Laser welding plant heralds new era of advanced steel technology for automotive body design
23 Oct 2001
In the UK, the unveiling of Europe’s first Nd:YAG two dimensional laser welding facility by Autolaser Technologies, part of Corus, signals the intention of Europe’s largest combined steel and aluminium maker to produce annually up to three million advanced tailor welded blanks for the automotive industry.
The new facility in the West Midlands, which forms part of a £30 million (50m Euros) investment in downstream automotive facilities at the site, meets the need from carmakers for high performance lightweight metal structures that are affordable for high volume production. Tailored blanks that utilize the latest high strength steels will help the next generation of cars to be even safer as well as more fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly.
Corus now has the complete capability to work with the automaker from the advanced stages of new vehicle programmes to specify, design and supply the latest technology tailored blanks, thus providing a turnkey solution in this growing market.
Commenting on this important phase in the development of the company’s automotive strategy, Tony Leggett, director of Corus Sector Service Centres said: "This investment places Corus at the head of the field in serving a fresh generation of road vehicles. It represents significant progress by introducing advanced steels and innovative processes that meet so many of the long-term cost, performance and environmental objectives of the automotive industry."
The Autolaser Technologies’ facility feeds steel blanks of differing shapes, gauges and grades into a fully enclosed laser-welding cell. The blanks are then welded together to create a larger blank, carefully tailored to meet the precise needs of each carmaker. The composite blanks are delivered direct to manufacturers’ presses for stamping to create, for example, a complete body-side for a particular vehicle model. Tailor welded blanks result in fewer die sets in the carmakers’ press shops and hence lower cost because of the consolidation of parts by the steel supplier.
Corus is in talks with leading automakers regarding its new capability and has already secured a major contract with BMW to supply tailor-welded blanks for the body side panels for the new Mini. For this application, the tailor-welded blank consolidates three steel blanks.
"Autolaser Technologies, which specialises in this new two-dimensional welding technology, will be able to support the automotive industry by maximising the potential for cost reduction, improved quality and the production of safer, yet lighter and more environmentally friendly vehicles," said Mr Leggett. "Bringing this new technology to market also offers automotive engineers greater design flexibility."
Europe’s first fully automated Nd:YAG (Neodymium-Yttrium Aluminium Garnet) two-dimensional welding system uses fibre optic cables to deliver the 4kW laser beam for creating the tailored blank. The flexibility of this system gives the company the capability of producing complex curves and non-linear welds, creating exciting new opportunities for vehicle designers. The system also features the latest ‘real time’ seam tracking process to ensure the precise accuracy and consistency of the weld to within the tightest tolerances.
The tailored blanks are designed from a combination of steels of different grades, thicknesses and coatings, which have been strategically selected to provide the precise performance properties required at specific points on a vehicle. Principle benefits of this technology are as follows:
Significant reduction in component weight, helping to increase the vehicle’s fuel efficiency and reducing vehicle emissions
Reduced number of parts to simplify logistics, production facilities and processes, leading to reduced investment and higher productivity for vehicle manufacturers
Increased dimensional accuracy during assembly of the main body structure
Elimination of overlapping joints and reinforcements, reducing costs and improving corrosion resistance. Seat belt anchorages, for example, can be eliminated as separate components by varying the gauge and composition of metal at those points
Improved structural integrity and crash performance
Reduces material waste, increasing utilisation of material
The 50,000 sq ft (4,600 sq m) facility is located alongside the existing Corus Automotive Service Centre at the Steelpark in Wolverhampton. The first cell within the new plant will have the capacity to produce over 600,000 tailored blanks annually and the facility will be expanded in line with demand. The plant will initially employ 30 people directly at full production, with further job creation in the supply chain.
Early low volume production of blanks has been supported using a laser profiling (cutting) line at the adjacent service centre, but with the start of high-volume production early next year the blanks will be produced on a new, multi-function production line. Installed earlier this year, this new line integrates a 600 tonne press and trapezoidal blanking facility within a multi-strand press blanking line.
Contacts:
Lisa Benbow
+ 44 (0) 01902 484053
Rob Palmer
+ 44 (0) 01582 763255
rpalmer@palmerpr.com
Note to editors:
Autolaser Technologies’ specialist laser welding business is located alongside Corus’s flagship Automotive Service Centre. It forms an integral part of the £40 million Steelpark development, which Deputy Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. John Prescott MP officially opened on 28 October 1999.
The Steelpark is the largest project of its kind ever undertaken in the European steel stockholding sector. Built on the site of a former seamless tube works, the massive brownfield redevelopment project has turned the derelict, defunct site into a world-class steel supply and processing hub, which is playing an important role in the economic regeneration of the region. This remarkable transformation took less than two years from inception in December 1997.
Fully operational since April 1999, the Steelpark now employs over 350 people - a figure which is effectively doubled when the indirect jobs the site generates, such as hauliers, are taken into account. The advanced plant and equipment, and innovative logistics and IT systems have been designed specifically to support customer requirements and to enable Corus to add real value to their businesses.
The 50-acre development incorporates a ‘long products and engineering bar’ centre covering 30,000m²; a 16,000m² coil slitting facility; a dedicated 13,000m² automotive processing centre, and modern office accommodation. It offers the most comprehensive range of steel products and downstream processing services in Europe, and has an overall supply capability of 500,000 tonnes per annum.
The Corus Automotive Service Centre, which opened in 1996, also forms an integral part of the Steelpark. It offers a complete range of first and second stage manufacturing processes, including multi-strand blanking, slitting and press blanking, for the volume production of car body panels and underbody parts. It has also established a leading position in the field of laser cutting and welding. Used extensively in the global ULSAB (UltraLight Steel Auto Body) project to achieve unprecedented reductions in body structure mass, laser welding has a key role to play in producing the next generation of cars.
Corus – the company
Corus is a major European producer of steel and aluminium whose multi-metals approach is one of the unique features of the company and at the heart of its strategy.
Corus was formed on the 6 October 1999, through the merger of British Steel and Koninklijke Hoogovens to create an innovative metals company that combines international expertise with local service. The headquarters are in London, with the shares listed on the London, New York and Amsterdam stock exchanges.
Corus is the largest steel maker in Europe, and the third largest steel supplier and fifth largest aluminium supplier in the world. Annual production is about 21 million metric tonnes of crude steel and approaching half a million metric tonnes of aluminium rolled and extruded products. Twenty one per cent of its business is supplying the automotive sector.
Corus manufactures in 17 countries with major manufacturing plants in the UK, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, France, Norway and USA. The company has sales offices in 41 countries covering all continents.
