In 1993, for the first time, Schuler delivered three hot stamping lines to American automaker Ford Motor Company. The new technology adopted at that time quickly established its global market position as a solution for automotive lightweight structures and led to lightweighting. Development trend of structural forming technology: Now, Schuler has sold the first 100 sets of hot stamping equipment, the buyer is a Chinese auto parts supplier.
Figure 1: Hot stamping technology has established its global market position as an economical solution for lightweight automotive structures.
Figure 2: In 2016, Schuler established the Hot Stamping Technology Center at the company's headquarters in Göppingen, to research and demonstrate hot stamping technology.
Fig. 3: The process is mainly performed by heating the steel sheet to 930 degrees and then cooling it during the forming process. Effect: Excellent tensile strength. All photos are from Schuler.
'Compared to aluminum, carbon fiber reinforced composites and dual phase steels, the technology cost for lightweight body structures is even lower,' said Daniel Huber, head of Schuler Hydraulics. Schuler China CEO Oemer Akyazici Mr. Chen added: 'Some of China's auto manufacturers and parts suppliers, such as Shanghai Sikeli Auto Mould Technology Application Company and Baowei, are increasingly favoring hot stamping technology.
In the early 1990s, the introduction of steel sheet material heated to 930 degrees, and then cooling during the forming process. This process was originally designed to enhance the passenger safety of the car, such as the strength of the Saab 9000 door to pass it through US strict crash test.
The earliest targets for mass production of thermoforming technology were Ford's Sierra series manufactured in Europe and the Mercury series produced in the United States. At that time, the car's side door anti-collision beams and bumpers were all manufactured by Schuler equipment. Since 2000, the industry has paid more and more attention to the potential of this technology in light weight and safety. Compared with cold-formed high-strength steels, press-hardened (hot stamping) parts have higher tensile strength, so Reduce the amount of material used to make parts lighter.
For the first time, Volkswagen's Passat body was made up of 12 stamped and hardened parts in 2006. To this end, Schuler built 6 hot stamping lines in the shortest time and installed them at the Kassel plant. The more you use it, says Daniel Huber, general manager of Schuler Press (Waghuisel).
Currently, with more than 400 hot stamping systems worldwide producing around 500 million components a year, Huber said experts believe the demand for this technology will grow further: "Schuler saw this trend in its early stages, 2006 In 2008, Schuler set up a Stamping Hardening Capability Center in Wagga-Issel. "In 2016, Schuler again set up a Hot Stamping Technology Center at the company's Göppingen headquarters to conduct research and demonstration on hot stamping technology.