car planning factory

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Planning of a car factory

Automotive Product Development and Production

Groupwork:

Matthias HeiserBenjamin KoenigSebastien LavoieDaniel LuechtStefan Penner

Roelof van Maasakkers

Hand in date:

24.03.2004

Tutor:

Dr. W. Schreiber


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Table of contents

1. Introduction 2

2. Scenario 3

2.1 Developments in Technology 62.2. Changes in Production 8

3. Technical concept and package 10

3.1 Competitive advantage 103.2 Benchmark and positioning 123.3 Package Specifications and Drawing 15

4. SWOT and critical success factors 18

5. WORK-BREAK-DOWN STRUCTURE for the plant 19

6. Overall factory layout 20

7. Individual layout 24

7.1 Body in White 247.1.1 Press Shop 247.1.2 Body Shop 267.2 Paint Shop 297.3 Final Assembly 31

8. Logistic process 33

9. Process flow 36

9.1 Process Flow Body in White 369.1.1 Process Flow Press Shop 369.1.2 Process Flow Body Shop 379.2 Process Flow Paint Shop 379.3 Process Flow Final Assembly 39

10. Modularisation of product and production 40

11. Conclusion 43

12. References 44

13. Appendix 46


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1. Introduction

The following report is about to show the learning outcomes of the given ProductDevelopment and Production lectures of the fourth core module of the MSc course.

The development of new vehicle manufacturing plants becomes more and moreimportant. The implementation of suppliers into the development process and the use ofnew car development concepts cause a change in developing new plants.

The task is to develop a plan and a layout for a car factory under the followingrequirements:

A00 class car2,000 units per day3 shifts of 8 hours eacha low number of derivatesstart of production is 2010

The report is devided into thirteen chapters and includes all aspects of a car factorylayout. Each chapter covers a single topic which has to be taken into consideration whenplanning this layout. The report starts by analysing the scenario in the year 2010. Fromthere on all the given partial tasks are solved.


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2. Scenario

Scenario of the year 2010

Regarding the developments of the past and nowadays society, politics and technologies,

it is possible to create scenarios for the future. These scenarios can roughly be dividedinto three different categories:

Prosperity: Growth of the economy, traditional values Pragmatism: Low growth of the economy, no big changes are expected Transformation: Stagnation, crisis, changes in values

Each category reflects different expectations of the future, but can anyhow only show anevolutionary development. The danger of unforeseen changes, based on political, societalor technical revolutions or on terroristic or climatic hazards can be only slightly regarded,because of their complexity of influence.

Applying a pragmatic view of the future for an automobile in the year 2010, it can be saidthat:

Unique selling properties will be: styling (still), environmentally-friendliness andeconomy will increase, innovation and price will stay similar to nowadays (1*);

Increase of after sales activities such as loyalty programs and mobility services (1*), [] the basic concept of automotive transportation hasn't made a really quantum

leap in the past 50 years, and in the last few decades in particular, technologicaladvancements seem to have levelled off a great deal. To the average owner, themass market family sedan is becoming just another necessary "appliance" like arefrigerator, except for its relative cost. It is chock full of sophisticated electronicscience and development -- but that is mostly transparent technology, and the end

result is millions of vehicles that are apparently functionally indistinguishable.(2*)

Above all, several changes in the future influencing the automotive industry can alreadybe predicted because of the nowadays situation and the success in developments:

Societal changes

Disregarding any political or technological changes, the society experiences ademographical change within the next years. This can be said because of the observationsdone in the past.When designing a car, it has to be beared in mind, that the average of the population isgrowing continuously, due to developments in medicine and life-quality. This growth is

stated for Middle Europe with 1 mm per year in average, except from the Netherlands,where it is 1,6 mm per year (3*).Not only is the average height of the population increasing also the average age,especially in Middle Europe. Regarding the following figure, it is obvious, that there arealready in 2010 remarkable changes identifiable.


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figure 001: Demographical development belonging to the age of the German populationin comparison between 1998 and 2030 (3*).

The increase of traffic of the last years, shown on the figures of the registration history ofGermany will implement a stronger need for safety which is already nowadays the case.Independent organizations such as the EuroNCAP achieved a big popularity in testing newcars and those already on the market for safety issues, demanding in some issues muchhigher limit values than legislatively claimed. For example the hip-collision for pedestriansafety, which is introduced by law in 2010, but already tested by the EuroNCAP (4*).


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10 000 000

20 000 000

30 000 000

40 000 000

50 000 000

1968 1978 1988 1998

Year

Numberofregisteredcars

figure 002: Number of registered passenger vehicles in Germany from 1970 to 2000(10*)

Another societal influence on the automotive industry is the changing buying behaviour ofthe population. The trust into the internet and its usage is growing and changes thebuying behaviour in many cases of the daily life. This will influence the traditionalautomotive dealers, which will loose importance, down to -40% of todays revenues;furthermore discount dealers will be selling huge volumes of cars and will increase their

market share because of the Gruppenfreistellungsverordnung, GVO (5*).

This influence is made up by the legislation of the European Union. In the past, therewere already directives for several issues to increase the ease of use and therefore thesafety, like the SAE set in 1964 the order of PRNDL for automatic gearbox shifters or in1977 the order of certain control functions to be on the right or left side of the controlstalk (6*).An actual example is the upcoming pedestrian safety regulation 70/156/EWG, which caseof an accident. This regulation does have a big influence on the design of nowadays carsand increases the need for new technology in certain areas (7*).


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One of the main driving forces in the automotive industry is the technology itself. Asnowadays already regarded, the use of electrics and electronics is increasing. Thistendency will continue in the future.

figure 003 : The shift of value for functions in comparison between the years 2002 and2010 for passenger vehicle (9*).

2.1 Developments in Technology


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Searching for alternative fuels, hydrogen was discovered in the 60s by GM for theempowerment of passenger vehicles. GM presented the concept Electrovan, using a fuelcell to produce electrical energy to drive the car. Nowadays almost every other big

Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) is presenting concepts of a possible use of fuelcell in mobile applications. BMW presented the first hydrogen car in 1978 and provesnowadays the usability of hydrogen as an alternative fuel with their 745h fleet, which isoften used as a shuttle service for important events such as the IAA in Frankfurt / Main,without any compromises in power and comfort (8*).Regarding the year 2010 is not very obvious that this technology will have its breakthrough; because of the very wide spread infrastructure for petroleum use and its costefficiency, that it will probably need a revolution to evoque bigger changes in enginetechnology within the next six years. This is even more obvious, when regarding thenowadays stage of developments in alternative power and the duration of the automotiveproduct development.

