Automation – Page 164
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Article
Camada sobre camada
Pesquisadores na Ford Dearborn estão estão ansiosos para ver a manufatura aditiva seguir em frente da suas origens de protótipos para processo de produção de volume mainstream.O uso de técnicas geralmente conhecidas como manufatura aditiva ou impressão 3D não é novo na indústria automotiva, criando objetos através da aplicação de ...
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Coreia: Uma questão de custo
A indústria automobilística do país está mais uma vez lutando sua batalha recorrente com os sindicatos para equilibrar as exigências salariais dos trabalhadores com a necessidade de cobrir os custos em um país caro para construir carrosEste ano, os sindicatos têm forçado várias paragens de produção na Hyundai Motor, maior ...
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Mazda starts new CX-5 production
Japan – The crossover SUV is now being made at Ujina Plant No.2 near the company’s headquarters in Hiroshima. The CX-5 will go on sale in Japan in February before being rolled out to global markets.The original CX-5 entered production in November 2011, debuting Mazda’s SkyActiv technology and Kodo design; ...
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GKN to supply eAxle for BMW X1
China – The electric axle (eAxle) will be fitted to a plug-in hybrid version of the SUV for the Chinese market. The product belongs to the same family of eAxles used in the plug-in hybrid BMW 2 Series Active Tourer 225xe.“Automakers’ evolving powertrain strategies require suppliers with a focus on ...
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Capa sobre capa
Los investigadores de Ford Dearborn están interesados en hacer que la fabricación aditiva pase de la fase de prototipo a los procesos estandarizados de producción en masaLa utilización de técnicas generalmente conocidas como fabricación aditiva o impresión 3D no es algo novedoso en la industria automotriz, creándose objetos mediante la ...
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Corea del Sur: Cuestión de costes
La industria automotriz del país está teniendo que lidiar una vez más con los sindicatos en su lucha por equilibrar las demandas salariales de los trabajadores y la necesidad de limitar los costes en un país caro para construir automóvilesEste año los sindicatos han forzado varias paradas de producción en ...
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VW and SOVAC agree production JV
Algeria – According to the deal signed today, SOVAC will make the Volkswagen Golf, Seat Ibiza, Skoda Octavia and the Caddy van from early 2017. A new assembly hall will be constructed on a 150-hectare site in Relizane, and after a phased ramp up will produce over 100 vehicles per ...
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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 ...
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Korea: A question of cost
The country’s automotive industry is once again fighting its recurring battle with the unions as it struggles to balance workers’ wage demands with the need to cap costs in an expensive country to build carsUnions have forced a series of stoppages this year at Korea’s biggest carmaker, Hyundai Motor, to ...
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Stackers 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 ...
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Working with Mercedes-Benz
As its manufacturing presence expands into new territories, Mercedes-Benz turns to a Geico Taikisha team fully conversant with paintshop best practice globallyGeico-Taikisha has been working with Daimler Benz to develop new paintshop facilities on a greenfield site in Brazil and expanding capacity at an existing Mercedes-Benz plant in India. AMS ...
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Webinar
ArcelorMittal webinar: Metallic coatings for cold-stamping steels
To meet their quality and cost challenges, carmakers look to select the most suitable and innovative steel coatings. This webinar will explore the most innovative steel coatings in the automotive steel industry available for cold stamping and describe the various properties, advantages and ...
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一层又一层
福特迪尔伯恩的研究者们想要将增材制造从原型起点制造转为主流批量生产在公司内部,汽车技术应用中,没有什么比增材制造或3D打印更为新潮的了,东西可以通过不断应用一层又一层的材料堆叠而成。技术始于20世纪80年代,由于最初用于生产实体复制目标最终产品,该技术被称为“快速成型”。这显然是福特公司采用的特色方案,使用一种“设计验证工具”的途径 — 制造实体复制目标最终产品,检查外观这样的因素 — 自1988年开始如此。福特公司增材制造研究技术指导Ellen Lee证实,公司在密歇根州迪尔伯恩建立了研究创新中心。她说,在30年之后,公司积极寻找应用增材技术,“直接应用于我们的产品上”。尽管如此,增材工艺制造零部件的速度相对较慢,在量产汽车环境中还无法用作制造技术。Lee说道,“现在还不可能将这种技术用于制造量产零部件中。”在福特的情况来看,他说车载应用受限于“利基应用,比如我们的赛车活动。赛车场上会用上3D打印零部件。” While conventional machines today can create workpieces of 3 x 2 x 3 feet in the X, Y and Z-axes respectively, Infinite-Build can produce fabrications of unlimited length该技术开始出现在主流生产工艺的时候,就是在制造操作中以制造夹具及固定装置形式出现的。然而Lee说,采用这种方法很大程度上还是要依赖工厂相关的特殊个体的潜在认识的。简单来说,就是需要“某人能够明白或了解其好处,并可以从增材制造上获得利益。”她说:“我们有了这些地方财力,但仍然努力全球联合,从而可以在任何地方达到最佳实际应用。”Lee说,福特公司还关心增材技术的进一步开发。她证实说,“我们还要挑战极限,看看能够得到什么功能类型的应用”,“速度、尺寸和材料”都可以成为改进的目标。合伙推进技术在过去的几个月里,福特公司参与的大型项目细节已经公布,目的是为了彻底重新配置工厂环境中实施增材技术的方式。该项目涉及了增材质系统大型供应商 — 美国公司Stratasys,开发了两款全新的技术,要应用于熔融沉积制造(FDM)增材工艺,加热的液体聚合物材料被挤出喷嘴。本质上讲,两种技术都能有效地消除传统增材制造机械中受限的形式,相反可以转换成一种在更宽的制造单元中进行的程序。这样,公司就能解决用增材技术在零部件尺寸及复杂性方面的限制。此外,通过使用新型涂胶机,极大提高了材料应用的速度。除了Stratasys和Ford公司,还有航空巨头Boeing公司和软件及控制系统供应商Siemens都有参与。两个项目分别叫做Infinite-Build和Robotic Composite 3D Demonstrators。Infinite-Build方法涉及两个主要的再造工件的方法和相互之间的涂胶机。第一个是90度重新排列材料应用的方向,工件不是在水平层面上连续复制,而是通过喷嘴在侧面水平制造。涂胶机本身垂直上下,水平地来回于工件上。 Ford’s project with Stratasys developed a new additive process techniques of ...
