Flexible Rolling of Tailor Rolled Blanks

- innovative light weight design in steel -

Dr.-Ing. Michael Rehse

Muhr und Bender KG

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 Tailor Rolled Blanks

- a light weight design opportunity -

• Flexible Rolling is a continuous rolling process

with periodically varying thickness.
• Mubea developed the complete process chain
for a steel component made of TRB
Side Member Reinforcement Rocker Cross Member Rear Axle

• The adoption of TRB in the automotive industry

offers great potential for the optimization of
weight, function, cost and complexity.
• Verification of competitiveness: supply orders
Heel Cross Member Side Member Rear Seat Cross Member with Audi, BMW, DCX, GM & Skoda ( 31 parts)
• Ongoing launches in Europe and North America
• Serial production of Tailor Rolled Tubes with an
annual capacity of 1 million tubes
Front Seat Cross Member Cockpit Cross Member Connection Member
• Application studies for multiple car and truck
bodies
• Verification of volume production capability:
16,500 to / 5.75 million blanks up to now
Bumper Reinforcement Safety Belt Side Member

During the past 5 years, lightweight construction potential, feasibility, competitiveness and
volume production capability of Flexible Rolling have been verified.
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 Mubea Group

Product Range
Engine Components

Suspension Valve Springs Hose Clamps Belt Tensioner systems Camshafts

Body &
Components Interior

Suspension Coil Springs Head Rests

Stabilizer Bars Tailor Rolled Blanks

Transmission Components

System Components Tailor Rolled Tubes

Suspension Transmission Disc Springs Drive and Transmission Shafts

Mubea – as a lightweight design specialist – supplies automotive OEM‘s worldwide with steel based
products. Using Mubea lightweight innovations, a weight reduction of 20 kg per vehicle can be achieved.

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 Mubea Group
Worldwide presence

Attendorn, Germany Warnstedt, Germany

Florence, KY, USA Zebrák, Czech Republic

Taicang, China

Taubaté, Brazil Production plant

Development Center

Over 4,200 employees @ 15 production sites enable us to serve the customers worldwide.
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 Mubea Group
Sales development

Target 2010:
1 billion €

689
Sales in M €

547
445
368

2000 2002 2004 2006 2010

Mubea strives for a continuous growth in the coming years.

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 Mubea Cold Rolling Mill

 Many years of experience in the cold rolling

area
 Annual production of 30.000 t / year
 Core competence in the following materials
- Spring steels
- Mild and higher-tensile steels
 Expansion of the cold rolling mill in two steps
Flexible rolling facility I: 10.000 t / year
Flexible rolling facility II: 60.000 t / year
Materials:
- Deep-draw grades
- Micro-alloyed steels
- Higher-tensile steels

Mubea has a long experience in cold rolling.

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 Principle of Flexible Rolling

• Defined sheet metal thickness contours

• Uniform thickness transition areas

• High efficiency as strip rolling process

• Can be applied to all rollable metals

Mubea is convinced that lasting success can only be achieved in partnerships.

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 TRB Properties

Feasible Profile Shapes

1,6
 Varying sheet metal thickness with smooth
mm
in mm

1,4
thickness in

1,2 transitions
StripBanddicke

1,0
0,8
0,6  50% max. thickness reduction
0,4
gewalzte Bandkontur
0,2 Sollprofil  Slope between 1/3000 up to 1/100
0,0
0 200 400 600 800 1000
strip length inmm
Meßweg in mm  Thickness tolerances  50µm
3.0

 Optimized sheet thickness dependent upon

in mm

2.5
in mm

2.0
the load
thickness
Banddicke

1.5

1.0  The cost of the component does not

Strip

0.5 gewalzte Bandkontur

depend on number of thickness steps
Sollprofil
0.0
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700
Meßweg
 Reduction of sheet and component weight
strip lengthin
inmm
mm

Flexible Rolling allows to produce components with almost all thinkable thickness changes.

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 TRB Properties

Feasible Profile Shapes

1,8
Strip thickness in mm

1,6
 Varying sheet metal thickness with smooth
1,4
1,2 transitions
1,0
0,8
0,6
 50% max. thickness reduction
0,4
0,2
gewalzte Bandkontur
Sollprofil
 Slope between 1/3000 up to 1/100
0,0
0 200 400 600
strip length in mm
800 1000  Thickness tolerances  50µm
1.6
1.4  Optimized sheet thickness dependent upon
in mm

1.2
in mm

1.0
the load
thickness
Banddicke

0.8
0.6
 The cost of the component does not depend
Strip

0.4
gewalztes Bandprofil
on number of thickness steps
0.2
Sollprofil
0.0
 Reduction of sheet and component weight
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700
Meßweg
strip in mm
length in mm

Flexible Rolling allows to produce components with almost all thinkable thickness changes.