Another big issue in technological development is the increasing need for safety and thesevere regulations for the future as already mentioned in the chapter before. Theupcoming pedestrian safety regulations for example do have a big influence on thedevelopment of new cars; not only has the design of the structure to be changed tocreate a pedestrian-friendly car, but also the materials to absorb the energy and thestyling of the front-end. Last but not least, active systems are developed to increase thecollapsible zone for the pedestrian through lifting the bonnet, but also detection systemsto avoid the accident. This will lead to an increased use of electronically features asalready mentioned above.To reduce cost and increase the effectiveness of nowadays safety systems, detectionsystems will increase the passive safety through controlling the occupancy of seat, theposition of the person and his weight, sex and size to react in the right way in case of an

accident.

Regarding the last decades, more and more new segments are invented to satisfycustomers needs. Nowadays there are already a lot of so called crossover cars availablewhich are combinations of different segments. This variety will increase in the future andregarding a little bit further, probably lead to a dilution of the formerly clearly dividedsegments in the automotive sector and also it will involve issues of motorcycles,watercraft, hovercraft or even aircrafts (2*).

Having already mentioned changing regulations for passenger safety there are much moreinfluences by the law on the development of new cars. The always increasing restrictionsfor fuel consumption and emissions lead to the need to increase efficiency of the car andthis is primarily done through weight reduction. The use of innovative materials isnecessary to create lightweight structures, always bearing in mind that the recyclability ofthe car has to be increased as well, demanded by law.The use of lightweight structures in the future is predictable regarding nowadaysstructures used in the upper segment, like the MERCEDES CL, which combines manydifferent materials to utilize their special potentials. These ideas gained in this highlyprofitable market will float down to the mass production as already seen with theAluminium bodied AUDI A8 and the AUDI A2.Not only the decrease of weight leads to further developments but also the changes andincrease in demand of the customer. Innovative materials are invented to reducecontamination of the exterior and interior or to increase the level of comfort throughventing fabrics (9*).


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Looking at the visions of the past and the developments nowadays, the dream ofautonomous driving is still a big issue for the future. Presenting systems that aredetecting the surrounding of the car and even manipulating the speed, like the Automatic

Cruise Control (AUDI), it is shown that autonomous driving is still a goal of thedevelopment and research departments.The following graphic shows some important developments which will have an influenceon the driving of the future from a technological point of view:

figure 004: Technological Milestones in connection with the time (9*).

The increasing globalization not only affects the consumer behaviour as alreadymentioned but also the pressure of costs for the production because of the risingcompetition. Most of the OEM do have production sites in various countries, not only to beclose to the market but also to reduce costs of production.

Through the rising competition there are also changing expectations in the brands, thathave to be fulfilled through a decrease of the time-to-market-time and the increase ofderivates and variants to satisfy the customers. This leads to a shortening of the product-life-cycles and requires short reaction times, not only in the development but also in theproduction.The increase of variants and derivates, the decrease of time-to-market and the shorteningof life-cycles are exactly contrariwise to the sempiternal growth of complexity throughalready mentioned changes in technology. External resources have to be involved in thedevelopment of new products as it is already done with external suppliers like BOSCH,developing fuel injection systems or DELPHI, developing interior solutions. Furthermore,external production capacities are used to purchase systems or whole modules for a car.These tendencies will probably also increase in the future regarding upcoming solutions inplant layout, where the suppliers are not only delivering parts but also mounting them on

location, like it is done in

2.2. Changes in Production


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the SMART plant in Hambach / Germany or the VOLKSWAGEN Commercial Vehicle plantin Brazil (10*).These examples show a change in the value-added chain. The responsibility of the

manufacturing of a module is extended to the assembly into the car. That means that thenumber of employees in the assembly will be reduced at the side of the OEM but increasesat the side of the suppliers. A survey was done by a consulting agency belonging to thefuture of the production of vehicles. Managers of OEM and Suppliers on all levels ofproduction where asked to answer several question to the production of a car in the year2010. 60 % of the managers believe in a reorganization of the value-added chain in thementioned direction, the rest expects a moderate change in stabilized structures. (5*).

This survey also shows a further trend, namely that the involvement of the supplier is notonly extended internally the assembly but even completely outsourced to the supplier.38 % of the surveyed people can imagine that the production in 2010 is done at thesupplier under the brand of the OEM (5*).

A further trend can already be regarded these days: The number of suppliers is reducedalthough the involvement is increasing continuously. That does not mean that they willclose down but consolidate with other suppliers. This reduction will be up to 50 % of todayto 4000 (1*). This trend is initiated mainly by the two reasons: The OEM wish to deal witha smaller number of suppliers to reduce organizational effort and the supplier wants toincrease their competence to extend their production program to larger modules.

As shown in the chapter above, the developments in the field of electronics will have a biginfluence on the driving in the future. This does also means that the influence of theelectronic-processing companies will grow. That includes on the one hand electronic parts

producing companies but also software programming companies (9*).


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3. Technical concept and package

The main objective for the company to introduce a car in the A00 class car segment, is toincrease the market share in the worldwide motor industry. To increase market share, it is

important to differentiate and to introduce more diversity in the model range.

After the launch phase, the aim of the A00 class car is to consolidate and further expandthe success of the company. On its way to this goal the company is supported by twomarket trends. Firstly, the A00 car segment is set to grow by about 50% over the nextten to twelve years from the 8.4 million units worldwide sold in 2001.(15*)And secondly, the market for premium products is clearly growing faster than the totalmarket. Particularly in the A00 class segment, the number of customers who will notcompromise on safety, quality and driving characteristics is rising faster than average.(15*)

The first step in understanding the position of a product is to examine this against its

competitors. All products are in a competitive position in relation to each other. Toanalyse the market the identification of key competitive forces have to be identified. Inthe very complex and competitive motor industry, the substitutes are very close to eachother (see Benchmark in the Appendix figure 026).

The A00 car segment was the domain of the South and East European as well as AsianOEM till recently. These carried out their profits of the cost leadership and the Economiesof Scale. Vehicles like the Fiat panda or the Mazda 121 stand out due to functionality anda reasonable price in which the extremely cost-conscious buyers are also ready to makecut backs at equipment and design. This way of thinking changed during the last decades.The new stars at the A00 market showing high quality standards, a lot of the newest high-tech features and they are no longer only cheap cars.

This graphic (figure 004) shows the position of our A00 class car to its competitors. TheY-axis shows the buyers emotional rate to a brand and the X-axis shows rate of buyerssocial integration to a brand. The conclusion is that our A00 class car is bought with amore than average degree of emotions.

2.1 Competitive advantage

Control emotion

Social integrationSocial affirmation

Express emotion

figure 004

We


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All companies in the market are in competition with each other. In the business ofmanufacturing it is important to identify a companys competitive advantage. The brandsand especially the models have a specific competitive advantage to other models.

