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Federal-Mogul Leads Global Automotive Suppliers With 3 ‘Automotive News’ PACE Awards
Federal-Mogul led all other global automotive parts suppliers in the 2010 “Automotive News” PACE Awards competition, receiving three best-in-class awards for innovative technologies in piston manufacturing, component machining and the design of a revolutionary wiper blade connection system. A fourth Federal-Mogul technology – the production of vehicle interior components from Chinese cardboard – was a PACE Award finalist.
The PACE Awards were announced 13 April in a ceremony in the United States.
“We are immensely proud of our heritage as a leading innovator within the original equipment and replacement markets,” said Martin Hendricks, Federal-Mogul vice president, Global Aftermarket, Europe, Middle East and Africa. “These advanced technologies are representative of the hundreds of research and development initiatives under way within Federal-Mogul’s global network of technology centres. More importantly, they are a testament to our unique ability to leverage OE leadership on behalf of customers within the replacement market. Each of these technologies will ultimately become part of our exclusive portfolio of aftermarket solutions.”
Federal-Mogul’s three PACE Award-winning technologies are the DuraBowl® Piston Reinforcement Process; Bayonet Connection System for Profile Wiper Blades; and High Precision Electro-Erosion Machining (HPEEM).
1. Developed at Federal-Mogul’s Corporate Technical Centre in Nürnberg, Germany, DuraBowl is a sophisticated re-melting process that reinforces the bowl rim of light-vehicle and heavy-duty diesel pistons, resulting in a 400-percent increase in piston fatigue strength. The Federal-Mogul DuraBowl diesel piston was first adopted in June 2009 by Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz Cars division for use in light-vehicle
diesel engines.
2. The Federal-Mogul Bayonet Connection System is the first to address all primary needs of vehicle OEMs and consumers with regard to the rapidly growing use of profile-type wiper blades. Developed at the company’s Engineering & R/D Centre in Aubange, Belgium, this innovative system comprises three components: a plastic connector ultrasonically welded to the flat wiper blade; plastic spacer with a push-button location that is attached to the connector, allowing rotation of the blade and facilitating wiper arm connection; and metallic C-shape wiper arm extension that ensures stable connection to the blade spacer.
The system is now featured on more than 40 OE models from dozens of global manufacturers.
3. HPEEM is a precision machining technology that utilises saltwater and electrical fields to achieve component tolerances as tight as a few microns. Developed in the U.S., the system enables breakthrough engine component designs at minimal machining cost. The HPEEM process is now used in production of Federal-Mogul’s bushingless Monosteel® heavy-duty pistons.
4. Federal-Mogul’s PACE Award finalist is QuietShield® GRN (Green Non-Woven), an eco-friendly alternative to non-woven noise suppression materials used in automotive applications. It is the product of a unique process that transforms difficult-to-recycle Asian cardboard into usable raw material that is then manufactured into an acoustical product. The material is now used in a variety of General Motors LV models and is being tested by several other global vehicle manufacturers.
