Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • K Show
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • CFO of the Year
    • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
    • Processor of the Year
    • Best Places to Work
    • Women Breaking the Mold
    • Rising Stars
    • Diversity
    • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Bioplastics Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • PFAS Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Resin Prices
    • Resin Prices Overview
    • Commodity Thermoplastics
    • High Temperature Thermoplastics
    • Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Thermosets
    • Europe - Virgin
    • Europe - Recycled
    • Europe - Feedstock
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
December 27, 2013 01:00 AM

Are complete modules in auto suppliers' future?

Rhoda Miel
Managing Editor
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.
    Magna makes complete tailgates for the Nissan Rogue, which is assembled in Smyrna, Tenn.

    The booming North American auto industry is generating a lot of activity for both automakers and suppliers, but an official for one company said the rapid regrowth of the industry from the depths of recession opens the potential for suppliers to make more complete modules.

    Auto suppliers have sought the opportunity to make complete systems – such as front-end modules, entire cockpits and roof systems – for years in North America, but the automakers have been hesitant to hand over major parts of the car.

    In 2013, however, Magna International Inc. began producing complete tailgates for Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.'s Rogue crossover, made in Smyrna, Tenn.

    The all olefin liftgate, with a polypropylene inner and thermoplastic polyolefin outer panel produced together with lighting, electronics and an integrated spoiler, took the top prize at this year's Society of Plastics Engineers' Automotive Innovations competition for the year.

    Magna had been in talks with Nissan about making a tailgate for more than 10 years, said Tom Pilette vice president of product and process development for Magna, an Aurora, Ontario-based company. It finally won the business by offering not only a weight savings over the steel system, but because moving the module to Magna could help free up steel stamping capacity within Nissan.

    Because Nissan would not longer need that stamping production for the tailgate in-house, it could dedicate that capacity to other needed parts. At the same time, Pilette said, Nissan could improve efficiency on the assembly line because it no longer needed the space or the people to do full assembly on the Rogue liftgate as it went down the line. Instead, it attaches a complete gate delivered by Magna, which requires fewer people.

    "There are several hundred operations on an assembly line, and if you can reduce the number of inches needed between cars, that's big," Pilette said.

    Reducing the space and personnel on the line means getting more cars per hour down that line, which leads to a higher production capacity with the same number of workers and assembly stations.

    "It might only be 10,000 or 15,000 more vehicles (per year), but what if 15,000 vehicles could be the break-even point on your investment," he said.

    Nissan spokesman Justin Saia agreed that there were some assembly line efficiencies in Smyrna with the new tailgate, but noted that the module is only part of the improvements on site there to improve production.

    Saia noted that the Smyrna plant is capable of producing six different products, while the assembly plant in Canton, Miss., can turn out nine different vehicles. That combination allows it to faster respond to changes in demand.

    New assembly plants like Nissan's in both Tennessee and Mississippi – along with those of its competitors – make it possible to produce more complex modules like the tailgate, Pilette said.

    Suppliers are interested in pursuing complete systems because they can add more value on those parts, and they can take part in development far earlier.

    "We're involved on a modular level a year before we would be on a component level," he said.

    For the Rogue, early involvement also leads to an improved product. Magna engineers were able to design a system that would allow for a tight fit and finish with the steel panels – even with the thermal expansion issues that are typically a problem for thermoplastics. The Rogue's liftgate expands and contracts out, so rather than contracting and leaving a wider gap between body panels, the gate expands outward, very slightly increasing the wheelbase of the car.

    Producing more modules off-site in supplier facilities increases the complexity for suppliers, but Pilette noted that suppliers including Magna have been making front-end modules, instrument panels, doors panels and other systems that require a variety of parts for years. Something like a tailgate just extends the logistics to another part.

    "For the most part, almost all of the hurdles to (modular production) have been handled," he said.

    And the North American auto market simply must adapt production to keep up with the growing demand. During the recession, Pilette said, automakers shut down unneeded facilities and cut back production.

    The North American auto industry is expected to top production levels of 15 million vehicles for 2013, recovering from less than 10 million just four years ago.

    "You think about how much net capacity was taken out in 2009, and how we're back at some of those same numbers in terms of vehicle production now. We're getting the same number of vehicles out, but with more efficient capacity."

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Orion expects to open fourth compounding line in 2024
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Bioplastics a missing element in treaty talks
    2
    Plastics Industry Association, Radoszewski file paperwork to settle legal battles
    3
    Avient expects return to normal for compounding market in 2024
    4
    PVC, PS prices drop in November
    5
    Chemours, DuPont, Corteva settle Ohio PFAS suit for $110M
    SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Find more newsletters at plasticsnews.com/newsletters.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Tire Business
    • Urethanes Technology
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • K Show
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • CFO of the Year
        • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
        • Processor of the Year
        • Best Places to Work
        • Women Breaking the Mold
        • Rising Stars
        • Diversity
        • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
      • Newsletters
      • Videos
      • Podcasts
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Bioplastics Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • PFAS Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Resin Prices
      • Resin Prices Overview
      • Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temperature Thermoplastics
      • Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Recycled Plastics
      • Thermosets
      • Europe - Virgin
      • Europe - Recycled
      • Europe - Feedstock
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified