All Composites articles – Page 10
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ArticleBeauty on a budget at Farbio
Engineering for productionCunning carbon fibre solutionsSupply strategiesPaintshop and final assemblyTesting times aheadThere have been many attempts to bring exclusive, low-volume supercars to market, but the truth is that few of these projects have ever seen paying customers taking delivery of finished vehicles. Building a single, functioning prototype before funds run ...
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ArticleLightweighting the perfect body
Stiffness benefitsMulti-metal motorsBreaking the weight spiralAudi accelerates its aluminium expertiseCentre of excellenceDownmarket gainsAluminium may be the most abundant metal in the Earth’s crust, but it still has a long way to go if it is to replace steel as the default material for car body construction. However, some applications engineers ...
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ArticlePerformance and a greener world
Lightweight MercedesMaster of lightweightingLeightweight construction experienceAudi cuts the fatThe SuperLIGHT-CAR project lighter and leanerIn the past, aluminium chassis and bodyframing has tended to be the preserve of supercars and advanced prototypes. Increasingly, with the pressure of high fuel prices and demands for cleaner-running vehicles, OEMs are looking to the ...
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ArticleWelding wonderland
‘Olympics of Welding Technology’Trumpf, Hall 3.0, Stand 154Carl Cloos, Hall 3.0, Stand 547Fronius, Hall 3.0, Stand 302/3043M, Hall 1.0, Stand 217Sperian Welding Protection, Hall 3.0, Stand 318Schweissen & Schneiden, which translates to ‘welding and cutting’, is one of the most important shows for automotive technicians looking to peruse the latest ...
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ArticleMaterial of choice
Plastics offer a clear alternativeFuture battery powerFIM cuts production timeGood times for Chinese plastics Injection Moulding innovationsNatural composites or high-gloss plastics‘Ecological’ plasticAlmost a year since the financial crisis began, Tier suppliers continue to face major challenges in key markets. Against that backdrop, a temptation to drastically cut R&D investment is ...
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ArticleLightweight vehicles mean longlife conveyors
Need for flex – small platform sharingGM’s commodity approachMasters of global material movementConsider the changes in vehicle sizes and weights over the last few years. The Mercedes-Benz W140 (1991-1998) S-Class saloon weighed approximately 2,000kg, depending on specification; the W220 (1999-2006) around 1,800kg, and the latest model, the W221, has remained ...
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ArticleComposites in carmaking
As fuel prices continue to rise and awareness of climate change grows, one might expect carbon fibre and other lightweight composites to be at the top of every carmaker’s R&D shopping list, but things are not so simpleFrom the supercar to the super low-cost carRound and black – and a ...
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ArticleTailor made by laser
New laser joining techniques, steel grades, and how laser ablation can improve welded joinsLaser dominationFull process cost is keyPreparing to weldAchieving parity of speedThe concept of the tailored blank is generally acknowledged to have its origins back in the 1980s in the German automotive sector. Its central idea is extremely ...
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ArticleA new scheme for colour
Increasing demandThermoforming and mouldingLearning processHigh-volume productionPaint-free technology for automotive applications is moving forward at a rapid pace, driven by a need for environmentally-friendly and cost-effective alternatives to traditional painting operations. Paint films provide huge benefits, such as the elimination of paint lines and their associated emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds ...
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ArticleUnder the drill
Tools for the jobReducing frictionFrom art to partSingle fixture allows for machining and inspectionExpert help is at handComposites represent a paradigm shift in materials technology for a new generation of automotive manufacturing engineers. AMS looks at the current and future challengesComposite materials provide a number of manufacturing challenges for production ...
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ArticleAbaqus advances
Dassault Systèmes has released Abaqus 6.8, its technology-leading unified finite element analysis software suite from SIMULIA. Engineers, designers, researchers, and scientists can use Abaqus to lower costs and reduce cycle times through the realistic simulation of stress, impact, crush, fluid-structure interaction, thermal dynamics, and other complex behaviours of products, materials, ...
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Article
Cutting-edge technology at IMTS
The International Manufacturing and Technology Show (IMTS) will be held in Chicago, Illinois at McCormick Place from 8-13 September, 2008. One of the largest industrial trade shows in the world, this biennial event features virtually every manufacturer of equipment and accessories for the automotive sector. Here are some of the ...
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ArticleA desire named street car
A potential for frictionThe future is plasticPassing on the skillsTechology transferRunning a Grand Prix racing team is not a cheap exercise, but carmakers involved in this most elite of motor sports are counting on the spin-offs of technology transfer to their commercial productsThe link between racing teams and carmakers has ...
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ArticleLiving in a material world
Lightweight end of lifeReinventing traditional materialsTime for magnesiumAdvances in steelPlastic potentialAerospace and automotive convergenceHybrid vehiclesEnd-user benefitDevelopments in alternative materials are driving change in the drivetrain and bringing benefits to an industry trying to reduce emissions and improve performance Talk to anyone involved in the automotive supply chain and chances are ...
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ArticleFrom strength to strength
A future for steelSteel innovationsFlat carbon steelQuiet SteelSmooth high strengthCross-car beamSteel solutionsSpecialist high-strength steels are helping engineers and designers save weight while meeting stringent performance and safety targetsWhen you talk to carmakers around the world the theme of high-strength steels as the preferred material for carmakers in terms of performance, ...
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ArticleVAC-TAC adhesive system from Power Adhesives
VAC-TAC is a new adhesive system from Power Adhesives for securing and positioning reinforcement materials in vacuum infused composites. It has been designed to hold in place typical vacuum processing products such as reinforced fabrics, foam, balsa, bleeders, breathers, peel plies and release fi lms used in even the largest ...
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ArticleLight and plastic industry
A range of innovative and versatile plastic-moulded components are being eagerly adopted by the automotive industry as it strives to save weight and stay cost effectiveVersatile polypropyleneInstrument panelsPlastic in the hoodWeighty dilemmaPlastic proofingStyling aidOne of the stated aims of US legislators is to raise the fuel economy of cars and ...
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ArticleTurning up the WiC
BERU F1 is working in harness with carmakers to protect and package wiring solutions for today’s more sophisticated vehicles.Reliable protectionVersatilitySignificant advances in the materials used in wiring harnesses offer the automotive industry opportunities to enhance the packaging, weight and functionality by combining composites and loom into a single component.Today’s automotive ...
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ArticlePump up the volume
Carbon fibre has long been the preserve of the super car elite – but those days are coming to an endCarbon fibre is finding favour in structural componentsProduction processes must be developedCarbon gives the necessary weight savingsMention composites in the context of car design and thoughts automatically turn to the ...
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Article
The race for better metals
Motorsport engines demand higher performance and that means the manufacture of very pure metals. It’s an area of intense competition and innovation, as Nigel Eames of MCT explainsPurer steelMaterial researchOne of the most gruelling automotive environments for metals is that found in a motorsport engine, where reliability and performance are ...