There are three competitive advantages:

FocusDifferentiationCost

This graphic (figure 005) shows the relation between the competitive advantages, costs,differentiation and focus. It points out, especially in our case, the connection betweencosts and differentiation. It is clear, if the differentiation increases, the cost factor drops.The competitive advantage for our A00 class car is differentiation.

cost

differentiationfocus

figure 005

We


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3.2 Benchmark and positioning

Comparing the competitors under the aspect of the outer size, an upper limit of 900mmor the A00 Class is figured out. The average height is roundabout 1500mm with someexceptions up- and downwards. The positioning of our project in length to the competitorsis a tribute to the ever growing average size of the cars and the implementation of a

sportive exterior look in increasing the length while having an average height.

height/mm

length / mm

1350

1400

1450

1500

1550

1600

1650

1700

2500 3000 3500 4000 4500

3900

Maximum length inthe A00 Segment

~1400

Minimum height butno Maximum

We

figure 006


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The relation between quantity and price, regarding the German market, is needed tocreate an attractive price for the customer. Our expected sales numbers will be higherthan Peugeot, but the upper price limit should not exceed this competitor. The bottomprice limit should not underbid competitors like Hyundai because of image and

differentiation reasons. This leads to a range of prices which will offer the possibility tointroduce different model variants beginning with a cheap basic model at the bottom anda sporty model at the end of the range.

quantity/thousand

Price / thousand Euro

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Basic Sport Model

We

figure 007


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Relating the weight to the volume, a ratio of lightweight can be created. The aim is toachieve a maximum of volume with a minimum of weight in comparison to thecompetitors. The increasing demands for fuel efficiency implements a decrease of weight.

This decrease is also needed to increase the sportiness of our car.

weight/kg

length* width* height / 10000000mm3

500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200

700

800

900

1000

1100

1200

1300

1400

Better

weight / volume

Ratio

-> sporty

~Maximum

in the A00 Segmentdue to the length

We

figure 008


16/4615front-wheel driveDriven axle

front engine, transversally mountedEngine

175/65 R15 up to 205/55 R16Wheels and tires

55 - 125 (gto-version)Performance [kW]

~2750Wheelbase [mm]

495Load capacity [kg]

less than 900Weight [kg]

~1650Width [mm]

~1500Height [mm]

~3850Length [mm]

4, optional 5Number of passengers

starting at 9995 up to ~14800Price [EUR]

Singles and Young Unisex Driver as First Car, Second Car

for Family UseTarget group

3 shifts of 8 hours each

Start of production 2010,

Low number of derivatives,

A00 class car, 2.000 units per day,Scenario

Specification

3.3 Package Specifications and Drawing

Following are Specifications and Drawings that define package issues, such as height,length, width, head position contour, front and rear passenger position, vision lines aswell as Angle of Approach and Departure for A00 vehicle class.


17/4616Car width1690W103

Steering Wheel Diameter355W9

W

Overhang - Rear498,5L105

Overhang - Front580L104

Vehicle Length3832L103

Wheelbase2755L101

H-Point Distance741L50

Trunk slope - driver seat25L40

H-Point to Heel Point - Rear542,2L35

H-Point to Heel Point - Front939,2L34

Steering Wheel to Front Wheel1277L26

Horizontal seat adjustable stroke - driver seat216L23

L

Ground Clearance170H156

Tank Ground Clearance265H154

Angle of Departure25H107

Angle of Approach30H106

Vehicle Height1496,6H101

Vertical measure H-Point to Heel Point - Rear279H31

Vertical measure H-Point to Heel Point - Front292H30

Vertical seat adjustable stroke - driver seat59,4H23

Steering column angle in Y-plane21,6H19

H

H-Point x measure2265L31

H-Point y measure-295W20

H-Point z measure268H70

H-Point to Ground568H10

H-Point - Rear

H-Point x measure1525L31

H-Point y measure-380W20

H-Point z measure310H70

H-Point to Ground610H5

H-Point - Front

descriptionspecificationmeasure


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Package Drawing

Out of the measurements and specifications given above, a package drawing was created.Figure 009 shows a preview of the drawing. The appendix includes a 1:5 scale plot of thedrawing.

figure 009


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4. SWOT and critical success factors

Threats

1)Many competitors, especially from Asia2)More strict crash legislation

Opportunities

1)Fuel prices increasing2)More strict exhaust emissions law3)Lower speed limits

Weaknesses

1)Small overall dimensions: fullfillingsafety requirements2)Limited space for alternative engineconcepts3)Not suitable for every market

Strengths

1)Small car (parking space)2)Fuel economy3)Modular product configuration: earlytestings possible

O3Little

O2, T2Middle

O1Strong

T1Massive

ProbablePossibleHardly PossibleNot ProbableInfluence

Probability

figure 010: Product SWOT analysis

The analysed Opportunities and Threats are rated to their probability to increase thepredictability of the success of the project.

figure 011: Product Critical Success Factors

Stating the assessed values, an estimation of risk can be done belonging to the bases ofthe facts. The occurrence of Threads is usually not influencable, but the knowledge ofpossible Threads allows the company to prepare for them and to develop strategies toface them successfully. Whereas opportunities offer the possibilities to increase thesuccess of the project and in long-term of the company, if they are recognized and facedin the right way.


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Threats

-New environmental law-Increasing power of suppliers-Workers unions-Resistance to industrialisation by Greenparty or population

Opportunities

-Flexibility of the plant-Economy of scale

Weaknesses

-High amount of investment (new plant)-High material flowinflexible-High fixed cost (robots and machinery)

Strengths

-New plant with latest concepts-Low number of product derivatives-High plant modularisation-Communication center: highcommunication throughput-Early failure detection throughcommunication center-High degree of mechanisation

figure 012: Plant SWOT analysis

The work breakdown structure (WBS) is a tool to subdivide the whole plant into systems(its single departments), subsystems (sub departments e.g. press and body shop) andmodules (e.g. the modules at the assembly line) up to the lowest components, theworkpackages. The WBS is the spine of the plant development and shows the coherenciesto the different departments. For the development of the new plant a simplified workbreakdown structure is shown in the appendix (figure 027).

5. WORK-BREAK-DOWN STRUCTURE for the plant


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6. Overall factory layout

During the last decades the layout of car manufacturing plants changed very often, alwaysadapted to the present conditions and facilities. Due to the fact that the term leanproduction gains more importance and the minimization of so called non-value adding

activities are taken into consideration, new plants have to be developed for the future aswell. The main aim is to save money (produce efficient), improve the product quality andavoid unnecessary costs. This can be done by removing or avoiding unnecessarymachinery processes, using new production methods, minimizing high inventories or evenby reducing material handling.