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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 ...
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Article
What might Trump have in store for OEMs?
During the recent presidential campaign, Donald Trump was severely critical of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) which allows Mexican-made vehicles to be imported tariff-free to the US. At various times, he threatened to rip it up, or at least renegotiate it to give US workers “a better deal”. ...
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Ricardo hits engine production record
UK – The company made 2,000 units in the six months to the end of October – more than in any full year previously. The increased volume was enabled by the expansion of Ricardo’s plant at Shoreham, which was inaugurated this year.Mark Barge, managing director of Ricardo Performance Products, said ...
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Webinar
SSAB webinar: The influence of the forming process and design on UHSS
As some parts require narrow radii for functional use, bendability of UHSS has in various cases become a limiting factor for upgrading. This webinar will describe how bendability of martensitic UHSS can be greatly improved.The presentation will examine how bendability of cold-formed martensitic steel can vary significantly depending on ...
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Article
Korea: A question of cost
The country’s automotive industry is once again fighting its recurring battle with the unions as it struggles to balance workers’ wage demands with the need to cap costs in an expensive country to build carsUnions have forced a series of stoppages this year at Korea’s biggest carmaker, Hyundai Motor, to ...
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Article
韩国:成本问题
韩国的汽车制造业又一次陷入与工会的争执中,挣扎在工人的工资与降低汽车制造成本的平衡大战中。工会今年在韩国最大的汽车制造商Hyundai Motor公司强行进行一系列阻碍活动。公司对地方媒体称,到9月末为止,共损失了114,000辆汽车的生产。今年形势尤其艰难,LMC Automotive公司亚太地区部长兼分析员May Aparthapan对AMS说,“每年在工资协商过程中,工人们的罢工非常普遍。但是几年罢工对现代的影响尤其严重。”这种影响导致现代将全球第五大汽车制造商的位置输给了印度(依据7月份的数据);韩国地方Korea Herald报纸刊登了韩国贸易部长Joo Hyung-hwan的话。当你被政府部长标记已经失去生产表上的地位,那么就证明已经失去了地方上的自尊。此次罢工的时间正值韩国汽车业的艰难时世。虽然去年地方制造商的汽车销量突破了900万辆大关,但是其中的很多都是由现代和起亚在韩国以外地方化工厂网络实现的。国内工厂今年就不得不应付不断下降的需求,这是暂时汽车购买计划终止以及不断进口造成的。现代去年国内市场占有率为45%,到9月底,销量下降了3.3%,还不足50万辆。 GM say the cost of labour in Korea as drastically increased in recent years工资问题不仅影响了现代和起亚。通用韩国公司同样中招,努力保持通用汽车王国小型汽车出口中心的地位。2002年,通用收购Daewoo,并成立公司之后,先后建立了4个生产厂,主要生产Chevrolet品牌。9月份,公司工会集结了16,000名工人,在经过部分罢工之后,同意除了红利(是公司的10-30%)之外,每月增加80,000韩元(约合57美元)。通用韩国公司首席执行官James Kim在九月份对Automotive News说,“劳动力成本不断增加,这成为韩国整个工业的最大挑战。