Car Body Side Panel Stamping Technology
This came out last year, and I’ve been waiting for a good time to spring some interesting technical stuff on you guys/gals. This came from Corus who is one of our suppliers for steel stampings. Corus is second largest steelmaker in Europe and ninth largest in the world and on their home page, as of this writing, they proudly display our XC60.
Body side panels – one of the most complex and challenging components to manufacture due to surface quality finish and formability requirements – for the new XC60 crossover model.
As part of the company’s commitment to offer added value services to its customers, Corus engineers from the company’s Product Application Centre (PAC) in IJmuiden. They worked closely with Volvo during the critical tool buy-off and home line tryout stage for the XC60 bodyside panels to help Volvo better understand how the steel performed during press shop processes.
Using the new Argus system, Corus was able to suggest improvements to the tooling set up to help significantly reduce press shop set-up lead times.
As with previous Corus strain analysis systems, Argus combines expertise in 3D measurement technology with materials knowledge to help OEMs confidently process today’s modern automotive steels.
Using Argus, Corus engineers measured bodyside panels to check the robustness of the pressing and fed back the first results to Volvo engineers, within hours as opposed to days, significantly reducing the time and resources required for successful tool tryout.
In addition, the information gathered by Corus’ engineers using the Argus system can now be used by Volvo to assess any future potential changes which may be required in the production of the bodyside panels, for example if new grades of steel are considered for introduction during the XC60’s current life cycle.
Another key benefit of the Argus system over more traditional methods of strain measurement is that it is easily portable and can be deployed and used on site in the Volvo production press shop.
Jamie Howles, Support Engineer, Corus Strip Products IJmuiden said: “With the growing use of high-tech steels in today’s automotive press shops, it is increasingly important for carmakers to better understand how steel blanks will deform and flow as they are pressed. This is particularly important for large and complex components such as bodysides.”
Mr Howles continues: “OEMs are also increasingly under pressure to find the right balance between quality and time. Through the use of unique strain analysis systems like Argus, which combines accurate measurement of 3D geometry with the latest forming analysis techniques and materials expertise, Corus is able to offer carmakers the ability to reduce lead-times during the tryout stages resulting in a ‘right first time’ approach in the production of critical stamped parts. We are delighted to support key customers like Volvo to offer this added value service.”
Interesting how many people are involved and how deep technology goes for just making a simple side panel.
Good week to you all.
3 Comments
The technology is impressive, but this is the ugliest Volvo yet. It looks like a Japanese pinball machine. If I wanted a Nissan, I’d buy one. Volvo’s are square. They’re bought by squares. I’m square. I own two cross countries. Square is cool again. Please make some more square volvos.
Hi XC Jim,
Just for the record, I drive a ’98 XC70 with 167,000 miles on it, chassis number 31. Three of my kids drove 245′s and the other my lone rebel son a 242. My first company car was a ’71 145 painted bright orange. One hobby was bee keeping, and used to haul around hives in a really sweet white 245 turbo. So boxes have always been in my family. Yes they do a great job and definitely are unique examples of Scandinavian form and function.
When we introduced 140 box in 1967, the world was ending according to those loving 120 and 544′s. Then when we went from 240/700 to 850, world ended again, and it happed again with 850 to S80. We are all still here. Yes boxes are back. Go take a look/drive of XC60. Frankly it’s taken all that we’ve done well in our past and added it into XC60. My XC70 has wonderful seats, still extremely quite on roads, great for really long drives, nice instrument panel, and nice interior (I have the Blond Birch wood). XC60 cargo space with seats down is very good, awesome brakes, seats seem even softer but still firm, nice audio package, great sunroof, and seems more responsive to steering input, and City Safety.
When we were doing Box, everyone was doing Round. So we like to think we are trend setters and who knows, maybe there is hope for return of a Box again.
Appreciate your comment and truly, thanks for being one of our Volvo owners.
dan
Dan’s detailed response shows that Volvo still has some dedicated people on the team, and I appreciate his thoughtfulness. I think the x60 probably is a good vehicle but I can’t warm up to the styling. The 850 was radical, but it was still recognizably a Volvo. I have a 98 XC (850 styling) and an 07XC. The 07 is a better car — stiffer chassis, quiet ride, fierce cornering, spectacular brakes (once you dry them off). The 98 is more fun to drive, with better handling feedback and it looks better. The 160 and 200 series cars were elegant, timeless, and sold well for generations. It’s hard to find elegant cars in the current lineup.
Designers today all copy one another — perhaps they are forced to try to emulate someone else’s hot car. They all want to squash the rear roofline, or give the appearance of having done so, with tiny rear windows (blindspots? who cares!) and a tipped-up backside. The x60 treads perilously down the path of the Toyota Matrix and Pontiac Aztec — some of the ugliest things ever on four wheels.
The classic Volvo styling cues are, or were, core assets of the brand, and they should be revived if Volvo is to have a future in these perilous times.