A manufacturing philosophy such as Kaizen deals with is the breaking down of theactivities into sub-activities and investigating the possibilities to shorten and simplifythese sub-activities. This is only one example. Due to lean production the participation ofall involved parties such as the design, suppliers and the production is the way to ensurethe best compatibility between design and manufacturing.Poka Yoke, the Japanese term for defect prevention deals with the design of new

plants, too. To eliminate the production of defects, to ease detection of missing parts orimproper assembly, to take the burden off the worker or also to avoid equipment or injurymalfunctions are ideas which influences the plant development in present.

The use of the platform strategy will be continued in the future time. The most importantbenefits are listed below:

Reduction of costs Lower the initial investment A possible part exchange Reduction of part variety Process improvement

A better quality control

To minimise the needed storage space the just in time (JIT) delivery method will beimplemented. Therefore two logistic centres are planned.

Due to the fact that cars become more and more complex, the production becomes morecost related and cost orientated and the logistics more important, the new plant looks likea star (figure 013). In the centre is the communication centre, which controls allprocesses that have to be done in the plant. The communication between the singleprocesses and departments is better. This results in an excellent quality management.Potential failures can be discovered in an early production stage, repaired and because ofthe short communication ways easier avoided in the future. After finishing one productionstep, the car has to pass the communication centre, where all data and specifications canbe verified.But also the canteen will be in this centre. People from different departments can sittogether and exchange information or discuss problems. Here new ideas or improvementscan be developed to increase the product or production quality.


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For the development of the new plant the following requirements had to be taken toaccount:

A00 class cars have to be built The outcome of 2,000 units per days is required Each day has 3 shifts about 8 hours working time A low number of derivates is demanded Start of production is 2010

Out of the shown future trends and the requirements a plant layout was developed likeshown in figure 013.

figure 013: Overall Factory Layout


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On the bottom of this figure the production process starts. The raw material (metalsheets) will be delivered to the first of two logistic centres. To safe costs and time intransportation the press shop and also the body shop will be located directly beside this

department. After the body in white is finished, it passes the communication centre thefirst time and goes on to the paint shop. From the paint shop and again through thecommunication centre it ends up in the assembly shop, where the cars will be assembled.In the logistic centre the cars will be loaded on trains to be sent to their destinations.

Volkswagen in Brazil has already such a similar plant. In the centre there is thecommunications centre to control the processes.

The suppliers are fully integrated into the plant. Each supplier has its own area at theassembly line. The segmentation of the plant ensures the easy access for every supplierto deliver the parts directly to the line. The internal logistic travel for the OEM can beminimized in this way.

For an output of 2,000 cars a day, in three shifts of 8 hours each (in total 1,440 minutes)the average output rate will be 2,000units/1,440min. Therefore a car will leave theproduction facilities every 0.72min (43sec) in average. Such high output volumes aregenerally favoured by high degrees of mechanisation. The low number of derivates alsodoesnt requires flexibility or man power. Therefore a degree of mechanisation of about70% is a suitable compromise between too much and too less mechanization in themanner of costs. Nevertheless, it requires well thought-out solutions for built-in flexibility.

Table 1 below shows the characteristics of the new plant, 25,000m2 are required for thecommunication centre, which includes a small engineering department, the qualitydepartment, canteen etc. Another 12,000 m are demanded by the entrance hall with its

exhibition area, a small museum, an event area, merchandise stores and an area wherepeople can pick up their new cars.


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classification number(t)/(cars/day)

1161sum 3

8superior area

45infrastructure and outer area

20social and boundary area

0.54classification number(t)/(cars/day)

1088sum 2

28logistics/controlling


1060sum 1


200assembly


260paint shop


440body shop


160press shop

Table 1: Characteristics of the new car plantInvestments in Thousand Euro

150500sum

1.95sum worker/plant42000assembly

3900sum worker56500paint shop

0.25classification number W/(cars/day)32000body shop

500Others (engineering, administration etc.)20000press shop

0.98classification number W/(cars/day)Production Area in m

1960assembly worker

0.23classification number W/(cars/day)480000cars/year

460paint shop worker2000cars/day

0.38classification number W/(cars/day)83,3cars/hourCapacity in

760body shop worker240plant opening days

0.11classification number W/(cars/day)8shifts per day

220press shop worker1440working time [min/day]

Human ResourcesTechnical Data of the new Car Factory


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7. Individual Layout

This chapter will describe the individual plant layout through the different areas of thefactory for example the press and the body shop; together the body in white, the paintshop and the final assembly line respectively. Each of these areas has different types of

processes with unique features, which will be described in more detail later. Differentbody panels are pressed in the press shop and the vehicle body is then welded together inthe body shop. As the body in white it goes on through the paint shop for furthertreatments and the painting. Finally, the engine, transmission and all other carcomponents are installed on the assembly line.

From the planning period of the plant, up to the start up of the series production it is

important to invest in the latest automation and die handling equipment technology,which can improve production effectiveness, lower die changing costs and provide greaterflexibility. The main objectives of a well designed press shop are:

Produce at the lowest cost Minimise stocks and delays Maximise the return on investment (ROI) Maintain the target product quality

These objectives achieve a better efficiency in operations that minimize:

Production set-up time

Cycle time Downtime Scrap and rework

Further it is absolute necessary to fulfil the requirements for optimal dimensional accuracyand quality of the components, whether the company is producing large outer skin panels,car body or structural parts. When operating a stamping facility, proper scheduling ofequipment and human resources plays an important role in facility performance. Set-up,tool and fixture requirements, preventative maintenance and other factors influence theperformance of the press shop.

The press shop in this new facility is ideally located, moreover, it is directly implementedunder the same roof as the body shop where hundreds of robots spot-weld the panelstogether. The implementation is required in order to reduce transportation of pressedparts. Also the communication travel is less, which significantly increases qualitythroughout the factory. A detailed layout of the press shop is shown in figure 014 below.

7.1. Body in White

7.1.1. Press shop


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Module 5:Assembly parts

Module 3:Side parts

Module 1:Lower body I

Module 2:Lower body II

Module 4:

Upper body

figure 014: Layout of the Press Shop

The raw material comes from the logistic centre and will be distributed to each of thepresses. There are several modules: the lower body I, lower body II, side parts, upperbody and additional assembly parts, which have to be produced. All presses workindependent and deliver the finished parts to the body shop along the red line shown infigure 014. The blue shaded rectangles are storage areas.

