Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., announces that it has opened an Advanced Manufacturing Center dedicated to developing advanced technologies for improving the company’s approach to building cars and trucks. The $45 million complex houses 100 experts working on integration strategies for various cutting-edge manufacturing technologies, including 3D printing, augmented reality and virtual reality robotics, and digital manufacturing.
It features 23 additive manufacturing machines, and Ford is working with ten AM manufacturing companies to develop applications with a range of different materials, from nylon powder to sand to carbon. One application currently under development has the potential to save the company more than $2 million.
The soon-to-be-released Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 features two 3D-printed brake parts, while the F-150 Raptor includes a 3D-printed interior part. The company believes that as this technology becomes more economical, the use of such parts will become more and more prevalent. Assembly line workers at the Michigan Assembly Plant, where Ford builds the Ranger pickup, use five different 3D-printed tools that played a critical role in the launch of the Ranger. In fact, the company says that these tools knocked off weeks from an already tight timeline.
Engineers are working on augmented and virtual reality to help in simulating and designing assembly lines. With specialized gaming equipment, engineers can configure a virtual reality production line without leaving the center, allowing engineers to identify potentially unsafe processes and fine-tune workflows long before an assembly line is built.
AR and VR can also allow manufacturing teams to work collaboratively in facilities around the world, meaning employees on different continents could work in the same virtual space, at the same time.
