All Quality articles – Page 8
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ArticleLaser-marking Data Matrix codes
A Data Matrix code (DMC) is applied to many brake discs once they have been coated by Sprimag’s Coating Systems, making workpieces clearly identifiable and aiding the assembly processAlthough laser marking was once the preserve of high-performance brake discs in the premium sports car sector, it has now become an ...
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ArticleDeveloping the sustainable paintshop
Dermot Healy spoke to Dr Luigi Lazzari, executive director (Europe-Africa) at Geico Taikisha, about the company achieving its goal of a sustainable paintshop ahead of schedule Geico targeted a sustainable paintshop by June 2020, yet you’ve achieved this almost three years early. How did that come about? The sustainable paintshop ...
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ArticleHigh performance for next-gen at NIO
Lightweighting, multi-metal compatibility and a focus on aluminium substrates is how thin-film, pretreatment technologies fulfil the requirements for NIO’s next generation of electric vehicles With its advanced thin-film Oxsilan technology, the Surface Treatment global business unit of BASF’s coatings division operating under the Chemetall brand, ensures a perfect surface treatment ...
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ArticleIIoT comes to paintshops
New software from Dürr can help paintshops utilise the latest Industrial Internet of Things technology to collect, evaluate and visualise robot and process data As paintshops become increasingly transparent, Dürr Systems has developed its EcoScreen Equipment Analytics software in order to collect, evaluate and visualise robot and process data. ...
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ArticleThe clean machines
Paintshop cleanliness is a vital aspect of the coating application process. Mike Farish finds out what it takes to keep the paint finish blemish-free
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ArticleCool paint for hot cars
Ferrari is renowned for the high quality paint finish on its supercars. So creating a workable paint formulation that would cure at much lower temperatures without compromising these exacting standard would be a challenge. PPG’s Technical director, William Brunat, discusses the project with Nick Holt The project with Ferrari was ...
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ArticleSticking together
The use of a wide variety of materials throws-up significant production challenges and chief among those is joining. How can this plethora of materials be fixed together without affecting their structural integrity or their individual characteristics? The automotive industry is mostly set-up for resistance spot welding (RSW). This method has ...
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ArticleA holistic approach to quality
Raffaello Lepratti, VP of business development and marketing at Siemens looks at how suppliers can optimise the cost of quality while assuring OEM requirements The automotive industry is undergoing massive structural change, as the advent of new technologies coincides with rapidly changing customer preferences. Recent developments suggest this disruption ...
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ArticleTravel blog: Big game in SA
There are a handful of countries in the world that remain relatively untouched when it comes to the new car market, with sales of used cars traditionally dominating. In South Africa, for example, sales of used cars outweigh those in the new car market by more than two to ...
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ArticleQuality 4.0 in car body inspection
Nikon’s Laser Radar – a next-generation CMM that provides accurate, point cloud-based feature measurements in absolute coordinates – generates more data, leading to higher-quality products, and also saves time and money for OEMs High-end manufacturing has always required the feedback of reliable measurements to adjust parameters precisely and ...
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ArticleA positive response
Daimler is embarking on a major corporate restructuring in the hope of improving its ability to face upcoming challenges in the automotive sector The restructuring currently underway at Daimler is due to be complete by 2020 and the plan centres on creating legally independent AG companies, Mercedes-Benz AG, Daimler Truck ...
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ArticleThe full measure
In-process measurement can guarantee fewer rejects, easier assembly, and ultimately, happier customers before a single part reaches the OEM The ‘where’ in automotive manufacturing has changed and expanded over time as OEMs rely further on increased content from Tier suppliers. From frames, closures, headlamps and tail lamps all the ...
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ArticleRaising the roof
When it comes to roof gluing, vision systems such as the one in operation at FCA Cassino will lead to a return on investment in a short time Vision systems have become a very powerful tool for automotive manufacturers, allowing them to increase productivity and overall quality while simultaneously ...
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ArticleCool calculations - rapid welding
Advanced rapid welding technology is helping to surpass challenges in series production at Voestalpine Fronius has recently added the successful CMT welding process to the company’s most modern power source, the TPS/i. The second generation of the “cold arc” allows robotic welding in many applications with unprecedented levels of quality, ...
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ArticleWeld the right result
Welding zinc coated steels presents a variety of challenges. Lincoln Electric’s Global Industry Segment Director for Transportation Tim Hurley explores the solutions As engineers and designers respond to the need to decrease vehicle weight while maintaining or improving crash worthiness, automotive manufacturers are using more high strength steels in ...
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ArticleExtended reach
FARO’s technology combinations are allowing users to focus more on the actual measurement and less on the measurement processes Ensuring the quality of a car’s performance and design, FARO 3D measurement technology solutions provide a simple, yet accurate way of taking contact and non-contact measurements for quality control in ...
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ArticleHot stamp harmony
With the demand for quality specifications from OEMs on the rise Gestamp turned to Zeiss for a new approach to quality assurance Deer graze undisturbed in the fields that stretch off into the distance as far as the eye can see. Yet there is a lot more to this ...
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ArticleClean and tidy
Coherent-ROFIN’s Frank Gäbler describes how the CleanWeld process can garner greater results in fibre laser welding While automotive manufacturers have successfully employed fibre lasers in metal welding for over a decade, efforts still continue to improve their utility and extend the results they deliver in terms of part ...
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ArticleGetting beneath the skin
Specialists in automotive interiors have long been at the sharp end of sustainability issue. Gareth Price looks at the controls and techniques that are helping IAC Group improve process control and lower energy consumption Ever since environmental impact became a hot topic for discussion and action within the automotive manufacturing ...
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ArticleAcademic circles
Mike Farish visits Oxford-based start-up YASA, a special electric motor company sprung from academia that’s now attracting the attention of premium OEMsEarly this year a bland-looking industrial estate a few miles to the north of Oxford officially became the manufacturing site for what one of its residents believes to be ...