The used presses in the new design press shop are transfer presses (see figure 015).

figure 015: Transfer Presses


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Material flow

Module 4:Upper body

Module 1:

Lower body I

Module 5:Assembly parts

Module 6:Finish

Otherareas

Module 2:Lower body II

Module 3:Side parts

figure 015: Transfer Presses

figure 016: Layout of the Body Shop

7.1.2 Body Shop


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In the automotive industry, a new body shop production line needs to be set up for almostevery new car model. Due to the relatively short product life cycles, the planning processof body shops can almost be regarded as continuous and the investment in equipment

sometimes exceeds millions of Euros. Of course, the amount of money spent onequipment mainly depends on the flexibility of the overall manufacturing system, but boththe efficiency of such planning processes and the quality of the final design are alsoessential for a companys success. A main problem is to find an efficient layout fulfillingthe desired production rate and characterised by small buffer sizes and optimised cycletimes. Within the car body shop of an automotive plant, the body-in-white is assembledfrom pre-formed pieces of sheet metal. Here, up to one hundred or even more weldingrobots and various other Equipment are needed to complete the body-in-white before it isconveyed to the next step of the production process.

In the early conceptual design, being among the first steps of the planning processes, theshop is divided into 12 to 18 different blocks, each representing a welding area covering

numerous welding operations in different stations. To decouple the production process,buffers are usually introduced between two subsequent blocks forming a structure ofblocks and buffers. Here, a converting topology can be observed, as the assemblies andsubassemblies coming from certain blocks meet in succeeding areas.

The new body shop is now ready to produce the car body of the required A00 car. 156new robots throughout the body shop have increased the automation level up to 85%.These robots achieve a shorter cycle time; compared with the predecessors, there is asaving of over 50% in production time in body construction alone.Reducing the amount of work to be done has also decreased production time. The numberof components has also been reduced. This has been achieved through the use of large-format panels such as the one-piece side-wall frame.

The welding process used on the new A00 car is a hybrid of conventional laser- and arc-welding processes, which exceeds the limits of current thermal joining processes withregard to productivity, economy, seam quality and process reliability. The laser-MIG-hybrid welding is used in the area of the lateral roof frame where welding a seam lengthof 3.2m per vehicle is achieved. As well as the amount of hybrid welding seam, there arealso 2,200 punch rivets, 54m of MIG welding seams and 20m of laser welding seams onevery A00 body. The greater use of punch riveting on the model means that 500 spotwelds and 178 clinch connections that joined the body of the previous A00 together areno longer required.

Another innovative joining technique is roller-type hemming. Here, rollers secured to arobot arm bend the outer panel over the inner panel and create a powerful connection bythe application of a hem-bonding adhesive. The add-on components on the new A00(doors, bonnet and tailgate) and the connection of the wheel arch with the side-panelframe are processed in this way.


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Inductive gelling is also in production first. In this process, the hem-bonding zones on theadd-on components are heated through targeted induction (electric field) that hardens thehem-bonding adhesive. The component is thus stabilised and any slipping of the outer

panel to the inner panel is avoided.

figure 017: Welding robots in the Body Shop


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7.2. Paint Shop

figure 018

The paint shop application is one of the most demanding aspects of automobilemanufacturing. Not only that the paint coating protects the body surface, it also enhancesvisual appeal by adding colour and gloss a very important selling points. The technology

used must meet high expectations of quality and cost efficiency while remainingenvironmentally responsible such as the use of waterborne primer, efficient managementof paint over spray, pioneering methods of recycling waste materials and energymanagement including heat recovery.

The purpose of the paint shop can be described as to provide a great looking finish withlong term durability. One of the key drivers is the 12 years No Perforation Corrosionguarantees that will be offered on all cars leaving the plant.

To meet this challenge, several key processes and material changes have to beimplemented compared to a conventional paint shop: The used steel itself must have athin zinc coating providing maximum protection against rust. The phosphate, ELPO dipand primer surfacer coatings must be modified to provide increased corrosion protection.Automation is added to apply under body sealer and cavity wax to complete the corrosionprotection package.In order to meet the requirement of 2.000 vehicles a day, the paint shop design layoutmust rely on standardised process control procedures to ensure consistent quality througheach stage. The degree of quality can be significantly increased through thorough testingof incoming materials before usage. Further on, strict use of lint-free clothing and up todate clean room practices contribute to a high quality finish. Figure 019 shows the paintshop layout of the new plant.


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figure 019: Layout of the Paint Shop

To use the provided space most efficient the paint shop consists out of one big line whichresembles a snake. The whole painting process consists out of 18 steps. Each step isimportant for reaching the quality standards. A numeration of the processes is givenbelow; the description of the single step is specified in chapter 9.2 Process Flow PaintShop

1. Detergent Wash 2. Degrease

3. Rinse

4. Conditioning Rinse

5. Phosphate Treatment

6. Dip Rinse

7. Spray with demineralised water

8. Electrophoresis

9. Spray Rinse

10.Bake

11.Joint Sealing 12.Underseal

13.Stone Chip Primer

14.Primer Surface

15.Bake

16.Top Coat

17.Bake

18.Undersealing, Blackout, Wax Injection

1 2 3 4 5

678910

11 12 13 14 15

161718


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After leaving the paint shop the car body is ready to get assembled. Therefore it entersthe final assembly line were it is processes by using a combination of traditional skills andmodern technology. In order to eliminate congestion caused by tools, material and

workforce and to assist by improving building quality and efficiency with an enhancedworking environment the new assembly plant uses the strategy of modularisation.

Defining modules is the new vital competitive weapon. The fundamental issue is the wayin which modules are defined, an issue which is not treated in the same way by all vehiclemanufacturers or indeed by all suppliers. Despite the prevalence of the term, there is nosimple or consistent definition of a module. It is possible to identify a range of approachesto the definition of modules.

Subassemblies, for example cockpit or engine modules are assembled on mini-conveyorsaway from the main body of the car and installed individually. Another possibility for thecar manufacturer is to outsource the assembly of the modules to one of their suppliers.

The supplier is in total responsible for the quality and for the just in time (JIT)management of its modules. As part of the Just in time philosophy of material supply, areduction of handling and the elimination of costly material stocks can be achieved. Thisoff-line assembly technique allows for example the fully assembled instrument panel to beelectronically checked prior to installation, to ensure consistent component reliability.

To guarantee the production of 2.000 vehicles a day the assembly line includes sevenmodules:

Cockpit Rear Axles Powertrain

Engine Front End Finish Module: Assemble last single parts to the car Doors

The entire layout of the assembly shop and the single assembly steps are shown infigure 020.

7.3. Final Assembly


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figure 020: Assembly Shop Layout

The strategy which is used for the assembly line is called the Modularisation with the

door off system. This means that the last step of assembling the car is to bring togetherthe doors. That is very helpful in order to get easier access for the fitting of parts such asthe wiring harness, hard plastic trim items, seat belts, glass and headlining.

Module 1:

EngineModule 3:

Rear Axles

Module 4:

Cockpit

Module 7:

Door (outsourced)

Module 6:

Finish

Module 5:

Frontend

Zp. 7

Other-

areas

Zp.8


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8. Logistic process

In this chapter the logistic process is described. This is mainly done by explanation andcalculation of the different formulas for: storage areas, transport containers and technicalequipment for transport and personnel.

