Components Production
Components Production
Efficient production in the forge
The new-generation crankshaft in group engines helps to comply with emission limits
he new generation of the 1.0 TSI evo engine has taken into account the requirements by the developers involved in reducing the weight of individual parts. The team from the PKG/3 – Forge Technology department went in this direction during the production of the new crankshaft, and production itself started in May. Thanks to improvements in the forging shape, we have saved 0.5 kg of material per part. Thus, the PKG/2 – Forge department continued the long tradition of producing engine parts at the Mladá Boleslav plant. The forge has been producing crankshafts for the entire Group for 22 years.
2,200
pieces are produced every day by a new forging line
8.7
kilogrammes is how much the new crankshaft weighs
In the course of the previous two years, the Forge has been preparing for the arrival of the new EA211 crankshaft series. As part of the modernisation of the production line, it created a modern heat treatment concept of forging by using natural cooling of the part in the rack. The technical solution that was used not only yielded energy savings but also an increase in production efficiency. The 1.0 TSI evo crankshaft forgings are made on a 3,500-tonne forging press, which is part of a fully automatic line where eight robots handle the hot part. The forged piece itself is made of micro-alloyed steel, which enters the process chain in the shape of a bar and is inductively heated to a temperature of 1,290 °C for forging. A 100% dimensional inspection of the crankshaft is performed by the operator at the laser measuring station (the device was developed by the carmaker’s employees in cooperation with the supplier to meet the heavy industry requirements and by following new trends in measuring parts). The new crankshaft type further adds to the traditional engine parts production in the ŠKODA AUTO. RED
Pioneers in innovation
Gearbox production department in Mladá Boleslav uses industrial vision for quality improvement
It is a device with camera sensors that help to detect potentially faulty parts in the production of MQ 100 and MQ 200 manual gearboxes. They offer an affordable but effective solution. The first sensor in Components Production was used by the PKH/4 - MQ Transmission Technology department. The application was introduced here into the pre-assembly line of the pinion of the MQ 100 gearbox, where they check the presence of the 5th-speed synchronous clutch stopper plate. The sensor detects the contour of the object by comparing it with the contour of one or more models in the reference image. “The solution has proved to be very successful, and since the price of the sensors and their implementation is approximately dozens of thousands of crowns, we’ve started to expand it”, says Michal Alexa, a PKH/4 transmission optimisation specialist.
IFM sensors in gearbox production
Currently, this department operates a total of six sensors to check the correctness of the performed operations, the presence of identical parts or their completeness during assembly. “We use them, for example, to control the honing operation, both on the 1st and 2nd speed wheels and on the reverse gearing on the drive shaft”, says Alexa. Further applications are currently being prepared. Sensors from IFM electronic consist of optical sensors that are directly connected to the machine on the assembly line and can stop the progress of a non-conforming part in case an error is detected. “We are using two types of sensors for this – contour and pixel counter”, explains Alexa. The contour sensor is an ideal solution for applications where the same shape of the inspected object is repeated. Pixel counter is used when the monitored objects have a different shape, size, color or shadow. “These are effective control cells that react immediately and, thus, automatically increase production quality”, says Alexa. Luděk Vokáč