ThyssenKrupp System Engineering, Germany, is developing a pioneering line for the manufacture of hot-formed parts in close cooperation with Audi AG and Ebner Ofenbau. Hot forming of high-strength steels is becoming established worldwide as a cost-efficient lightweighting solution in medium- and high-volume car body manufacture. Components produced in this way meet rising demands in terms of shape and occupant safety as well as for lower weight. The first line of this type will go into operation at the end of September 2013.
Reducing emissions is currently one of the primary objectives of the automotive industry. The body weight reduction needed for this is achieved among other things by using high-strength materials while reducing sheet thickness. It is expected that the proportion of high-strength steels used in vehicle manufacture will continue to rise.
“This hot forming line developed in collaboration with Audi sets new standards,” reports Thomas Finkler, Business Development Manager Hot Forming. “We have been able to integrate groundbreaking technologies into our line with minimum space requirements. They include tailored tempering, a process within hot forming that enables different strength levels to be achieved in a single component. The line is also ready for hot trimming (simultaneous forming and cutting) and features fully automated tooling changes. This enables production to be switched to up to four parts without manual intervention in extremely short changeover times.”