Storage areas

To evaluate storage areas the following data must be compiled:

Units per day: 2000Units per day is one of the initial requirements set to start the plant planning.

Container per vehicle: 10Container per vehicle reflects the needed amount of containers to provide the partsneeded for the assembly of one vehicle. The total amount of 10 containers wasobtained by combining an estimated 5 large standard containers and 5 small trayrack.

Container area: 1.2 mSurface area of each container. The dimensions of a large standard container are1.2x1.0x1.0 (lentgh x width x height).

Weight factor: 1.2 (stacking)This factor reflects the type of stacking used to pile up the containers. Consideringthe low number of derivatives it was decided to use direct piling of containers overeach others. Each pile representing a configuration of a particular module. Thisstrategy is also cheaper because it doesnt require shelves.

Move around factor: 1.2 (20%)With this factor, space needed for employees to move the containers is considered.

Stack factor: 5Takes into account the amount of containers which can be pile up on top of each

other.

This data is then used to calculate Storage Area (SR).

SR = 17 280 m

Steel coils

The steel needed to produce the body in white is brought to the plant by train.Considering that a A00 class body weighs approximately 300 kg including the waste, thetotal amount of steel processed in a day is 600 tons. This amount of steel is brought tothe plant by one train per day. And then a crane unloads the steel coils for production.

rStackFacto

FactorMoveAroundorWeightFactreaContainerAVehicleContainerDayUnitsSR

)()()()/()/( =


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Lorries and unloading docks

Considering that 84 cars per hour are produced and that 5 Large Standard Containers (LSC)

are needed for each car, 420 containers per hour have to be transported to the assemblyline. For each day, 10 080 LSCs have to be delivered at the plant. A conventional lorry cancarry 52 LSCs, which results in 194 deliveries. A conventional lorry takes approximately 1hour to unload. At least 9 loading docks are needed. A security margin of 2 is chosen to takeinto account smaller vehicle. So, a minimum of 18 unloading docks must be present.

Fork-lift trucks

Each fork-lift truck manipulates a LSC for 13 minutes overall according to figure 021.

figure 021: (source: Dr. A. Klauke)

With 10 080 LSCs each day, the total amount of fork-lift truck manipulation time is 131 040 minutes.Divided by 1440 minutes per day, it gives a result of 91 fork-lift trucks. Taking into account failuresand maintenance, a 100 fork-lift trucks are needed.

13,0Total time

3,5Clear out

3,5Provision

2,5Unloading

2,5Loading

0,5Loading lorry

0,5Unloading lorry

Time perLSC (min)

Activity


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Technical equipment for personnel

Material placement is an important aspect of a good operation assembly plant and there

are many strategies that can be used to optimize it. Here are the strategies that will beused in this future plant.

First, above each assembly station a board with critical information is set up. It shouldmention which part is to be assembled at this station, the address of the station and thecontainer number to be supplied.

Marking on the floor at each station defines the precise place of each container. Rigs canalso be used to facilitate the access to the container by the worker on the assembly line.For example, two containers can be fitted on a rotating rig, and when one container isempty, the worker just rotate the rig to continue with an uninterrupted supply of parts.This makes it easier for the fork-lift driver which has an easy access to the empty

container.

The simplest method to give an even supply of material at the workstation is calledKanban. It works with Kanban cards on which is written the same information as thestation board describe previously. When a container is nearly empty, the assembly workerremoves the Kanban card from the container and places the card into the card box. Thelift-truck drivers empty the card box at a certain interval and delivers the materialdescribed on each card using an optimized route. If used properly, this method is veryreliable.

Andon is the name of another method to be used to supply material. Instead of usingcards like Kanban, the assembly worker has to push a button when material reserve is

running low. At the storage area, an electronic board describes which container is neededat which station. The fork-lift truck driver can than bring the needed container at the rightstation.

Andon will be the main method used in the plant because it is straight forward andsimple. Another advantage is that it does not use any physical cards like Kanban whichcan be lost and be a source of errors.


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9.1.2 Process Flow Body Shop

The body starts its journey as a dash-subassembly, produced on a fully robotised weldingfacility. The dash is then built into a front car subassembly, and progresses through amonorail system to the start of a framing process. This framing process assembles three

major subassemblies, front car, front floor and rear under body.These subassemblies are produced in a similar manner as the dash. The completed under-body progresses into a fully automated framing machine which welds together The under-body and body-frame sides. The body-frame sides are built on two dedicated lines, one forthe left hand and one for the right hand frame sides. All welding operations are fullyautomatic.

The body sides are picked up by a handling robot and placed onto an overhead conveyorsystem, which transports them to the framing line. Before leaving the Framing line thebody shell is dimensionally checked by a precise measuring system. This ensures thedimensional integrity of the body shell before proceeding to the next part of the process.When the framing line and other robot welders have finished, the body shell receives

assemblies like front-end, roof, doors, wings, bonnet and tailgate which have been builton separate line-side robotic facilities. The completed body, now in the state known asbody-in-white, is then inspected before being thoroughly cleaned prior to the paintingprocess.

All equipment in the body shop is linked to a management information system (MIS),which constantly monitors each piece of equipment and produces statistics of buildsachieved, maintenance downtime and actual versus planned cycle times andcapacities.The body shops technology is also backed by a control system, which activateswhen the plants main computer releases vehicle build data to the areas processor. Thememory banks are scanned for information about under-body and body-side assemblies.

At the start, the body in white enters the paint shop and is transferred to the continuousconveyors that will carry it throughout its journey in the paint shop (see figure 023). Thefirst priority is to ensure its completely cleanliness. This happens during the Detergentwash. This step is to get rid of metal particles, pressing oils, crayon marks and adhesivesfrom the body shop by using mild detergent added with solvent. This step is followed bythe Degrease where an alkali cleaner is used to get rid of metal oxides and the Rinsewhich is a dip-spray process to clean of the alkali cleaner. The Conditioning Rinse is a fulldip process in acid etches to provide titanium phosphate nucleant crystals.

figure 023

9.2 Process Flow Paint Shop


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Next the Body in White enters the phosphate treatment phase, a multistage series of acidand alkali dips designed to complete the cleaning process and to produce a surface ontowhich paint adheres more firmly. The body moves through a series of timed, prearranged

processes two degreasing dips, a spray and immersion rinse, and then the phosphatedip itself. This process features an acidic bath, which deposits crystals onto the surface ofthe body, forming an anticorrosive barrier, improving paint adhesion. After immersion inthe phosphate, the body shell is rinsed four times in the chromate rinse, which evens outthe crystalline coating and in the demineralised rinses the purest water is used. A closedloop process continually recycles the water to filter out impurities.

