automotive | Update BMW launches into plastic panels
BMW’s fi rst electric i3 models hit the streets in Germany around now. While much has been made of the car’s carbon fi bre reinforced plastic chassis structure, it is also the fi rst production BMW to use a fully-thermoplastic skin. With the exception of the
structural roof, which is made of carbon fi bre composites, all the i3 body panels are injection moulded at BMW’s new plant at Leipzig. Weight is the key reason for the adoption of plastics; BMW says the plastic skin weighs half that of steel, with a further 10kg saving per vehicle made through the elimination of the cataphoretic dip steel primer.
Asahi Kasei adds soft option
US-based Asahi Kasei Plastics has extended its range of specialty com- pounds for the automotive industry with the launch of Soform, a soft-touch PP grade for interior parts. According to the
company, the new PP grade delivers a soft surface feel without compromising on structural integrity. The new grade is
intended for production of unpainted automotive trim parts such as interior door panels and other surfaces where a good tactile experience and resistance to scratching is required.
www.akplastics.com
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Peters says the in-mould assembled parts are produced exclusively on two of its 4,000 tonne MX series two-platen machines equipped with swivel platens, double-cube moulds and six-axis robotics. The i3 body components are
BMW’s electric i3
is the company’s fi rst to use all-thermoplastic body panels
Three different production
techniques are used to produce the body panels: some parts are produced using standard single shot moulding; some by bonding together two separate mouldings in a successive process; a number
are assembled in the moulding machine using automated over-moulding assembly techniques. KraussMaffei and Engel moulding machines are used in the Leipzig plant. However, KraussMaffei VP sales Frank
produced in a variety of polymers, including glass reinforced PP, PP/EPDM blends and PC/SAN blends. TPE is used as the joining material in the in-mould assembled components. All parts are painted prior to assembly on the car. BMW says 300 people are
employed in its facility at Leipzig for production of plastic body panels for the i3.
Hella opts for Ultem for VW
Automotive electrical compo- nents group Hella is producing the high performance fog lamps for the current VW Golf model at its lighting plant in Slovenia using a high heat resistant black pigmented grade of Ultem from SABIC. According to Hella, the
combination of increased styling requirements and the demand for more compact designs – due to the prolifera- tion of equipment in the front end of the vehicle such as sensors, cameras and lane assist systems – is making material selection for fog lamps particularly challenging. “The right materials – those
that allow us to overcome traditional boundaries – are critical to making advances in lighting systems,” says
INJECTION WORLD | November/December 2013
Hella’s fog lamp for the VW Golf uses Sabic’s Ultem PEI resin
Christof Droste, managing director of Hella Saturnus Slovenija. The company selected
Ultem AUT210 for this application, a high heat resistant grade of polyetherim- ide (PEI) polymer offering haze onset temperatures up to 210˚C. The material also provides the required dimen- sional stability and accepts
direct metallization. According to SABIC, the use
of Ultem delivers a weight sav- ing of 30% compared to pressed steel and 70% compared to die-cast alumini- um lamps. An added benefi t that comes from the use of the black pigmented polymer is the reduction of parasitic, or unwanted refl ected, light.
www.sabic.com
www.injectionworld.com
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