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The new lead-off press supplied by Schuler was installed at Ford in just 36 days
Gently applying extreme forces to sheet metal – this is the art of deep drawing. When it comes to the complex forming of car body parts, more and more manufacturers are now using hydraulic draw cushions – so too Ford’s facility in Saarlouis, Germany. As the mechanical lead-off press of a six-stage press line for the production of large body parts had grown old and was causing increasing problems, corporate management in Cologne and local management at the Ford Saarlouis stamping plant decided for a change in technology. For the first time, they opted for an hydraulic over a mechanical line for this decisive part of the production process with enormous influence on productivity and quality. The new hydraulic press supplied by Schuler has now been operating reliably for around 250 days. The production launch took just 36 days.
The new hydraulic deep drawing press of Schuler SMG in Waghäusel, Germany, replaced a line which had seen 35 years of service. As a consequence, the press force had already been reduced from 1,000 to 800 metric tons.
“The new more powerful Schuler line has a press force of 2,250 metric tons and can also process high-strength steels,” says Manuel Pleitgen, Project Manager at Schuler SMG in Waghäusel. Ford uses such high-grade materials, for example, in floor panels for its Mondeo, S-MAX and Galaxy models. Such materials were previously processed by external suppliers. “With the new press, we can now handle these orders ourselves,” states Werner Scholl.
The press was installed and put into operation in the record time of just 36 days. Hans-Josef Richner, of Ford’s Corporate Press and Installation Technology division in Cologne, states: “We have never experienced such a smooth production launch.” And his colleague Robert Steier of Ford’s Factory Planning division, adds: “The lead-off press is running trouble-free and was soon able to reach the required cycle time of eight seconds.” Up to twelve large parts can be produced per minute in highest deep draw quality.
In two-shift operation, the new hydraulic lead-off press supplies large body parts – such as roofs, side walls, floor panels and fenders – for the Ford models Focus and Focus C-Max produced in Saarlouis. With its more powerful lead-off press, the plant can also produce panels for other German and European facilities and help out in the case of capacity bottlenecks.
Weighing 500 metric tons and measuring over ten meters in height, the giant machine boasts a total press force of 2,250 metric tons. The die-clamping surface measures 4,600 x 2,500 millimeters, the slide stroke 1,950 millimeters, and the maximum drawing depth 350 millimeters. The crown weighs 115 metric tons, the press bed 90 metric tons, and the slide and blank holder 50 metric tons.
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