Electromobile network in Swabia – Gehring Hairpin machine
ELECTROMOBILE NETWORK IN SWABIA
Thus, in the greater Stuttgart area, one of the most important locations for the automotive industry in Germany, an association of two strong medium-sized companies with a total of almost 3,000 employees is being created. Together, Gehring and Wafios will realize stator assembly lines for all major automotive locations worldwide from concept to commissioning.
“Wafios and Gehring are forming an alliance with which we can make a powerful appearance on the market for manufacturing systems for stator production,” explains Dr. Wolfram Lohse, CTO at Gehring. “The collaboration can build the entire process chain more efficiently because we’re looking at technologies across the board and not just focusing on individual processes.” The cooperation thus offers everything from a single source – from prototype production to systems for series production. Another important aspect: The OEM has only one contact person for the entire process chain.
“The biggest beneficiary is the car manufacturer. He benefits from our extensive know-how, developed over many years, which eliminates all unnecessary interfaces and friction points of individual solutions,” explains Tobias Single, Head of E-Mobility at Wafios. “We develop secure processes together quickly and in line with customer requirements. Each of us contributes know-how around our core technologies.” The cooperation combines Gehring’s decades of experience in designing systems for automotive series production and Wafios’ technological leadership in straightening technology and wire forming, which is particularly important for the production of hairpins.
HIGH TEMPO IN E-MOTOR PRODUCTION: CHALLENGE FOR WIRE BENDING
The fast pace of high-volume production, where electric motors are created in sub-minute cycles, is a great challenge for stator production and its very complex wire bending processes. Single: “We have mastered this complexity and can offer efficient, process-capable and future-proof overall solutions on the solid basis of existing know-how. In addition, the bending process contributes significantly to quality: Everything I do right or wrong at the beginning makes the further processes easier or more difficult.” This is where Wafios comes on board as the right partner for Gehring, because the FMU E bending machine has already proven itself many times in the automotive industry in the small-series production of hairpins.
But it’s not just about transferring existing technology to mass production. The collaboration is also tackling new developments to improve the performance and efficiency of electric motors. This is where a third partner comes into play.
PUR CAST RESIN REDUCES HEAT LOSS AND INCREASES E-MOTOR PERFORMANCE
We are talking about the start-up company copaltec, which, as a partner of the Nagel Group, develops special polyurethane (PUR)-based casting resins. The resins are introduced into motors using a vacuum process to protect them from external influences as well as overheating. “It can increase the performance of electric motors by up to 20 percent,” says Jochen Nahl, consulting engineer at copaltec. “Our PUR-based resin has high thermal conductivity. The potting compounds used so far are used for insulation, for bonding cells and magnets, and as “gap fillers.” That’s why the battery and electric motor heat up: they need to be actively cooled.” The start-up relies on the principle of “introducing thermal conductivity via potting compound,” which significantly reduces the necessary cooling power, keeps the e-motor at a lower temperature level and, on the other hand, increases performance. Together with Gehring, copaltec is now developing machine solutions for industrialization in the electric drive train.
SCALABLE AND MODULAR: IF REQUIRED, THE SYSTEM “GROWS” WITH YOU
The new medium-sized network can now offer all important core technologies – from bending to impregnation or final casting with copaltec resin. “Together, we develop scalable and modular solutions that are aligned with our customers’ production philosophy,” said Bernd Nagel, managing director of Nagel and the newly acquired Gehring Group.
“As a system supplier, we integrate the respective required conveyor technology and automation from suppliers. For example, full concatenation does not usually make sense with an annual batch size of 50,000 or less.” Thanks to scalability, however, a system originally designed for small-scale production can also “grow” towards large-scale production if required.
SMOOTH TRANSITION FROM STATOR PROTOTYPE PRODUCTION TO SERIES PRODUCTION
“Thanks to the cooperation, the partners coordinate all procedures across processes and thus improve the entire manufacturing process holistically across the entire technology chain,” emphasizes Dr. Uwe-Peter Weigmann, CEO of Wafios.
The technical risk involved in transferring know-how from small to large-scale production is reduced thanks to the close bridging from sample production at Wafios and Gehring to complete series production systems. But the cooperation does not end with delivery: The combination of the two service networks, which have been tried and tested in practice for many years, ensures rapid support in all important countries.
But since even electromobile theory is gray, the new prototype building at Gehring’s main plant in Ostfildern offers colorful practical experience: there are complete plants for the production of hairpin stators and electric motors. Together with customers, the network’s partners develop customized systems on this basis for the respective individual technologies such as wire bending or hairpin assembly.
