As EV grows, metalworking industry may need to adapt by developing new tech

  • Articles
  • Jan 29,24
Renishaw Metrology Systems is a global engineering technology group creating high precision technology for metrology and healthcare. While discussing over the current EV trend, Sanjay Sangam, Head of Sales and Marketing - India, Renishaw Metrology Systems tells that the company supports automotive manufacturers on the road from internal combustion engines (ICE) to electric vehicles (EV) with multi-sensor rapid scanning of machined casings to material analysis of fuel cells.
As EV grows, metalworking industry may need to adapt by developing new tech

How has been the growth journey of your company since it was established?
Renishaw has come a long way since it was founded in 1973. We recently celebrated Renishaw’s 50th anniversary. Over the past five decades, Renishaw has become a world leader in measurement, motion control, and healthcare technology. The company's innovative solutions have transformed many industries, including aerospace, automotive, electronics, and medical technology.

Throughout our history we have made a significant commitment to research and development with typically around 13 per cent to 18 per cent of annual sales invested in R&D and engineering. This has enabled us to design, develop and deliver solutions that provide unparalleled precision, control and reliability.

Our commitment to investments in people, product development and production capacity, are all underpinned by a commitment to be a more sustainable organisation, to ensure we continue transforming tomorrow together.

What is the present status of the metal working industry? Are the government’s Aatmanibhar Bharat and other initiatives helping the industry’s growth?
With India’s rapid growth, the metal working industry plays a very important role in fulfilling the increasing infrastructure demands and supporting the rapidly growing manufacturing sector.

Today, the metal industry plays a crucial role in the economy, serving as a foundation for manufacturing and construction industries, contributing significantly to GDP, generating employment and foreign exchange. It is clear that the market in India is already sizeable and growing – the government initiatives around ‘Make in India’ are further fuelling the interest and growth in the manufacturing sector. As India moves away from being a sub-contract supplier base in the lower tiers of the manufacturing pyramid towards having an entire domestic supply chain, the complexity of components and requirement for process control accuracy greatly increases.

This is where Renishaw can add the most value to the market. We have a unique offer in that we can add significant value to the machining process from ensuring that machines are capable of manufacturing to required tolerances and standards (through our Calibration offer), ensuring tool integrity and condition and in cycle metrology (through our machine tool offer), and then post process measurements (through our gauging and CMM offers). 
Renishaw is extremely well positioned to assist Indian manufacturing in the leap from a high-potential market into an advanced manufacturing economy.

In summary, the application of Renishaw technology in a manufacturing process can ensure increases in productivity, scrap reduction, increasing production utilisation and ultimately increase profitability. Our positioning of the offer is based around the points above – that process control pays for itself and can significantly improve production processes.

How important is the automotive and auto components sector for the growth of your company? Will growing demand for electric vehicles (EV) have an impact on the metal working industry?
Renishaw works throughout the automotive supply chain, with a focus on the development and adoption of new technology and helping manufacturers achieve ever more demanding performance targets. We have expertise in controlling the manufacture of powertrains.

We drive cost reduction with robust manufacturing controls. These ensure parts are made correctly, first time and that scrap and wastage are reduced without slowing output. This reduces material costs and cycle times per component. Our technology is helping manufacturers achieve major performance improvements by working to ever tighter tolerances, especially in the critical area of engines and powertrain.

The growing demand for electric vehicles may impact on the metal working industry but now it is not very significant. The EVs have different components than the traditional ICE engines, including electric motors and battery packs. The manufacturing of these components often involves specialised metalworking processes. As the demand for EVs grows, the metalworking industry may need to adapt by developing new techniques and technologies to efficiently produce these components.

From multi-sensor rapid scanning of machined casings to material analysis of fuel cells, Renishaw supports automotive manufacturers on the road from internal combustion engines (ICE) to electric vehicles (EV). To meet supply chain demands, EV battery production needs to be ramped up dramatically. Encoders are essential to overcoming this challenge, and Renishaw has an extensive range of precision encoders, meticulously engineered for critical functions, ensuring unparalleled reliability and performance.

Renishaw non-destructive Raman technologies can be used to examine battery chemistry under a range of operating conditions, such as fast-charging and extremes of temperature. See how the battery reacts, then work out how to improve its efficiency.

Besides automotive and auto components, which other end-user industries is driving the demand for your products and solutions?
Renishaw solutions are serving diverse markets across the wide range of industries, customer types and geographical regions. Industries like aerospace, electronics, energy, heavy industry, machine builders, precision manufacturing, robotics, medical and healthcare, gems and jewellery and jewellery, education etc are driving demand for our solutions. Infact Renishaw was born out of aerospace industry.  We help manufacturers do repeatable, traceable, efficient work to the finest tolerances.

Sustainability is a key focus for all industries. Do your products and solutions help your customers in achieving their “green” goals?
We are committed to playing our part in looking after the environment and protecting it from significant issues such as climate change. We do this not only by improving the footprint of our own operations, such as reducing the emissions from our manufacturing facilities, but also by providing solutions to customers to help them manufacture more with less, and to deal with the shift to a more sustainable world.

With businesses increasingly focused on their environmental impact and the need to reduce costs, Renishaw's products help its customers reduce energy consumption and minimise waste, for example by reducing unproductive machine time, eliminating scrap components and reducing the total energy consumption needed to produce the same level of machined components.

What are some of the emerging trends in the industry? How do you intend to tap them?
Globally, a shift towards smarter, leaner and efficient manufacturing is taking place through data-driven manufacturing and automation. Technology has changed the nature of manufacturing, with robotics, process and measurement machinery and IT systems now an integral part of the factory floor. Sensor technology is developing rapidly and becoming more integral. Metal cutting tools equipped with a range of new-generation sensors that enable extensive monitoring of equipment and process attributes (spindle health, tool wear, coolant temperature, power usage etc) will become commonplace.

Therefore, machine-tool connectivity is becoming easier and seamless. Combined with developments in cloud computing and big data analytics this will provide users with the ability to make informed decisions. Cost Management, productivity gains, decreased downtime and improved quality will be the result of this.
 
We will also see an increased range of automation solutions. Robot technology will increase, however automation will not be only limited to robots. Automation extends beyond robots and there will be increases in integration of simpler automation solutions with metal-cutting machines too. This will make a big impact on productivity, quality and safety. These simpler solutions will include tool pre-setters, pallet changers, machine tool probes, inventory management systems, tool condition monitoring systems etc. 

All of these advances are ultimately being driven by the Global requirement for increasingly complex products with ever increasing capabilities. This increases the need for more efficient manufacturing, tighter tolerances and improved production repeatability and accuracy.

What are your short and long-term growth plans for the company?
Renishaw sees India as a growth market. With the current rate of change, India will be classed as a high tech, advanced economy in the near future and the Make in India strategy will drive this through the domestic production of increasingly more complex and critical systems for aerospace, defence and automotive projects.

Renishaw has always heavily invested in Research and Development - this continues at pace. With the market conditions, our leading-edge technology and a strong local team, my vision is to continue to lead the market in metrology and further strengthen this position through educating customers on the massive benefits that process control brings to them in productivity and quality gains. This ultimately leads to increased profitability, which makes the Indian industry more competitive in a global marketplace.

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