The September discussion in the Automotive Focus Group (AFG) was opened by the president, James Beeson, who introduced the speaker Uli Kaiser of EMAG, with the subject being Green Manufacturing – Profitable Manufacturing.
The presentation featured some ‘groundbreaking’ new technology which allows cost reduction of up to 50 percent, through savings in cycle time, material, labor, energy and consumables.
Uli was very enthusiastic about the new technologies, especially with the fact that by reducing the cycle time this in turn produces cost savings. He used the example of differing ways to produce shafts in the auto industry.
Uli Kaiser of EMAG talks about Green Manufacturing – Profitable Manufacturing.
By employing hard turning rather than grinding there was a 50 percent saving in cycle time. However, by using bar peeling rather than hard turning there was another 50 percent saving. However, the very latest technology of using synchro support grinding produced a 90 percent saving in time versus all others.
Other technologies mentioned included laser welding in differentials, rather than bolting the gear wheel to the hub carrier. This produces differentials that are lighter and less costly to produce.
One manufacturing technique which was very interesting, was in the production of camshafts. Rather than machine these from the billet, the cam lobes and the shaft were produced separately and then the heated lobes were shrunk on to the camshaft under computer control to have the lobes facing the correct way. A much faster way to produce a camshaft compared to the age-old method of cam grinding.
The AFG acts as a forum for gathering and sharing information related to the Thailand Automotive Industry in general, but particularly the Automotive OEM’s and Suppliers in the Eastern Seaboard.
Contact with the AFG can be made through the president, James Beeson ([email protected]) and the website www.afg-thailand.blogspot.com.