After the phosphate treatment the body moves through another Rinse which containsdemineralised water to wash off residual acid. A followed spray with demineralised wateris used to keep the body wet.

The next process is called the Electrophoresis (e-coat) and it forces particles of primer,

previously dispersed in water, onto the body. The tanks are electrically charged. Thischarge forces the particles onto the body during immersion. Another Rinse follows toremove loose particles, and then the primed body is baked in an oven (175-180C forapproximately 30 min) where the primer particles bond together into a tough shell.

Once this stage is completed, the body passes into the sealer applications. Firstly the Jointsealing is passed where a PVC and rubber based mastic is used to seal exposed joints.Afterwards a PVC and rubber based paint is sprayed to the underhood of the body(approximately 750m thick). The next stage is the Stone chip primer where a PU basedpaint is sprayed to vulnerable areas like door edges, wheel arches and front ends(approximately 25m thick).

The primer surface is the last step before the body is conditioned for the top coat. At thisstage a second primer is electrostatically sprayed to the surface (approximately 35-40mthick). In this process, a high voltage system charges the atomised paint and this isattracted to the earthed body. This ensures that most of the paint ends up on the vehicle,not in the waste treatment facilities. To cure the body from the applications anotherstorage in an oven is necessary (160-170C for approximately 30min).

At last the body is ready for the top coat. After a further dust-down with enormousrotating feather dusters, the body now enters Top Coat One. This is where thecomputerised paint bells apply exactly the right amount of paint for the best finish. This isthen dried by a blower, to provide maximum reflective quality, and is followed by topcoatof clear enamel to seal the shine. Solid colour finishes like white, red and black are alsopainted automatically by the equipment. One further oven bake is necessary (130-135Cfor approximately 20-30min).

Each painted vehicle is meticulously inspected under bright lights, to ensure no defectsare passed on to the customer. Finally, the painted bodies travel through the last process,designed to augment the vehicles corrosion protection. A highly sophisticated machineinjects wax into numerous cavities in the under body structure. It then leaves the paintshop to be trimmed and finished.


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9.3 Process Flow Final Assembly

The first step is to remove the doors, in order to have easier access for the fitting of partssuch as the wiring harness, hard plastic trim items, seat belts, glass, headlining etc. Asthe process flow is progressing, cockpit, carpets and seats are installed in the picture

mentioned as module 4.

After this the vehicle joins the final assembly conveyor for completion of the buildprocess. The vehicles are united with the major mechanical parts like the engine, axle,wheels, brakes, suspension and exhaust system. This stage is monitored by a computerensuring the right mechanical components are fitted to the appropriate car. Themarriage begins with the body raised well above ground level, while small trucksrunning on a floor mounted conveyor carry the engine, transmission and axles. The trucksare equipped with jacks which raise the mechanical units to the points where they areautomatically bolted to the under body by an electronically controlled machine.

As the car moves on through the final assembly line, it meets the stage where the

frontend is mounted. At the stage of module 6 the car will be finished with assembly partslike wheels and tyres. They will be mounted by a feeder conveyor with the appropriateroad wheels and tyres for the right car.

The vehicle then returns to a low-level slat conveyor where the finished doors are refitted.The control system guarantees that the same doors that were originally removed arereturned to the same vehicle fully trimmed.

Fuelled and lubricated, its cooling system filled with water, the A00 car is finally capable ofmoving under its own power as each vehicle passes through a series of mechanical andelectrical checks. Dynamic vehicle testing monitors mechanical specification and exhaustemissions, while assembly line diagnostic links (ALDL) ensure engine management

systems, antitheft devices and alarms are functioning correctly.

A master computer for the new testing stations is connected to the factorys centralcomputer where data relating to the parts and accessories in each vehicle is stored. Thesystem not only detects faults, but also functions as an additional means of qualitycontrol.

The car is then subjected to a water test audit, which checks the sealing around thedoors, tailgate and windows. Finally, the car is given one last polish before it is ready fordelivery. The fully tested vehicle is then passed onto the sales department and leaves thefactory for direct delivery into the dealer network or to ports for export to Europe andoverseas destinations and, of course, to the most important person in this processes thecustomer.


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10. Modularisation of product and production

Modularisation is a strategy that definitely will be applied in the year 2010. Modularisationalready exists for a couple of years now in the motor industry. It is being used in theEuropean and American motor industry as well as in the Japanese, but in different ways.

According to Dr.-Ing. W. Schreiber the benefits of modularisation are:

Improvement of manufacturability Improvement of quality Reduction and controlling of complexity Reorganization of supplier relationships

The key to successful modularisation for automakers probably lies in close cooperationand coordination between their development, production and purchasing functions, as wellas with their suppliers (Fujimoto, 2001).At this moment modularity itself is a term that is used a lot, but also often used for

different things, so the term is not very clear. To begin with, modularisation should bedivided in three different forms:

1. Modularisation in product architecture / modularisation in design2. Modularisation in production3. Modularisation in inter-firm system

In this chapter the three forms of modularisation will be explained and described howmodularisation is implemented in our car factory.

Modularisation in inter-firm system

The Europeans and Americans have used modularisation for their inter-firm strategy, whatresulted in more and more outsourcing. There are three main reasons why Westernautomakers have been expanding the scope of outsourcing. First, they want to takeadvantage of the suppliers lower labour costs. Second, they can cut investment costs andrisk by giving more important responsibilities to the suppliers. Third, these moves towardmodularisation have also been accelerated by their policy of reducing the number of first-tier suppliers (Fujimoto, 2001). Carmakers have been very sceptical with outsourcingmodules until now. They think that module suppliers are not capable of handling allaspects of the module. They are also concerned that extensive outsourcing to a limitednumber of suppliers may make the costs and the technology of components unknown tothemselves, reduce competitive pressure for suppliers, and thus weaken their ownnegotiation power (Fujimoto, 2001). This has often led to a form of limited outsourcingwhere the module suppliers is not completely responsible for the module. Limitedoutsourcing probably only offers the limited advantage of cheap labour (Fujimoto, 2001).

In our car factory there will be high level modularisation with the inter-firm system.Suppliers will have their own working area in the plant. Suppliers will be assembling theirmodules right next to the assembly line so that the complete module immediately can beassembled.

Modularisation in production

The Japanese motor industry used modularisation also but for the production. This meansthat large assemblies (modules) are built before they are assembled in the car. Whenmodularisation in production is implemented plant size tend to be lower than in the past

(Camuffo).


