Case study: CERATIZIT becomes a development partner of Opel – tool life increased from 500 to 1,400 pieces
Carbide specialist CERATIZIT developed a completely new side and face milling cutter system for Opel, uniting the three materials ceramic, carbide and CBN for the very first time in a milling system
download original picture | picture with 300pxDiscovered already by many: Insignia, the new flagship and ‘car of the year 2009’ from Opel. Picture: Opel
download original picture | picture with 300pxDieter Wollensack talking to Wolfgang Müller, Tool Management Opel-Powertrain in Kaiserslautern. Müller: “We want our suppliers to co-develop solutions together with us.” Picture: CERATIZIT
download original picture | picture with 300pxThe CERATIZIT side and face milling cutter system enables tool life up to 1,400 pieces. Picture: CERATIZIT
download original picture | picture with 300pxThe CERATIZIT side and face milling cutter system comes with HyperCoat inserts in grade CTP3220 and impressed the Tool Management team from Opel-Powertrain. Picture: CERATIZIT
download original picture | picture with 300pxStart material: castings made of GGG60 – bearing caps for Opel-Powertrain diesel engines. Picture: CERATIZIT
download original picture | picture with 300pxFinished bearing caps, assembled on the engine block. Picture: CERATIZIT
CERATIZIT S. A., Mamer, Luxembourg (headquarters), December 2009.
“Discover Opel“ says the advertisement. This invitation is not only directed towards potential customers but also applies to suppliers, and in particular to technology partners as they will not only discover a 110 year tradition in automotive engineering but also innumerable opportunities. This is also true of carbide specialist CERATIZIT whose side and face milling cutter system has been applied at Opel-Powertrain in Kaiserslautern, Germany, since March.
An enormous challenge: Euro Standard 4 and Euro Standard 5 on the same facility
Opel-Powertrain in Kaiserslautern mainly builds petrol and diesel engines. For instance, all the diesel engines for Opel’s new flagship and ‘car of the year 2009’, the ‘Insignia’, come from Kaiserslautern.
For years the automotive producers’ engine designers have been dealing with the subject of alternative energy sources such as natural gas and electric power. The goal is to make vehicles increasingly economical, more environment-friendly, functional and inexpensive.
In order to meet the latest emissions standards, the Euro-5 engine has to operate more precisely, which requires the optimization of each single processing step inside the engine. Through a highly precise cycle control and an even more precise injection both fuel consumption and emissions values are to be reduced. Simultaneously the strategy of reducing the capacity and number of cylinders while maintaining the engine’s performance through additional turbochargers is to reduce consumption. This principle has become known under the name “downsizing”.
A great deal is demanded from an engine, and in order to fulfil these requirements a material which is able to bear very high pressure and has good vibration damping characteristics is indispensable. This is why GGG60, a high quality spheroidal cast iron type, is utilized here. “The alloy elements and the material’s structure result in a very high stress of the cutting edges,” explains Gerhard Bailom, automotive segment manager at CERATIZIT. “They are the reason why we cannot machine the spheroidal cast iron GGG60 and the grey cast iron GG25 with exactly the same cutting parameters and tools.”
In order to fulfil this criterion combined with high productivity Opel-Powertrain was faced with the challenge of producing engines which comply with the Euro-4 and Euro-5 Standards on the same facility. Wolfgang Müller, Tool Management Opel-Powertrain in Kaiserslautern: “The production of engines category Euro-4 was no problem at all for us. The production of engines complying with the Euro-5 Standard on exhaust gas emissions, however, represents a very complex task, as in this case we have to deal with a different type of cast iron, namely the spheroidal cast iron GGG60, which - when machining - is characterized by properties similar to steel."
Wolfgang Müller: “When we used the existing cutting material solution for the milling of main bearing caps made of GGG60, the tool life reverted from over 1,000 pieces to below 500. Simultaneously, the inserts we applied occasionally showed edge chipping and therefore the process security required on our part was no longer guaranteed.”
Response in record time
Dieter Wollensack has been working for CERATIZIT for more than ten years, the first three years as an application engineer; now he is in the sales department and assists Opel-Powertrain who is an important and demanding key account customer.
Wollensack: “Thanks to the very good exchange of information and the relationship with the Tool Management, as a partner of Opel-Powertrain we are able to offer solutions quickly to meet their requirements. Before Christmas the Opel-Powertrain Tool Management team contacted me: they told me that the tool life was nowhere near long enough when producing the bearing lid of the new promising diesel engine.”
