PRODUCTS & SERVICES
Infrastructure investment
New manufacturing facilities dedicated to the development of electromobility is seeing
new ways in working and approach to engineering processes for the automotive industry
Four years ago, in response
to the pace of technological
change with vehicle powertrains,
mechanical engineering
manufacturer Grob established
a research and development team
that focuses solely on
electromobility. With over 2,500m
(27,000ft) of space, the series
production of high-e iciency electric
motors and extremely compact
battery modules with a high-power
density are being developed and
trialed in collaboration with the
automotive industry, engineering
processes and methods. To
accelerate the setup and
development phase, Grob acquired
DMG meccanica, a renowned
mechanical engineering partner
for the production of electric motors,
which has subsequently been
renamed Grob Italy.
At the facility, Grob covers all
processes including wave winding
technology, the hairpin process and
fan-coil technology, as well as of the
core processes in the production of
an electric motor, which is the
guiding the copper wires into the
stator. Grob Italy also covers the
winding/inserting technology as
well as the needle winding.
The design of electric motors is
aimed at a high-power density and
high e iciency, which requires
precise machines and systems to
achieve. The challenge lies in the
manufacture of process-stable and
precisely timed systems, as very
narrow tolerances are specified to
achieve performance. New
processes, materials and
technologies are researched and
tested for their suitability for use in
the automotive industry. For battery
cells, round, prism and pouch cells
are currently used and are
assembled to form a module. A wide
range of mechanical engineering is
182 // July 2019 // www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com
required for module assembly (cell
assembly, module assembly,
packing assembly) and planning
parameters, such as degree of
automation, cycle time and output
quantity are individually adapted to
customer requirements. This means
that Grob can market and operate
all the production processes
required in the automotive industry.
The cooperation between Grob
and DMG meccanica has
strengthened the company’s many
years of research and development
work in the field of electromobility,
while DMG meccanica benefits from
a globally-oriented partner for series
production. To expand these
technologies, further investments
are planned, including a new plant in
Pianzezza, Italy, which is currently
under construction. The transfer of
the Grob Italy plant from Buttigliera
Alta to Pianezza is part of a
long-term development plan which
intends to turn the area into a hub
for the design and manufacturing of
machines and automation solutions
for the production of electric motors.
The new plant will be a highly
functional center that will be able to
support this with an area of
24,000m (258,000ft), of which
4,800m (51,000ft) is dedicated to
production and 3,300m (35,500ft)
to o ices and services. The goal is to
consolidate the whole production
cycle, starting from conceiving an
idea to its practical implementation.
As a recognized turnkey supplier for
the automotive industry on many
occasions, Grob has the experience
and expertise of processes and
technologies required to o er
system concepts for reliable and
cost-e icient series production.
Grob-Werke's headquaters in Mindelheim, Germany
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