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The use of subassemblies has some disadvantages. A subassembly built from manycomponents is difficult to handle because of size and weight. Such a subassembly is alsodifficult to be fitted perfectly onto other subassemblies or the body. Accuracy in

assembling work is difficult to achieve with subassemblies compare to that of smaller,individual components (Fujimoto, 2001). Figure 024 shows a clear example frommodularisation in production. This is the way how it will take place in our factory as well.The modules, as mentioned before, will be assembled right there next to the mainassembly line.

figure 024

Modularisation in design

In rough lines there are two ways to divide the product design. One of them is modul-oriented design. In this case the definition for a module is: A module is an assemblyoriented supply unit, that is, from a logistical and manufacturing point of view,reasonable. (Schreiber, 2004). Figure 025 shows the different modules for a Volkswagen-vehicle.

TransitionPre-assembly/Final Assembly

TransitionPre-assembly/Final Assembly

Final Assembly CockpitFinal Assembly Cockpit

TransitionFinal Assembly Cockpit / Installation

TransitionFinal Assembly Cockpit / Installation

Installation of Cockpit into Vehicle within core productionInstallation of Cockpit into Vehicle within core production

Logistics AreaLogistics Area

Pre-AssemblyInstrumentation Panel

Pre-AssemblyInstrumentation Panel


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figure 025

The second way is the system-oriented design. With this system the assembly of the partsis divided in the functionality of the parts. For instances the brakes, all the partsconcerning the brake belong to the brake system. In case of modular design it could bepossible that the brake pedales belong to the cockpit module and the rearbrakes probablywould belong to the rear axle. In case of modular design parts whitch belong to the same

system can be designed separately. This of course enlarges the level of the risk that theparts from the same system differ in quality level because of different design or differentassembly.For our product modularisation in design will be aplied as well. This means thatthere are three main things that should be taken into consideration:

The architecture of the car, the designer of the product has to be aware of the factthat the car will be assembled out of a number of modules.

The interfaces with the other modules, after assembly the different modules have tofunction together as a car

The standerds used for the modules, for instance the quality.

Sun-RoofSun-Roof

Cockpit

Cockpit

PowertrainPowertrain

FrontendFrontend

Front- / Rear AxleFront- / Rear Axle

SeatsSeats

DoorsDoors

BrakesBrakes

WheelsWheels


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11. Conclusion

In 2010, the profile of the customer will change. A larger portion fo the society will beolder which will have a direct influence on the characteristics prioritized when buying acar. The buying behavior will also be greatly influenced by the groing reliance on the

internet.The use of electrics and electronics will continue to grow in the future. The pedestriansafety regulations will also have a major impact on technologies used in passenger cars.For A00 class, reduced fuel consumption and exhaust emission is and will be a priority.Our A00 class car will be bought with an over average degree of emotions. Its maincompetitive advantage will be differentiation. It will be one of the longest in its class withan average height. It is expected to be a market leader.Our plant will use just in time and will be orchestrated around the communication centre.It will be arranged in a star configuration. The level of mechanisation will be 70%considering the output per day and the low level of variation.The plant will have a total surface area of 150 500 m2, with 17 280 m2 being storagearea. 18 unloading docks will be distributed among the storages areas. 100 lift-truck will

be needed to unload and distribute material to the assembly line. Material placement willuse the Andon method.Our plant will be highly modularised with suppliers having their own working area toassemble the modules. The A00 class car will be designed modularly and the modules willbe major parts of the vehicle.In the far future, like the computer industry, the automotive industry will become soefficient and competitive that every player will have to specialize on a different aspect ofthe product.The OEM will remain the only direct link with the customer and as such, will specialize inservice (sales and after-sales). His other area of competence will be in module integrationand interactions. The OEM will supervise module suppliers and optimize how the modulesintegrates and interacts with each other. The supervision role also implies that the OEM

gives the final approval for every module design supplied.Of course, the computer industry has evolved a lot more rapidly because technology usedin computer is evolving faster and the product lifecycle is approximately at least five timesshorter (5 years for an automobile and 1 year for a computer). That is why a companylike Dell is already configured to make extensive use of modular strategy.Because this plant is only six years further down the road, complete modularizationcannot be accomplished. This would represent massive development personnel layoffs atthe OEM which could lead to bad press and damaging of the brand image. Also, suppliersare not completely ready yet to supply complete designed module on their own and wouldneed drastic readjustment immediately to respond to this new demand.


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12. References

1*. http://automobile.karrierefuehrer.de/auto2010.pdf, 17.03.2004

2*. Valken, P. van: AUTO 2010, (http://members.aol.com/autofuture/next50.html),

updated 22.01.1996; 16.03.2004

3*. Kraus, W. Prof.: ergonomics, Handout MSc 2004, March 2004

4*. www.euroncap.com, 16.03.2004

5*. http://automobile.karrierefuehrer.de/auto2010.pdf , AUTO 2010Eine Expertenbefragung zur Zukunft der Automobilindustrie, Jeltsch / Baier /Wahrendorff, Accenture GmbH, Sulzbach / Taunus

6*. Lean Manufacturing(Assignment Background to Methods to Improve Productivity)

by Dr. Werner Schreiber, Volkswagen AG, Wolsburg

7*. Koenig, Benjamin: Entwicklung eines Vorderwagenkonzepts zur Erfllung einergeplanten Fugngerschutzrichtlinie im Bereich der Hfte HAW Hamburg /AUDI AG Ingolstadt, 04.09.2003

8*. http://www.diebrennstoffzelle.de/h2projekte/mobil/index.shtml, 17.03.2004

9*. Ehmer, M.: Automobiltechnologie 2010, Stuttgart, 24.09.2002;http://www.vector-informatik.com/kongress/VeCo_Vortrag04_Ehmer.pdf,15.03.2004

10*. Requested information from Statistisches Bundesamt, Wiesbaden / Germany,April 2003

11*. Klauke, Dr. Adolf: Logistics and material flow in the automotive engineering,Handout MSc 2004, March 2004

12*. Vehicle Development(Assignment Background to Working Methods in Vehicle Development)by Holger Dietze, Volkswagen AG, Wolfsburg

13*. Logistics and Material Flow(Assignment Background to Logistics and Material Flow)by Dr. Adolf Klauke, Volkswagen AG, Wolfsburg

14*. Business of Manufacturing and Strategic Managementby K.T. Dawkins, Okt/99, University of Hertfordshire

15*. Financial Times Mini Report 09/2001


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16* Fujimoto, T., Takeishi, A., (2001), Modularization in the Auto Industry: InterlinkedMultiple Hierarchies of Product, Production and Suppliers Systems, CIRJE-F-107discussion paper, Tokyo University, March

17* Camuffo, A., Rolling Out a World Car: Globalization, Outsourcing and Modularityin the Auto Industry, Ca Foscari Unversity of Venice, Italy

18* Haddleton, Dr. F. L., Steels for Automotive Body Applications, Handout

19* The Automotive Business Blog, http://www.just-auto.com, 14.03.2004

20* Plant Automation Technology, http://www.plantautomation-technology.com,15.03.2004

car planning factory

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