Well integrated
First integrated fender module to go into volume production

Since the end of last year the North American market has seen the launch of the new BMW X5, which will be coming to showrooms in Europe at the end of March. Compared to its predecessor it has grown by 19cm and now features an optional third row of seats. Comparing the Diesel engine model it is the same weight as the old model with an increase of 15% torsion stiffness and has a consumption of only 8,7 l/100 km. Visually, BMW has succeeded in maintaining the proportions with the result that, from the outside, the end customer will hardly notice the fact that it has been lengthened.  The aim of the development was clearly to maintain the driving dynamics, luxury and exclusivity and to appear cautiously more “elegant” in terms of the design.  And “more elegant”, in BMW parlance when talking about exteriors, means, for one aspect, fewer and smaller gaps.  A further development target was the crash safety and pedestrian protection. This particular class of automobile has a bad reputation for offering particularly poor protection to pedestrians. Here BMW has set a benchmark with the new X5. ....read more!

Lightweight but heavy duty
In the new TT, Audi is presenting a rear seat back with no steel inserts

In order to ensure stability and robustness, a rear seat back has to be made of steel. Even Erich Gelbmann at Audi had to fight against this pre-conceived idea. Assembling all the facts which could turn this gut feeling on its head also cost him a great deal of time and effort. Because, at first sight, a free-standing blow-moulded rear seat back made from PC/ABS without any metal reinforcement does seem overly ambitious. ....read more!

Clever strategies
Injection moulding of critical components

The injection moulding company Quadrant CMS, one of Belgium’s largest, is a specialist in the production of critical components.
Work is carried out on 99 injection moulding machines supplied by Krauss-Maffei, Engel and Ferromatik. The company’s main area of operation and the principal focus of its activities is the automotive sector, with a 65% share, but it is also active in the food & beverages sector and medical applications. ...read more!

Honeycomb technology
Sandwich structure for interior parts

The standards expected from the pressed - and often stressed - interior parts are getting ever more demanding. No bumps or dents are allowed, and they need to be impact and shock resistant and able to bear any excess weight. ...read more!

Off-road with plastic
Audi Q7 fitted with airbag housing made of PA

Key Safety Systems, an international automotive supplier, ZF Boge Elastmetall of Damme, Germany, and BASF have joined forces in developing the housing for the passenger airbag used in the new Audi Q7. This is Audi‘s first passenger airbag housing made of plastic for its high-end models. ...read more!

Starting Signal for Plastics
Blow moulding technology for fuel systems

Established in September 1994 in the city of Tolyatti in the Russian Samara region, Detalstroikonstructsia Ltd (DSK) started producing automotive components for the automotive supplier AvtoVAZ in 1995. The range includes carpeting, window systems as well as fuel tanks and filler necks, which were initially made of steel. The tank production was modernized to meet the requirements of front wheel driven cars under the Euro-2 and Euro-3 standards (2000-2003) and further developments for other vehicles followed. ...read more!

Time reduction and production increase
Extrusion blow moulding using Drywater

Refrigeration specialist Fasti has developed a cooling concept for its customers in the blow moulding industry. A chilled mixture of water and air (also called „saturated steam) is being applied in the process. This saturated steam mixture is capable of removing heat from the blown part. Quality also improves - the micro particular structure of the steam creates a very smooth surface on the inside of the blown product. ...read more!

Citroën C4 Picasso Suppliers
Read about suppliers of plastic parts of the Citroen C4 Picasso

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Three decorative surfaces from one mould
Duo-Lamination - bonding technology for door panels

An innovative combination of known processes, tried-and-tested materials, and a newly developed bonding technology enables to manufacture car interior door panels with several decorative surfaces on just one injection moulding machine. This new technology not only broadens the designer’s scope but also reduces manufacturing costs. ....read more!

Up to 300,000 Variants
Complex front-end module of the current Mini

HBPO GmbH, Lippstadt, Germany, has implemented a uniquely complex project with the front-end for the BMW Group’s current Mini generation. Depending on the particular model, 85 staff at HBPO UK Ltd in Banbury, England, will assemble up to 170 parts from 31 different suppliers into complete front-ends. No later than four hours after an order is placed, HBPO delivers the module “just in sequence” to the assembly line at the Mini factory in Oxford, 50 kilometres away. The hourly production rate is up to 46 front-ends, and the HBPO facility in Banbury can produce 220,000 modules per year. There are a total of 300,000 possible front-end variants for the Mini. ....read more!

Highly Visible
Tailor-made automotive plastics

Besides many other products for the automotive industry Lanxess will present their ABS range. In the new BMW 3 Series Coupé, ABS plastics are used in a highly visible location. The vehicle‘s fenders have been manufactured from Triax DP 3157, an online coatable polyamide+ABS blend (PA+ABS) for body parts. ....read more!

Bodywork parts with Class A surfaces
Process chain for customer trials

Bayer MaterialScience have developed with their partners a handling process for film insert moulding (FIM) in which the film is electro-statically charged before being inserted. This enables it to sit tightly and accurately in the mould. To offer their customers an optimum and production-oriented development and test environment for mass production of FIM-components, Bayer MaterialScience have installed the complete process chain for film back-injection on a technical service lab scale at the site in Leverkusen, Germany. ....read more!

All good things come in threes
Krauss-Maffei in Mannheim

Escalating competitive pressure makes it essential to continuously improve existing manufacturing processes and to develop new ones. Krauss-Maffei, with competence in three machine technologies - injection moulding, extrusion and reaction processing - is in a position to force the pace of development. ....read more!

Micro-foam in the automobile
MuCell for housings of air conditioning systems and of large door locks

The MuCell process lies at the heart of Trexel‘s activities (please see also Polymotive Issue 11+12/2006, page 24) . The physical foaming process for thermoplasts is being used ever more frequently in parts for the automotive industry. All the thermoplasts used in compact injection moulding, with the exception of LCP, can be processed using MuCell. ....read more!

From Prototype to Application
Dow Automotive showcases advancement of ideas into products

At this year‘s VDI conference and exhibition Dow Automotive will showcase how it can transform innovative ideas into commercial applications. The company‘s broad portfolio of plastics and adhesives results in a steady flow of innovations that provide solutions to the industry‘s most critical needs in areas such as crashworthiness, lightweight construction and cost-efficiency. ....read more!

International Conference „Plastics in Automotive Engineering“ 2007

On 21st and 22nd March 2007 VDI will be holding the international conference “Plastics in Automotive Engineering” and an exhibition in Mannheim, Germany. It is organised by the VDI-Society for Plastics Technologies. ....read more!

Read more about several products for the automotive industry
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