All Manufacturing engineering articles – Page 6
-
Article
Lectra supplies laser airbag cutters to ZF
Germany – The company has delivered two FocusQuantum FT6K machines for multi-ply fabric, helping ZF TRW, the Active and Passive Safety Division, to increase its capacity. The components manufacturer has just established a new cutting room.“By evaluating the solution in accordance with established practices, we were able to confirm that ...
-
ArticleAll hail the new taxi
Combining ingenuity, a bold export plan and a government grant, Geely has launched an all-new LTC electric taxi manufactured at a purpose-built factoryHow do you build a niche, low-volume car like the London black cab and make it profitable? That was the conundrum facing the Zhejiang Geely Holding Group when ...
-
Article
Valmet to make next-gen Mercedes
Finland – The manufacturing contract is described as being comparable in duration and extent to existing deals for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class and GLC SUV. The manufacturing engineering project for compact cars will begin immediately.“The new manufacturing contract takes the cooperation of Valmet Automotive and Daimler to a new level, and ...
-
ArticleNissan changes North America team
US – The appointments, effective from April 1, range across production and engineering; R&D; customer satisfaction; marketing and sales; communications; and legal matters. Most of the roles relate to Nissan’s Franklin site, Tennessee.José Muñoz, chief performance officer and chairman, management committee – North America, Nissan Motor Company, said that the ...
-
ArticleGM and Honda pick Fuel Cell team
US – Suheb Haq of GM will become the first president of the newly created Fuel Cell System Manufacturing (FCSM) while Tomomi Kosaka of Honda will serve as its vice-president. The board of directors will comprise three executives from each company and will include a rotating chairperson.Together, Haq and Kosaka ...
-
Article
Layer upon layer
Researchers at Ford Dearborn are keen to see additive manufacturing move on from its prototyping origins and into the mainstream volume production processIn itself, there is nothing new about the automotive industry’s use of the set of techniques generally known as additive manufacturing or 3D printing, in which objects are ...
-
ArticleLayer upon layer
Researchers at Ford Dearborn are keen to see additive manufacturing move on from its prototyping origins and into the mainstream volume production processIn itself, there is nothing new about the automotive industry’s use of the set of techniques generally known as additive manufacturing or 3D printing, in which objects are ...
-
ArticleGM to test robotic glove in production
US – Originally developed by General Motors and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for use on the International Space Station, the glove will now be piloted at some of the OEM’s factories. Sweden-based company Bioserve Technologies will make and sell the gloves for a range of industries; GM ...
-
Article
Serviço pesado na Daimler
A Daimler adota uma abordagem centrada no pessoal para fazer avançar suas operações de fabricação na ÍndiaA primeira coisa que Felix Homburg, vice-presidente de Operações e Engenharia de fabricação apontou no início de nossa visita da fábrica de caminhões da Daimler Chennai, foi um grande quadro de avisos com vários ...
-
Article
La fabricación de camiones de Daimler
Daimler adopta un enfoque centrado en las personas para avanzar en sus operaciones de fabricación en la IndiaLo primero que señaló Félix Homburg, vicepresidente de operaciones e ingeniería de fabricación, al inicio de nuestro recorrido por la planta de camiones de Daimler en Chennai, fue un gran tablón de anuncios ...
-
Article
重载戴姆勒
戴姆勒在印度采用了以人为中心的方法改进制造厂 操作与制造工程副总裁Felix Homburg指出，我们在戴姆勒金奈卡车制造厂参观的起点是一个大型公告栏，上面有很多员工的激励方案。月度员工和“精益追逐”竞赛很普遍，但是这种活动的重要性可不容小觑，因为印度的以人为中心的汽车业非常依赖劳动力的付出，才能获得稳定的质量与产量标准。装配车间非常巨大，可以看到两个主要生产线（一个是重型卡车，一个是中型卡车），在生产线牵头的会议区展示了工厂在操作交流机构上的透明度。在这里与团队和部门领导人开例会，这样所有人都可以讨论操作进度，可以与Homburg和其他高级经理讨论问题。这种开放式平台提供了更好的管理途径，并且能够促进员工之间更多的合作精神，Homburg强调这种精神对团队责任心的培养非常有益，也有利于团队建立信心和更高的参与度。 This development of simple but effective delivery of the wheels to the assembly line has been shared with Daimler’s global network创建质量文化这里从车间到车辆，所有东西的规模都是巨大的，但是操作进度却是冷静的，有效率的。主要装配区域和小点的部件装配区域都是一尘不染的。公司非常重视创建一个快乐、健康的工厂工作环境。Homburg解释说，这对员工的参与度，效率的提高，以及创建质量文化都是有利的。看到卡车装配之后走下生产线似乎挺简单。梯状底盘上有车轴、悬架、动力系统和驾驶室，这些都是沿着生产线，在不同的站点安装的。这种开放而简单的汽车构造是装配步骤直接。但是，这里还有很多因素，以及各种复杂性都在平衡两条装配线的过程中出现困难。首先，根据不同的车型，在不同的工作站上回出现各种工作量，这是因为面对不同的市场，制造不同的汽车，零部件成分级别也大相径庭（比如新款3143 CM卡车，被誉为“霹雳火”）。我认为，加长平均制造时间会有利于平衡不同车型的制造，但是有趣的是，Homburg说，缩短平均时间才有利于提高质量以及产量。