All Press and stamping articles – Page 19
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Fiat heading for a cleaner horizon
Sharing best practice in Group manufacturingEnvironmental management system certificationVolatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)Addressing water scarcityWater withdrawal and rainwater harvestingWaste managementEquipment containing PCB and PCTWith multiple production plants in Europe and the Americas, and with joint venture facilities in Russia and China due to come on line later this year, Fiat Group’s ...
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The quest for quality in Turkey
Power of threeCrisis and recoveryFlexible purchasingConquering complexityMoving with the timesUltimate customer serviceFord Motor Company has long had a presence in Turkey. In 1928, the first dealership was established in Istanbul, selling imported models. In 1959 the carmaker’s first production plant was established in what was then an Istanbul suburb. Operated ...
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Still waiting for the green light
Saved from the floodNew engines, new line?Changing tacticsFuture plansA series of global events have left Honda’s second manufacturing facility in India producing a limited number of body and engine parts. Julian Buckley travelled to the site to ask when it will get the go-ahead to start full production.Honda Siel Cars ...
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Made in the South
Pleased to meet youWeld typesPlanning for C-ClassTail light preparationA tour of the bodyshop at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, which review the technologies that have been added for production of the new M-Class SUV.In 1997, the M-Class SUV was the first model to enter production at the $400m Mercedes-Benz ...
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Battle royale between steel and aluminium
Material selectionOptimum multi-material solutionsLightweight materials impact NVHHigh-strength applicationsMulti-material futureBody closures offer future potentialStrength is rarely the deciding factorNew forces for changeAlternative vehicle architectures and electric powerSustainability of manufacturing operationsOver recent years, the on-going contest between lobbyists working on behalf of the steel and aluminium industries has become increasingly raucous as ...
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The power of nature
Glenn Brooks examines developments in alternative power generation at vehicle and powertrain production plants in Europe, the US and Brazil, as well as a particularly innovative facility currently under construction in North AfricaToyota's UK 'eco-friendly'The world's largest solar roofSolar power for Chevrolet Volt plantVolkswagen's hydropower initiativeZero-emissions car plantZero discharge, zero ...
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Geared up for flexible growth
Steel and stamping successShift systemFrom construction to productionBody-in-white - expertise on two levelsSuppliers onsite and onside for efficient assemblyTransmission productionHyundai Motor Manufacturing Czech (HMMC) in Nošovice is described by the carmaker as being the most modern manufacturing facility in Europe. While that claim might provoke some debate, the plant can ...
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How to make it in America
Executives at three transplant OEM production sites in the United States discuss how their respective operations are developing and what challenges had to be overcome in order to achieve success in manufacturingClose relationshipsBenchmarking worksPeople powerProcess leadershipDecoupled shiftsDifferent future pathsNo restIn 1966, Nissan was the first transplant carmaker to set up ...
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Aluminium gets tough
Research into steel substitutionRecycling aluminium for automotive usageStadco predicts increased aluminium usageTesting to continueAMC takes shapeBreakthrough weight savingsThe advantages to be gained from using aluminium to build cars – whether as body panels, chassis solutions or powertrains – are now widely recognised. The material is significantly lighter than sheet steel, ...
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MINI maximises quality and productivity
When demand for the brand grew at an extraordinary pace Mini could have been a victim of its own success, but intelligent production management and an enthusiastic workforce have managed to maintan qualityFlexible thinkingClosing the doorsStores and doors - final assemblyInterview: Dr Jürgen HedrichApprenticeships and meistersShift patterns for shifting demandNew ...
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Vive l’Alliance!
In an exclusive interview with AMS, Bruno Ancelin, General Manager of Renault Russia, describes about how the French carmaker, together with Nissan and AvtoVAZ, is putting in place additional production capacity with the goal of cornering 40% of the Russian passenger car marketLike most of his colleagues at the Renault ...
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Hard pressed benefits
Speed is keyWorking with exoticsFlexibility in production and processPress shop productivity is typically controlled by upstream design decisions, from both a product and process perspective. Therefore, close co-operation between car stylists, bodyin-white engineers and press shop engineers is critical. Here, a number of measures dictate success. Designers must minimize the ...
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The manufacturing environment; manikin to man-machine
Virtual task modelling is helping experts to factor in the limitations of the human body in order to reduce the chance of repetitive strain injuries, while also improving production efficiencies across manufacturing plantsHappy seat, happy employeesThe virtues of the virtual workstationHuman Task SimulationHuman Activity AnalysisHuman Posture AnalysisAutomated replenishmentTracked, prioritized - ...
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The evolution of steel
Aluminium and other exotic materials are being championed as the future of automotive BIW, but Ford and the World AutoSteel organisation believe steel will remain the material of choice, albeit in non-traditional forms.Looking to the futureDesign optimisationAt a recent model launch, a sheet was pulled back to reveal a new ...
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The Chinese market starts to mature
Rationalising the manufacturing baseElectric DreamsMercedes-Benz plans rapid -ramp-upIn preparation for the second AMS China conference, to be held June 28 – 30 at the Intercontinental Shanghai Pudong hotel, AMS recently visited several carmakers and suppliers in China. Some interesting themes emerged from the meetings and plant visits, both in manufacturing ...
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Hybrid theory from motor sport
Carbon fibre flywheel technology developed by the Williams F1 team could benefit hybrid powertrains, and BMW’s racing expertise is filtering down to the company’s assembly linesWilliams tries new techStalled battery developmentBMWDry textilesMotor sport, and particularly Formula One, is known for its rapid development of existing technologies, or the formation of ...
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Seeing is retreiving
As demand returns to many regions, OEMs require more visibility throughout the supply and manufacturing chainsTimely and accurate delivery of materials and components to production lines is at the heart of any efficient automotive manufacturing facility and is a particularly relevant subject as vehicle output increases in various new markets, ...
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Pride in production
On a visit to Volvo’s Torslanda plant in Gothenberg, Sweden, AMS examines how the split from Ford has affected the carmaker, going on to look at the production processes put in place to handle the complicated model mixVolvo manufacturing ethosRecruitmentCost-cutting solutionsA lighter modelDelivering to the worldSwedish showcaseIn comparison to the ...
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Re-condition and re-use
As markets in traditional regions of automotive manufacturing contract, new plants being built in low-cost countries are looking to benefit from installing used equipmentConveyors - a feast of flexibilityRelocation, relocation, relocationPaintshop Nano-techCamping out down at NissanCOMAUKUKA RoboterSABBRobot tradingAIDAWhile a lot of smaller manufacturing equipment is too specific in terms of ...
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Savings by design
Tata Motors at Sanand is behind the Nano and its challenge of producing and marketing the car at the given price pointColour considerationsThe Tata Nano still holds the title of the world’s most inexpensive new car. But the question remains, how do they do it? How does Tata manage to ...