The 10th Edition CPRJ Plastics in Automotive Conference & Showcase continued today, a seminar with speakers from three OEMs, including Beijing Benz Automotive Co., Ltd., BAIC Motor Corporation Co., Ltd. and China FAW R & D Institute, Materials Institute, was held with fruitful results.

Beijing Benz: Utilizing 5G and robots for smart manufacturing

The sharing of Beijing Benz Automotive Co., Ltd. focused on two themes including “Experience and solution of intelligent cost reduction” and “Future direction of intelligentization”.

In his talk, Wang Ping'an, Senior Manager of Engine Assembly at Beijing Benz Automotive Co., Ltd., commented that one of the purposes of smart manufacturing is to reduce costs and increase efficiency. “Take our factory as an example, through transparent and organized production data management, we can have timely feedback as well as achieve global sharing of the data. These allow us to carry out accurate monitoring on each quality closed loop of the production lines,” he said.

Wang Ping'an, Senior Manager of Engine Assembly at Beijing Benz Automotive Co., Ltd.

He further pointed out that, 5G technology will not only accelerate the development of auto-driving cars, but also make car manufacturing smarter and more productive in the future. “For instance, some data transmission may take half an hour or even longer currently while 5G enables real-time data transmission, which help create a closed-loop smart manufacturing ecosystem,” he explained.

In addition to using 5G technology for improving productivity and efficiency, collaborative robots are adopted by car manufacturers to replace manual operations. Wang added, “Compared with industrial robots, collaborative robots manage to perform flexible and precise operations that make it more possible to replace labor.”

Enhancing flexible production will be a trend of future automotive manufacturing too. Wang noted that Benz has been realizing flexible management of whole car orders where the production line will customized the parts as required after buyers place orders through 4S stores.

BAIC Motor: Innovative material solutions for interior and exterior decoration

The presentation of BAIC Motor Corporation Co., Ltd. highlighted three themes, including “Innovations and applications of antibacterial materials for interiors”, “Innovative solutions for exteriors” and “Low cost and high perception decoration material solutions”.

Song Yanling, Technical Manager at BAIC Motor Corporation Co., Ltd.

During his sharing, Song Yanling, Technical Manager at BAIC Motor Corporation Co., Ltd., remarked how molding and material technology support the innovation of automotive interior and exterior decorations. For example, in the production of grilles and columns, spray-free materials and styling designs are used to make the appearance and quality of products refreshing.

“However, traditional spray-free materials are mainly in high-gloss black color while metal power shall be added if high-gloss silver in color is wanted. This may lead to weld marks and will bring challenges to the gate design of the mold,” Song elaborated.

He said that the application of spray-free materials are restricted by early product design planning, later product structure design, mold manufacturing and injection molding processes, yet the materials can still strive forward to a better market development when manufacturers, parts suppliers and equipment companies collaborate.

Regarding antibacterial materials, Song mentioned that OEMs concern of both the materials’ performance, durability and the effectiveness in an explosive environment. “Apart from antibacterial, anti-virus is also another focus of automotive interiors,” he added.

China FAW: Interiors, materials and parts need breakthrough

The sharing topics of China FAW R & D Institute, Materials Institute were “New interior style and material trends”, “Lightweight Powertrain” and “Cost reduction and efficiency increase program”.

Zhu Yi, Senior Director at China FAW R & D Institute, Materials Institute, introduced the material application of Hongqi, a subsidiary car brand of China FAW. “In the past, the requirement of surface materials of car interiors was three proofs including waterproof, oil, and pollution. Yet now the new requirement adds mildew and allergy,” she specified.

Zhu Yi, Senior Director at China FAW R & D Institute, Materials Institute.

Zhu discussed that the interior parts need to achieve low VOC volatilization, release negative ions, sterilize and perform anti-allergic. “Such as the fabrics commonly used in car interiors, it is relatively easy to achieve the three proofs and the release of negative oxygen ions separately. But if both are required simultaneously, the stability of the product will be weakened and that needs further optimization and promotion of materials and processes,” she noticed.

Zhu brought up that not only the interior and exterior decorations, but also in terms of automotive smart chassis and shock absorbers, some materials and structural designs are still monopolized by foreign companies. Technological breakthrough is vital to ease the situation and can be done by the corporation between domestic material suppliers, parts suppliers and whole car manufacturers.

The VIP Gala Dinner

After the conference yesterday, participants  celebrated the successfully held event in a VIP Gala Dinner.