Closed Process Chains from Semi-Products to Components from the Car Producers' Point of View

摘要

Seen from the demanding background of the quick oscillating feed consumption connected with the constantly climbing requests for comfort and security, the economic lightweight construction is today the central challenge for the car manufacturing. An important target for the lightweight construction is the vehicle body structure, which represents 30% of the vehicle mass. The design method, which mixes steel and aluminum components completed with selected synthetic materials, is offering the largest potential means for the successful dealing with this challenge. The translation into practice of this mixing construction method, requires considerable changes of the sheet metal manufacturing process chain. Especially the equipment, the instruments and the metal forming technology as well as the assembly processes need to be adjusted to the new materials. This paper describes the development of the bodywork design methods up to the actual state of multi-material design and lights up the challenges which come up in the fabrication practice of coach components by using different materials.