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 Principle and Status of TRB

Process chain of Tailor Rolled Blanks

Flexible Rolling hood-type strip

coil to coil annealing furnace galvanizing

profile levelling profile forming part with different

and cutting into a part Sheet thicknesses

Mubea has developed the complete process chain for a steel component
made of Flexibly Rolled Parts.

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 Cold Rolling Plant in Attendorn

Start of construction work: Ma `03

Completion of building: Jan `04
Start of equipment installation: Feb `04
First Coil: Aug `04
Capacity: 60.000 t/year

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Prinzip und Status von TRB

FlexWalze 1
 Principle and Status of TRB

Process chain of Tailor Rolled Parts

Flexible Rolling hood-type strip

coil to coil annealing furnace galvanizing

part with different

Coil Component manufacturing
Sheet thicknesses

Mubea developed the complete process chain for a steel

component made of Flexible Rolled Blanks.

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 Principle and Status of TRB

New Mubea Press Shop

Production Technology TRB Pressed Parts Mubea Press Shop Application Example: Steering Link
 Mechanical press,
Press force: 1.100 tonnes
 Max. length pressed parts: 1450mm
 Max. length developed blanks:
2500mm
 Fully automated part / developed blank

Wall Thickness in mm
production from coil 4,00

 Fully automated blank orientation 3,00

(lengthwise or across the rolling 2,00

direction), independent of die 1,00

 In-house processing of Tailor Rolled

0,00
0 100 200 300 400 500 600

Blanks Platinenlänge in mm
Blank Length in mm

Process Chain

Decoiling Cutting Transport + Forming Part

Rotation

 Short processing time: raw material coil to the finished, flexibly rolled component in one plant.
 Cost reduction due to omittance of storing and one production step (stackling of blanks).

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 Properties of TRB

Forming behaviour

Tension distribution:
Weld seam vs. continuous transition
• Continuous transition
TWB
• Harmonic tension distribution throughout
the thickness transition area

TRB • Homogeneous surface

• No disturbed fibre pattern

Analysis of the deep drawing
performance • No notch effect

• No detrimental effects on microstructure

caused by welding

• Can be modelled for simulation

Source: RWTH Aachen, Institut für Bildsame Formgebung • Forming properties are comparable to
conventionally rolled metal

The material and forming properties of Tailor Rolled Blanks

are comparable to conventionally rolled metal.
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 Features of TRB

Process flexibility

• The flexible rolling process enables

non tool-related production
• Simple software programming
allows contour changes from one
1,60 coil to
sheet metal thickness in mm

1,20 the other

0,80 • Cost efficient manufacturing of
contour changes
0,40 derivates or product variants
0,00
– Without set-up costs
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200
length in mm
– No additional body shop costs

Easy contour optimization due to the flexibility of the process.

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 Features of TRB

Functional improvement

Cross member Side member

1,85 1,35
1,35
1,20
1,00
1,00
1,00
1,35 1,85 1,50

2,00 1,60

sheet metal thickness in mm

sheet metal thickness in mm

1,50 1,20

1,00 0,80

0,50 0,40
0 200 400 600 800 1000 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200
length in mm length in mm

• Part design requires increased thickness • Front crash demands local up-gauging at
• Optimized distribution of stiffness in outer load exposed front and below x-member
areas by matching of sheet thickness (NVH) • Improvement of crash performance
With local sheet metal thickness adaptations to the load
Tailor Rolled Blanks provide best performance at minimum weight.
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 Features of TRB

Integration of components

conventional design
• Conventional design:
1 component
4 reinforcements  5 parts
• TRB – design:  1 part
Opportunities:
– production costs
TRB – design – tool costs / investments
2,50
– assembly process
thickness in mm

2,00
– logistic costs
sheet metal

1,50
– floor space required
1,00
• Potential savings up to 1 US$/unit
0,50 exclusive of weight-increasing
0 500 1000 1500 2000
length in mm

Reduction of assembly groups by Tailor Rolled Blanks.

