Husky Injection Molding Systems has supplied four Quadloc Tandem injection molding machines to Johnson Controls' operations in Italy to produce two-color automotive door panels for Fiat's new Grande Punto.
The door panels are among the first in Europe to be produced in 10 different color combinations, providing a wide range of interior customization choices for the consumer. The Grande Punto is available in four models - the entry-level Active, the mid-scale Dynamic, the upscale Emotion and the high-performance Sport. The door panels consist of a frame and an insert, whose colors can be combined.
"Husky offered us a unique mix of technology and expertise," a Johnson Controls spokesperson said. "The Husky systems helped reduce floor space and energy consumption, while offering easy mold changes, simplified logistics and higher output. This, in turn, has allowed us to offer Fiat the production capacity and flexibility that enables car buyers to, in effect, design their own car."
The four 13,500 kN (1,350 metric ton) Quadloc Tandem machines, with Polaris Control and integrated Tracer robots, were manufactured at Husky's Luxembourg Technical Center. The 16 molds designed for the application were also debugged on the machines to insure easy start-up and optimal mold performance. Husky's complete workcell solution also included technical assistance during machine installation and initial production at Johnson Controls' facility at Melfi, in the south of Italy.
"The Quadloc Tandem technology essentially doubles output by using two molds in a stack-mold configuration, allowing left and right panels to be molded simultaneously," explains Karl Heinz Hoefert, Sales Manager for Machines, Husky Luxembourg. "The system provides a unique solution for improving productivity and part economics. It is ideal for the cost-effective, high-volume production of identical or similar parts, such as automotive door panels, both in single or dual-component configurations."
Husky's Quadloc Tandem line ranges from 13,500 to 54,000 kN (1,350 to 5,400 metric ton) and belongs to a wide range of process technologies developed for automotive applications. These include in-line compounding of long glass fiber polymers, the Quadloc-Tandem-Index (QTI) system for large multi-component automotive parts as well as magnesium injection molding of structural parts.