The CERATIZIT development specialists immediately looked into this matter. Not only did they develop a totally new side and face milling cutter system, but for the very first time they also offered a milling concept where the three materials ceramic, carbide and CBN may be used for side and face milling cutters and in addition a direct exchange for the application on MaxiMill HEC face milling cutter systems is possible.
“Within only two months we were able to offer Opel-Powertrain a solution, which exceeded their requirements, delivering a tool life of up to 1,400 pieces,” says Wollensack. “Grade CTP3220 with HyperCoat coating, suggested by us, achieved complete success.” Müller: “CERATIZIT has impressed us deeply and now represents not merely a problem solver for us but has become a development partner.”
Interview with Wolfgang Müller, Tool Management Opel-Powertrain in Kaiserslautern:
Mr Müller, how did the business relationship with CERATIZIT start?
Müller: Until recently CERATIZIT for us represented a problem solver who was only involved when we needed help.
Why did nothing further come of it?
Müller: Opel-Powertrain strongly counts on the OEM suppliers of our machines. They always get the first chance to improve a process. Thanks to the success CERATIZIT has accomplished, the company has now been ‘promoted’ to become a development partner of Opel-Powertrain in Kaiserslautern.
What are the important criteria you are looking for in a tooling partner?
Müller: For the development of a good business relationship it is important that we are taken seriously. What I want to say is that solutions should be co-developed together with us, and that one should be prepared to see further than the end of one’s own nose, as this is where the biggest chances to develop unique tools are. In the case of many tooling manufacturers it is not necessary to have your own ideas and a deviation from the regular path is not appreciated. Too bad. A sales representative who contacts us to sell a product that he is supposed to push or that sells best at the moment, doesn’t stand a great chance at our company. He will have to present something we need. A supplier should come up with a logical concept, which is only possible when talking about the highly complex processes and problems together. We prefer moderate promises to a lot of hot air.
How important is it to you that the supplier is familiar with application technology?
Müller: That depends on the problem. For bigger problems where we are not able to find an appropriate solution internally, application engineering makes sense and is really indispensable. For optimizations or small issues however, application engineers should definitely not be bound to a company – neither to Opel-Powertrain nor to any other customers or manufacturers. These specialists should be at the disposal of everyone.
What are the trends in the engine industry and manufacturing processes?
Müller: As far as materials are concerned the trend is definitely towards GGV, a type of CGI (Compacted Graphite Iron). In this type, the graphite is neither a lamellar shape nor a spheroidal shape but ‘vermicular’ (like little 'worms'); when it comes to machining it is similar to steel.
The trend in the field of tools is that the number of tools not complying with ISO is on the increase, which means there are individual geometries. In this way the products can be distinguished more clearly from the competitors, but purchasing naturally becomes more difficult.
In production higher flexibility has induced a tendency towards more cell production, i.e. stand-alone machining centres instead of working with production lines. Resetting of the machine requires less time, the order and number of the process steps can be managed more individually and at lower costs.
How would you describe the relationship with CERATIZIT in three words?
Müller: Sorry, I can only think of two… very good!
[Infobox:] 110 years of Opel
Opel is celebrating their 110th anniversary. Looking back not only on a successful history, the Rüsselsheim-based company has made a smart move with the new Insignia (mainly the ‘Sports Tourer’ estate), as Opel's 'new face' has been very well received. At the end of April 2009 there were close to 100,000 orders, a bright spot on the horizon for the Opel brand.
In order to receive the title of ‘car of the year’ the Insignia had to show its advantages compared with 37 competitors in the categories design, safety, handling and performance.
All engines of the Insignia fulfil the Euro-5 Emissions Standard, the five petrol engines ranging from four cylinders with 85KW (115 H.P.) to six cylinders with 191 KW (260 H.P.), and the 2.0-litre-common-rail turbo-diesel models from 81 to 140 KW (110 up to 190 H.P.).
For more information on the new Opel which has also won the coveted RedDot Design Award please refer to www.opel-europe.com/insignia.
The carbide specialist CERATIZIT is synonymous with “hard material matters”
CERATIZIT S. A. – is a pioneer and global player in sophisticated hard material solutions. The company operates from Mamer, Luxembourg. CERATIZIT is the world market leader in unique and consistently innovative hard material products for wear protection and cutting tools and is present in more than 50 countries worldwide. CERATIZIT provides hard material solutions to customers in selected industrial sectors including the automotive industry, mechanical engineering, oil industry, medical systems, electronics as well as mould and die making. With more than 400 active patents, a sales volume of 600 mill. EUR and over 4000 employees, CERATIZIT is your strong partner worldwide.
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