此外，有些零部件的物理尺寸和重量都非常巨大，这为去爱苏高效安装这些零部件提出了挑战。“…我们的生产操作非常诱惑力，因此我们又能为为国内市场和出口市场制造车型” – Felix Homburg, 戴姆勒把基础打好随着工厂上下人工操作水平的提高，工厂也努力在生产厂建设牢固的基础工艺和程序。这似乎非常依赖自我开发的开衫策略，才能优化效率、质量和生产力。在线侧轮胎安装区域里，我看到在操作流程总的一些细微变化，还有一些明智的方法，比如在货架、工具使用和送递中的人体工学，这些对整个流程的效率都起到了巨大的促进作用。轮胎和轮圈都很笨重巨大，但是他们使用简单而高效的推车，将轮胎送地道转配线工作站，使安装操作变得更加顺利。这个方法已经在戴姆勒的全球网络中共享。 Kitting has proved very effective in improving assembly operations零部件的配套组件可以极大提高错误改正和装配流程，这里的零部件箱子和货架都是由工人专门开发设计的，在车辆周围放置，并随着生产线向下移动。套件中的零部件摆放被称为“外科手术”，所有东西的位置都特定，可以随时拿到。这些装配已经开发很多，但是这些货架订制的速度却是令人瞠目结舌。这些特殊的团队得到预成型管子、连接器、支架和扣件，并且能够被呼叫到线侧，与任何这种型号的零部件现场进行测量和比对。这样就可以迅速进行改变和调整。正如Homburg强调的那样，这进一步鼓励工人思考自己的特殊工作，并想办法改进工艺。专家项目除了持续实行各种小的改善措施之外，还有一些长期项目在进行之中。这些措施被称为“专家项目”，其中的一个项目就是为了改善驾驶室分布装配线效率的。Humburg解释说，这些项目已经开发执行了3个多月；驾驶室装配线一直在寻找方法，改善线侧零部件和材料的布置，并减少操作的空间。虽然大多数改善都需要低技术方法，但是我很吃惊地看到这里使用一个自动引导车（AGV），将驾驶室送递到主要装配线上。他们告诉我，这是为了研究提高大型驾驶室单元送递效率可行性而进行的试验系统。工厂情况：戴姆勒印度公司 — Oragadam, Chennai生产Bharat Benz(9t-49t)卡车， FUSO（9t-49t）卡车，还有发动机和传动器年产量根据倒班情况最高可以达到70,000辆工厂占地 400 英亩，员工数量超过3,000人。这里是公司的总部，集中了研发中心以及专门的公交车工厂车辆的85%的成分来自当地300多家供应商发动机和传动器都在工厂装配，这也是改善策略带来的裨益。工厂还重点关注“专家项目”，目的是为了提高线侧组件的布置。这个问题由于发动机和变速器需要的零部件数量巨大，以及制造工序复杂而变得非诚困难，但是Homburg深信，可以改进成功。发动机生产线生产6缸和4缸发动机，两个发动机都使用普遍的发动机架。 A mock-up of planned new ...
-
ArticleHeavy-duty Daimler
Daimler adopts a people-centric approach to advance its commercial vehicle production operations in IndiaThe first thing Felix Homburg, vice-president, Operations and Manufacturing Engineering, Daimler Commercial Vehicles, pointed out at the start of our tour of the company's truck plant in Chennai, India, was a large noticeboard featuring various employee incentive ...
-
ArticleFrancavilla in charge of GM's quality
US – As vice-president, Global Quality, Tony Francavilla will report to Mary Barra, chairman and CEO. His appointment is effective immediately.“Tony’s diverse technical expertise and global leadership experience position him well to further accelerate GM’s progress in every aspect of vehicle quality,” commented Barra. The company’s new head of quality ...
-
ArticleDriving customer performance
In business since 1973, noted cutting room authority Lectra has established an industry-leading position by helping customers to achieve operational excellence through a unique combination of expertise, advanced technologies and best-in-class services.As the privileged partner to a broad portfolio of premier businesses, Lectra provides integrated cutting room solutions for the ...
-
ArticleNissan shakes up North America management
US – The vehicle-maker announced a series of appointments across the US, Mexico and Canada as it enters the final year of its ‘Power 88’ mid-term business plan. The new postings are effective from April 1.“Today, we're announcing changes to our North American leadership team that will ensure our region's ...
-
ArticleRussian reckoning
Of the several contenders for world’s toughest car market in 2016, Russia surely takes the prizeThe sinking rouble, western sanctions and collapsing oil prices conspired to pummel consumer purchasing power and confidence in Russia over the last year. Sales have declined by a massive 36%. Back in 2012, when sales ...
-
ArticleIPS milestone at Mercedes-Benz Kassel
Germany – The plant has now produced 100,000 truck axles using induction pressure welding (IPS in abbreviated German). The technology enables the joining of steel and cast parts with any contours, says parent company Daimler, claiming it is “unique in the world”.In IPS, the main body or housing of the ...
-
ArticleRenault and Nissan strengthen convergence
France – The Alliance partners will progress their collaboration in four key areas: Engineering; Manufacturing Engineering and Supply Chain Management; Purchasing; and Human Resources. New convergence projects will also be launched, starting with Quality and Costing.The four key functions were converged in 2014 and are now managed by Alliance executives. ...
-
ArticleNissan announces Brexit opposition
UK – In a statement, the company said it “will not be pro-actively supporting any political campaign” before the country’s referendum on EU membership, but quoted CEO Carlos Ghosn making his views clear.“Our preference as a business is, of course, that the UK stays within Europe – it makes the ...
-
ArticleNeighbour moves into Ford Dagenham
UK – Replacing Martin Everitt, who becomes director of Powertrain Manufacturing Engineering for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Paul Neighbour is now confirmed as plant manager of Ford Dagenham Engine Plant. He has already served the vehicle-maker for 38 years.Neighbour’s previous roles include vice-president of Manufacturing for Getrag Ford ...