Focus on Best Practice and Customized Product ... - Tenaris

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“The cycle to setup and homologate tubes for manufacture of, for example, constant-velocity joints for heavy vehicles and drive shafts – Perugini explains – is rather long and complex. Furthermore, the automotive manufacturers are going through a phase of profound reorganization in which, in the quest for maximum efficiency, they have established centralized hubs for design and component purchasing and have relocated production units in the markets with the greatest potential for development. In this sense Tenaris has followed the same development model, strengthening its presence in Eastern Europe and now in China, establishing a global R&D function coordinated centrally, setting up the technical and quality requisites of the product, through to supplying a package of services that facilitate integration into their supply chain. In fact, it’s in the airbag market where we’re starting to see the most centralized development models, which we are moving to emulate. The global presence of Tenaris is a strong point in as much as it allows dialogue with the client, guaranteeing the same technical and commercial levels in all the principal markets, focusing particularly on Europe, Nafta and Mercosur.” 4 TenarisNews It’s in the airbag market where we’re starting to see the most centralized development models. In a constant effort to achieve efficiency and cost reduction, we share experience in product and process development. Sharing know-how “In a constant effort to achieve internal efficiency and cost reductions – Perugini adds – we transfer experience gained in development of a product and process to the plants involved in producing the same product.” For example, the know-how acquired in ring gear products initially gained in the AlgomaTubes plant, was subsequently enlarged to include the Tamsa plant and now there are plans to transfer part of the production to the Italian facility. In particular, in the latter plant, various qualification trials were concluded involving four new steel types and about ten different part numbers. The quenched and tempered airbag product has also followed a similar path: initial development at Siderca was then expanded to the Tamsa mill, and now the component center at Costa Volpino, already the principal reference point for the European market, is working on qualification of beveled tubes in the high-resistance Tenaris UHSS-145 grade to meet the increase in demand and design characteristics in the US and European markets for curtain airbag inflators and passenger hybrid inflators.
Qualification Keeps Pace with Growth in Airbag Market Trial planning and interfunctional teamwork - Product, Quality, Logistics and Product Development - were crucial. Following qualification of the TenarisDalmine Costa Volpino colddrawing plant for tubes for Q&T airbag vessels in late 2004, the Dalmine steelworks and small diameter tube hot-rolling plant have also gained PPAP (Production Part Approval Process) qualification. In line with the approach of knowledge sharing within the industrial system, hollows previously coming just from the Siderca facility, Argentina, to Italy for Q&T to be then shipped to the component center in Veracruz, Mexico, to form the air bag inflator, are now also being produced at the Dalmine mill. Eduardo Altschuler, responsible for product development for the automotive sector in Europe, explains why qualification of all Tenaris facilities in Italy was necessary: “The airbag market is growing very rapidly in terms of annual volumes - more cars are being made, there are more airbags per car and Tenaris’s market share is increasing - so in order to keep pace we need to qualify different mills. Production started at TenarisDalmine in 2005, with hollows coming out of the Siderca mill and the Veracruz Component Center producing about 800,000 airbag inflators annually. As a result, we’ve been able to increase production to keep pace with the market: the Costa Volpino facility, for instance, has increased its orders for air bag inflators four times in the last two years. In order to optimize logistics for this product it was critical to qualify the route with Dalmine steel.” In addition to supplying Veracruz, the same product is now being supplied to an airbag manufacturer in Europe, although in relatively small quantities. This step does, however, indicate the efforts Tenaris is making to develop the European market to achieve a similar presence to the one gained in Nafta. Additionally, projects are underway with all the main European airbag producers. The qualification process “It was a very interesting project because it involved several manufactur - ing facilities. – Altschuler continues - The steel shop had to manufacture a particular steel for the first time, a SAE 1510-modified steel type for airbags. Then the small diameter tube hot-rolling mill manufactured the mother tubes, the hollows, for Costa Volpino, which demanded, among other critical characteristics, a very good surface quality.” In fact the principal focus for this qualification centered on the small diameter tube hot-rolling plant. Trial planning and interfunctional teamwork between Production, Quality, Logistics, and Product departments were some of the keys to gaining PPAP approval. Renato Demarchi worked as Project Leader, helping to identify and keep critical process parameters under control: “We had to make sure we were complying with the tough non-destructive test requirements for this product, implementing very strict controls throughout, both on the hot rolled hollows and on the cold drawing.” Demarchi’s activity was crucial, ensuring that Costa Volpino received a hollow ready for cold drawing that met all the critical requisites in terms of surface quality. The steel shop had to manufacture a particular steel for the first time, a SAE 15-10-modified for airbags. Tenaris News 5
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Page 7 and 8: The Toronto Office: Strengthening a
Page 9 and 10: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MCF AND U10 U1
Page 11 and 12: Photo courtesy of Costruzioni Cimol

Focus on Best Practice and Customized Product ... - Tenaris

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