Joined-up thinking

Change in automotive industry production methods happens slowly. With hundreds of millions of pounds invested in incumbent manufacturing techniques, it’s easy to see why.

But with the world’s car manufacturers increasingly keen to reduce the weight of their vehicles and to improve the efficiency of their manufacturing processes, a number of advanced manufacturing techniques are receiving increasing amounts of attention.

One technology with particular promise is remote laser welding (RLW), an emerging joining technique that many believe has potentially huge advantages over the spot welding technology that is widely used in the automotive industry.

Working with €4;4m (£3.3m) of EU funding, the UK-based Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) has joined forces with industry partners, including tier-one automotive supplier Stadco along with Jaguar Land Rover, to help usher this innovative welding technique into the manufacturing mainstream.

Prof Darek Ceglarek, who is heading up WMG’s RLW Navigator (Remote Laser Welding System Navigator for Eco Resilient Automotive Factories) project, explained the differences between resistance spot welding and its potential rival.