses are different. Instead of ...
-
ArticleFitting rewards
ArcelorMittal’s stronger hot-stamping grades are ideal for laser-welded blank applications, leading to further weight reductions and increased safetyThe automotive industry faces two major challenges today: emissions reduction and improvement of safety standards. Reducing vehicle weight by using lighter materials is an obvious way to cut emissions, but steel offers unbeatable ...
-
ArticleFrom success to excellence
Siemens’ TIA Portal helped Continental Regensburg simplify and interlink its evolving standard cell manufacturing processContinental AG is one of the world’s largest automotive parts suppliers. The group’s automotive division operates from around 200 locations worldwide and at its largest facility, in Regensburg, Germany, around 8,000 people are employed in production ...
-
ArticleJust-in-time to fit the perfect wheel
Series production of complete wheelsets in JIT manufacturing operations is one of the decisive process stages in final vehicles assemblyWith its new wheel-tyre assembly line, Schenck RoTec offers both OEMs and main tier one automotive suppliers and tyre wholesalers a flexible, highly scalable and efficient solution for just-in-time (JIT) production. ...
-
ArticlePosition of power
Flexible power distribution systems are energising automotive tier one suppliers’ growthGrowth in the automotive industry is benefiting from an extensive global network composed of thousands of tier one suppliers. While not only good for business, this growth functions as a catalyst for advancements in technology that eventually will be adopted ...
-
ArticleFull speed ahead
Solutions such as 3D smart snapshot sensors are offering faster, more data-rich automotive quality controlThe main challenge in automotive quality control today is acquiring sufficient data and processing it to measure complicated geometries in the shortest cycle time. Established laser line solutions do not offer enough data to fully determine ...
-
ArticleMetal futures
Press hardenable steels enable automotive designers to find light and strong solutions. Now, the second generation of PHS will allow OEMs even greater scopeHot forming has become very important to the automotive industry as a way of meeting specific crash-performance criteria and ensuring low overall weight at an affordable cost. ...
-
ArticleStackers of steel
Six Kuka KR 1000 titan robots are providing new flexibility in production at steel supplier MannstaedtBased in Troisdorf in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Mannstaedt can trace its origins back nearly 200 years. Today, the company is part of the Georgsmarienhütte Group and specialises in the manufacture of hot-rolled ...