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 Application Examples

Structure & chassis parts

roof bow cross member

tunnel reinforcement • Load exposed parts with
sufficient thickness for local
reductions
• Sub-assemblies with
reinforcements
strut tube • Weight reduction of 20% and
above
• Straight parts with high
connection member rear side member material utilization from blank
to part (below 40%)

rocker panel • Integration of parts to reduce

front side member seat cross member complexity

The technology offers high potentials for different components in the structure and chassis
areas. Application criteria for optimum TRB applications have been identified.

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 TRB Series Applications

Rear cross member

• Increased torsional stiffness

• Weight reduction of 1,2 kg HSLA 300 / 350 TRB Z100
flexible rolled 1,9 > 1,05 > 1,9 mm
vs. conventional part

in mm
1,8

in mm
1,6

thickness
StripBanddicke
1,4
1,93
1,2

1,05 1

0,8
0 200 400 600 800 1000
Platinenlänge
Strip lengthinin
mm
1,93 mm

Producing structure parts for the DC E-class and the BMW 5-series,
we verified volume production capacity.

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 TRT Series Applications

Cockpit cross member

• 30% weight reduction

HSLA420 TRB
• Narrowest part tolerances flexible rolled
• Cost-effective light weight 1.0 > 1.6 > 1.8 > 1.6 > 1.0 > 1.4 > 1.0
construction

2,00
1,80

mm
1,60

mm
1,40

inin
1,20

thickness
Wandstärke
1,00
0,80
0,60

Strip
0,40
0,20
0,00
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400
Tube length in
Rohrlänge in mm
mm

Considering the technology advantages of TRB during the part development process
results in maximal weight reduction and low costs.

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 Tailor Rolled Products

Tube Production Line

Layout tube production line • Discontinuous tube production

• High number of profile shapes by means of
flexible forming techniques
• Connection by laser beam welding
• Integration of further process steps
like bending and forming

 Tube with a constant outer diameter and

invisible thickness transition run
Profile shapes
 Tube with constant inner diameter and
visible thickness transition run
 Tube with variable diameters and varying
thicknesses

Mubea put the first production line for Tailor Rolled Tubes in stream.

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 Development of Tailor Rolled Tubes (TRT)

Tailor Rolled Tube with variable diameters

• Different diameters along the whole tube

Diameter variation: 52%
Thickness variation: 43% • Different thicknesses over the whole length
Weight reduction: 33%
of the tube

• Maximum weight savings

• High degree of design flexibility

• Cost efficient manufacturing of complex tube

Diameter variation: 31% geometries (compared to hydro forming)
Thickness variation: 50%
Weight reduction: 35%

Manufacturing tubes with variable diameters and sheet metal thicknesses features
maximum flexibility in weight optimization and design.
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 Hot fromed TRB

Combination of Hot Forming and Flexible Rolling

Press
levelling, Oven with
Coil Coil rolling profile cut cooling

The combination of matched sheet metal thickness and extremely high material
strengths allows a maximal weight reduction.

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 Hot fromed TRB

PM49 B-Pillar

• 24% weight reduction

• Improved crash performance as a BTR 165 TRB
result of integration of components flexible rolled 1.0 > 1.9 > 1.6 > 1.3
and adaptation of thickness

2.50

sheet metal thickness in mm

2.00

1.50

1.00

0.50

0.00
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800
length in mm

Rp0.2 [N/mm²] Rm [N/mm²] A5 [%]

die hardened
min. 950 min. 1300 min. 6
Weight optimized B-pillar design through load adapted thicknesses.
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 Summary

• Flexible Rolling is designed as a continuous rolling process for metal sheets with
periodically varying thickness.
• Mubea developed the complete process chain for a steel component made of
Flexible Rolled Blanks.
• The adoption of Tailor Rolled Blanks in the automotive industry offers great
potential for the optimization of weight, function, cost and complexity.
• The material and forming properties of Tailor Rolled Blanks
are comparable to conventionally rolled metal.
• All conventional process steps for the production of metal parts are
applicable for Tailor Rolled Blanks.
• The technology offers high potential for different components
in the structure and chassis area.
• Mubea has put the first production line for Tailor Rolled Tubes in stream.
• World-wide, Mubea is leading in the production of Tailor Rolled Products.

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THANK YOU VERY MUCH
FOR YOUR ATTENTION!!!!

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