Ralf W. Dieter, CEO of Dürr AG: “The order is a milestone in the strategic expansion of our glueing technology business.” The acquisition of glueing technology companies Rickert and Kleinmichel in 2010 enabled Dürr to considerably expand its offering in this technology field. The Dürr Group offers its customers solutions for all automotive glueing applications. Ralf W. Dieter: “Audi’s demanding order underlines that in this field too we are at the leading edge of technology. We are also successfully driving our regional expansion in glueing technology forward, for example with projects in China and Mexico.”
The glueing systems ordered by Audi will be used for the body construction of the A4, A5 and Q7 models. Glueing is used for insulating and sealing, but primarily for joining body components. The process is more flexible than conventional welding because it is suitable not only for sheet metal panels but also for modern fibre composites (e.g. carbon fibre). With the aid of glueing technology, therefore, the automotive industry can implement fuel-saving lightweight construction designs using new materials. Glueing also significantly increases the strength of bonded sheet metal panels. This substantially improves the body’s crash safety performance.
The core components of the Dürr glueing systems are the dosing system, application head, adhesive pump and control technology. The application head, which guarantees precise dosing of the adhesive, is positioned with the aid of a robot.
Dürr will equip around half of the 520 glueing systems ordered with its innovative short bead application technology. This works with a servo drive which enables faster opening and closing of the application head than conventional pneumatically operated needle valves and guns. This means that precisely defined gaps can be created in the adhesive bead during the weld bonding process. Spot welds can then be applied in the adhesive-free gaps without “burning” the adhesive. A further benefit is that the short bead application technology significantly accelerates the adhesive application process which reduces the cycle times in body construction.
