Automation – Page 303
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ArticleSwitching on to electric
BMW’s first production EVs, the electric Mini and the 1 Series ActiveE, were launched five years ago in limited numbers, but each provided invaluable R&D and production experience for what would become the hugely ambitious BMW i-project. The second of two design study proposals for BMW’s first mass production plug-in ...
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ArticlePainting by numbers
Dr. Ing. Qiaoyan Ye and Dr. Oliver Tiedje of Fraunhofer IPA discuss the ability of modelling and numerical simulation to improve painting processes The benefits of numerical simulationNo need to watch paint dryGreen Carbody TechnologiesComputer-aided engineering and numerical simulation based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) can be a very useful ...
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ArticleMoulding tools for the future
What visitors to EuroMold 2013 can expect at the mould-making and tooling expo in Frankfurt this DecemberThe programme for 2013Exhibitors with automotive interestsAs the world trade fair for mould-making and tooling design and development, EuroMold brings together buyers, suppliers and process experts from all parts of the globe. This year’s ...
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ArticleA South American sunrise?
Brazil leads the way for the automotive industry in a continent beset by economic and political challenges, writes Nick GibbsSouth America as a whole is becoming a hotbed of automotive production thanks to intense activity in Brazil, which is producing the bulk of vehicles and stimulating manufacturing elsewhere on the ...
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Editor's Note: Automotive Paintshop Solutions
There is nothing superficial about automotive paint – at least not when it comes to the crucial matter of making potential customers actually want to buy a car. At that point the ‘look’ of a car can make all the difference to whether they might want to consider purchasing or ...
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ArticleProduction of A3 Cabriolet starts at Györ
Germany/Hungary – Audi has invested more than €900m in buildings and equipment at its plant at Györ for series production of the new A3 Cabriolet. The company also builds the A3 Sedan, next-generation TT Coupe and TT Roadster there.“With this model, Audi is creating a new highlight in the ...
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ArticleFord makes the most of recyclate
With vehicle-makers taking a greater interest in using recycled materials, Ruari McCallion investigates the processes and challenges involvedFord Motor Company’s new F-150 trucks have been the target of some criticism for their size, weight and thirst, but according to the OEM the model will feature unprecedented levels of environmentally-friendly materials.Recycling ...
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ArticlePremium brands warm to Brazil
Increasing local incomes are creating a top-end market in Brazil. Giovanna Riato takes a look at how the OEMs are respondingIn the next few years, Brazil will go down the route of luxury car manufacturing. The local market has traditionally been focused on basic cars with engines up to 1.0 ...
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ArticleA new generation for paint robots
According to automation provider ABB, paintshop robotics have moved on to a bold new eraFaster & furtherA high-flow atomiserOverall ‘footprint’ optimisationThe use of robots to automate the processes of automotive paintshops is now entering a ‘third generation’. That is the verdict of Didier Rouaud, manager paint and sealer process engineering ...
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ArticleGaz starts Sprinter production
GAZ Group, based in Nizhny Novgorod, is a production partner of Daimler for Mercedes-Benz Sprinter models intended for the Russian market. The partnership was announced in the middle of last year and production commenced this summer; the first Sprinter Classics rolled off Nizhny’s production line on July 15.Investing in a ...
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ArticleBMW's new ‘automotive revolution’
Production head Harald Kruger talks about the i3 and i8 developments as the BMW i Mobility Concept seeks to turn everyday travel 100% electric. While the all-electric i3 is designed for emission-free city driving, the plugin hybrid i8 represents ‘the future of the sports car’. As BMW board member for ...
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ArticleBreaking into Brazil
Developments by JAC Motors and Chery ahead of the start of production next yearWith an eye on the fourth largest automotive market in the world, Chinese vehicle manufacturers have set about establishing production facilities in Brazil. These companies were operating in the country already on the import side, but with ...
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ArticleFinding solutions for Avtovaz
Interview with Luigi Lazzari, president of Geico Taikisha Europe, on the company’s current projects AMS: What are the details of the recent contract with Avtovaz for a new paintshop?Luigi Lazzari: This will be both a brown field project, as, from a building environment perspective, we will reuse some of the ...
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ArticlePlastic fantastic
As the use of plastics in automotive manufacturing continues to expand, with many options available today.Linde Gases started to get into the automotive industry around 15 years ago as a natural consequence of its involvement with the foaming of plastics. The progress was evolutionary rather than revolutionary, taking the company ...
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Article10m Tennessee-built vehicles are ‘testament to workforce’
USA – Nissan marked two major milestones with the first US-produced 2014 Rogue rolling off the line in Smyrna, as the facility’s ten millionth vehicle. Moving Rogue production to the US is part of the company’s strategy to build where it sells. By 2015, Nissan says it aims to have ...
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ArticleRenault Maubeuge celebrates 5 million
France – Renault has announced the production of the five millionth unit at its Maubeuge plant in northern France. The vehicle was a Kangoo ZE for La Poste, the French post offi ce, in Forbach.The 2,000-strong workforce at Maubeuge currently produces seven models ranging from compact LCVs to passenger cars, ...
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Honda marks five years of production in Indiana
USA – Honda Manufacturing of Indiana (HMIN) in the USA celebrated its fifth anniversary of mass production in October.The facility was originally announced in 2006. Ground-breaking occurred the following year and it became Honda’s fourth plant in the US and seventh in North America.The company operates a twoshift operation at ...
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ArticleChanging the state of play
Fiat is building its most modern manufacturing plant in Brazil and will establish automotive production in a new area of the country.The OEM is investing 4.5 billion reais ($2 billion) in Brazil to build a new manufacturing facility at Goiana, in Pernambuco. The plant will have an initial production capacity ...
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ArticleSkoda’s second-best seller reaches 1.5m mark
Czech Republic – Skoda has now manufactured 1.5m secondgeneration Fabias since 2007.The milestone 1.2 TDi rolled off the production line in September at the main factory in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic. The Fabia fi rst went on sale in 1999 and is the car-maker’s bestselling model after the Octavia, ...
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LGR produces millionth Cadillac
USA – The millionth Cadillac built at the Lansing Grand River (LGR) assembly plant rolled off the production line in Michigan, Detroit, in September – an early model of the redesigned 2014 CTS Sedan.All CTS production takes place at LGR, which opened in 2001 and has built more Cadillacs than ...