近年来,劳动力成本大幅提高,损毁了公司高水平生产的利益。”美国报纸报道,通用韩国工厂现在的产量在758,000辆以下。到今年9月末,通用韩国的销量,包括国内和国外,达到434,573辆,下降了4.4%,出口销量下降了10%。产量中大约四分之三都运到了国外。通用韩国非常依赖这些出口。其中很多都是小型车,比如Chevrolet Spark。据LMC公司Aparthapan称,这些车在印度这样的新兴市场卖的更便宜。她说,“那些新车生产,或为新兴市场国内销售而进行的生产,都倾向于新兴市场。”尽管通用韩国困难重重,但公司在韩国的根基很深。除了响当当的R&D工厂之外,韩国公司还拥有全球第三大设计工作室,负责新款Chevrolet Bolt电动车的设计。专注SVU汽车成本已经成为中国和巴西这样新兴市场(两国都迫使外国制造商实现本地化,因为进口税极高)的巨大威胁,韩国仍然具有优势。Aparthapan说,“韩国仍然是高成本制造基地。但是,韩国仍然能够保持部分生产,因为规模和产量都很高,与日本相似。”韩国最终会舍弃生产小型乘用车。她说,“在未来很可能转向SUV(因为它的价值和利润都很高),以及新能源汽车,比如混合动力车和电动车。”通用韩国在Chevrolet Trax和Buick Encore小型SUV上都很成功,而Renault Sumsung通过为Nissan生产Rogue SUV,并向美国出口而翻盘。去年,Renault Sumsung全球销量暴涨,达到229,082辆,比前年增长了35%,其中包括釜山工厂新增生产的Rogue汽车。这弥补了停产Renault Koleos(转移到欧洲和中国生产)的空缺。工厂还制造Fluence为基础的SM3电动车,令人吃惊的是,从2013年3月到2015年底,韩国最畅销的电动车只出售了1,767辆。LMC的Aprthapan说,釜山计划制造更多Nissan汽车,但是不包括成功的Rogue汽车。另一个靠SUV的风潮发家的是韩国最小的汽车制造商Ssanyong公司,今年前9个月里,出口增长了9%,地方销量增长6%,超过100,000辆大关。这部分增长仅仅来自于大受欢迎的Tivoli小型SUV汽车。公司首席执行官Johng-sik Choi对AMS说,公司正在准备更多的新车型,并计划在2020年前进入美国市场。在他向我们解释的时候,品牌带来的新利润让他更加自信,效益不佳的Pyeongtaek工厂(首尔以南60公里处)的生产会达到最高,并在3年之内让公司盈利,据Choi说,公司从2001年以来就没有盈利。他还想复制现代和起亚的成功做法,到新兴市场进行本地化生产。 Domestic producers have been threatened by Korean demand for premium exports进口威胁国内汽车制造商习惯在国内市场按照自己的方式经营。1999年,进口汽车辆只有2,041辆。2011年,这个数字达到100,000辆。据当地进口汽车联合会KAIDA称,去年的进口量达到243,000辆,占到全年180万辆的13%。其中的81%是欧洲汽车,排名靠前的都是奢侈品牌。宝马排名第一,然后是梅赛德斯、大众和奥迪。61%的车辆是柴油机。现代推出Genesis高档品牌,试图力挽狂澜,正如丰田的Lexus的做法,但由于韩国的利润来自与其他国家之间的自由贸易,结果却事与愿违,韩国国内注重形象的消费者很自然受到德国高端品牌汽车的诱惑。进口的步伐在今年出现了翻转,但这仅仅是因为韩国对大众柴油欺骗行为态度非常严苛。大众和奥迪都停止在韩国的销售,去年他们承认使用非法软件,企图在排放测试中表现更加。韩国是亚洲少数几个购买柴油机的国家之一,占据一半的,而VW Tiguan 2-0-升柴油机是去年销量最好的进口车。不断增长的国外生产今年韩国制造商现代和起亚大力扩大国外生产,国外产量已经接近国内的三个工厂了。今年早些时候,起亚在墨西哥新建工厂,产量达到300,000辆,海外总产量达到168万辆,公司国内外总产量达到337万辆,而韩国国内的产量为169万辆。新的工厂开始制造Forte(K3)紧凑型轿车,出口美国,这部分占到公司全球产量的10%左右。Kia在中国的产量为615,000辆,在斯洛伐克的产量为369,000辆。去年该品牌售量超过300万辆,其中只有50万辆是在韩国出售的,地方市场占有率为33%。9月份,母公司Hyundai Motor Group称,会在中国开设两个生产厂,将两个品牌的产量提高到900万辆。去年,两个品牌合起来共出售800万辆汽车,Hyundai母公司成为销量第五大汽车集团。另一个靠SUV的风潮发家的是韩国最小的汽车制造商Ssanyong公司,今年前9个月里,出口增长了9%,地方销量增长6%,超过100,000辆大关。这部分增长仅仅来自于大受欢迎的Tivoli小型SUV汽车。公司首席执行官Johng-sik Choi对AMS说,公司正在准备更多的新车型,并计划在2020年前进入美国市场。在他向我们解释的时候,品牌带来的新利润让他跟家自信,效益不佳的Pyeongtaek工厂(首尔以南60公里处)的生产会达到最高,并在3年之内让公司盈利,据Choi说,公司从2001年以来就没有盈利。他还想复制现代和起亚的成功做法,到新兴市场进行本地化生产。 Ssangyong自信如斯,力图提高产量 Mr Johng-sik ...
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Cube expands to support overseas clients
UK – The manufacturer of press tools and components for the automotive and aerospace industries has created eight new jobs at its facility in Rowley Regis, including roles for toolmakers and machinists. The move follows the development of stronger trade relations with non-UK customers.“Two-thirds of our revenue in the last ...