COLLABOR ATIVE RESEARCH AND BOUGHT-IN R&D SERVICES

Contacts with around 120 scientific institutions and exter-nal development partners give us access to the latest research results. In 2015 we spent € 24.8 million (2014:

€ 21.8 million) on externally sourced R&D services. We received state research grants and subsidies to the sum of

€ 0.7 million (2014: € 0.8 million); this represents 0.7 % of the total R&D costs.

R&D FOCUS

Our R&D work is mostly product- and application-oriented.

In our technology centers, in particular, we also conduct basic research. The focuses of our development work are currently as follows:

• Industry 4.0 / digitization: The digital networking of ma-chines and plant is one of the key trends in industry. We are working intensively on manufacturing execution systems (mes)[ p. 220 ] and on smart products, which are self-regulating and self-optimizing. We are also devel-oping software tools with which production plant can be simulated, optimized and virtually commissioned in advance.

• Increased flexibility: Our customers need flexible pro-duction lines in order to offer a wide diversity of mod-els and variants.

• Optimization of per-unit cost: A key factor in increas-ing efficiency in production is reducincreas-ing the operatincreas-ing costs. We are therefore developing new products and processes with a reduced demand for material, energy, maintenance and human resources.

• Automation: A high level of automation is crucial to re-producible top quality in long-run production. We are directing our efforts accordingly, for example with robot

applications for interior painting of vehicles, fully auto-mated balancing systems and linked production systems for batch size 1 furniture production.

• Human-robot collaboration [ p. 220 ]: Combining human skills and mechanical efficiency can accelerate and sim-plify work processes. The focus here is on using our know-how in fields such as robotics, sensor technology, control technology and occupational safety for new work processes.

• Energy efficiency and conservation of resources: As a result of cost and sustainability considerations, the requirements made of energy efficiency and conserva-tion of resources are becoming tougher. We are there-fore developing systems with low material and energy consumption.

• Downsizing and lightweight design: The automotive industry is cutting fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by reducing vehicle weights and using downsized engines [ p. 220 ]. We are developing glueing technology systems for the use of non-weldable lightweight materials [ p. 220 ]. The building of complex downsized engines increases the demands on our industrial cleaning and balancing technology[ p. 220 ].

• Driver assistance systems: More and more cars contain driver assistance systems. We are developing highly sensitive test equipment for testing and calibrating these systems.

• Modularization: Automakers purchase complete vehicle modules from suppliers in order to make their produc-tion operaproduc-tion leaner. We are supporting these suppliers with special production technology, for instance plastic painting systems.

HOMAG Group / Woodworking Machinery and Systems was consolidated for the first time on October 3, 2014

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R&D RESULTS

Paint and Final Assembly Systems

Drying the paint using hot air is a particularly energy- intensive stage in automotive painting. Optimizing the energy requirements of this process is therefore one of the focuses of the R&D work of Paint and Final Assembly Systems. The EcoSmart VEC intelligent air management system is an example of a current innovation. This for-ward-looking controller automatically adapts the energy input for heating the oven – depending on the number and position of the car bodies in the oven tunnel.

We have implemented a control system innovation for the body conveyor systems in a final assembly plant in Mexico.

This involved replacing the former encapsulated control system with a modern, open-architecture PLC generation [ p. 220 ]. The new solution offers two benefits: On the one hand, thanks to the open architecture, the customer can rectify faults and carry out maintenance himself. On the other hand, we have utilized the capabilities of the new PLC generation to the full and programmed the controllers in such a way that even complex conveyor system operations are possible. The project in Mexico is an important refer-ence since many customers in North America work with the same controller type.

Application Technology

Application Technology has presented one of the first con-cepts for human-robot collaboration (hrc)[ p. 220 ]. When glueing in fuel tanks during final vehicle assembly, it increases quality, saves time and cuts per-unit costs. A skilled worker moves the tank to the workplace and cleans it. A robot then applies a uniform bead of adhesive to the edge of the tank, after which the human worker then fixes the tank in position in the body. The technology for this process also includes the material feed, the dispensing technology for a controlled adhesive flow, and the control unit. Although the robot does not work in a separate cell, direct contact with the human colleague is more or less ruled out. Should contact occur nevertheless, the robot, which is equipped with sensors, comes to a standstill within milliseconds.

Pumps for different paints and high-viscosity materials play a central role in Application Technology’s product spectrum. In 2015 we brought three new pump series for different handling tasks to the marketability stage: The EcoPump HP for water- and solvent-based paints offers low investment costs thanks to a compressed-air motor and is simple to install and operate. Its sister product, the EcoPump HPE, uses an especially energy-efficient electric drive. We also designed the pneumatically powered EcoPump VP for high-viscosity materials, for example seal-ants and glues. All three pump types are of modular design and consequently very maintenance-friendly.

Measuring and Process Systems

In its Cardano system, Measuring and Process Systems offers an innovation for balancing commercial vehicle car-dan shafts. Carcar-dano combines manual operation with fully automated processes. This makes the balancing of heavy cardan shafts, produced in small to moderate batch sizes, particularly effective. Other advantages include an intuitive operating concept with the CAB 950 measuring and con-trol unit, the easy accessibility of all components, and the space-saving, low-vibration design.

In the emerging markets, too, commercial vehicles are in-creasingly being equipped with safety systems such as ABS and ESP. These systems have to undergo performance testing after final assembly. We have introduced the x-road medium truck test stand for that purpose. This is suitable for rolling, brake and ABS tests on commercial vehicles with an axle load up to 4 tons. The test stand enables plex tests to be conducted with the aid of control unit com-munication. Nevertheless, we have managed to significantly reduce the complexity and cost compared with existing products. This system has successfully gone on sale, and we have already commissioned two test stands on custom-ers’ premises in India.

In the filling technology field [ p. 220 ] we have expanded our Compact-series for commercial and agricultural vehi-cles. One new element is the MultiCompact version, which can fill the vehicle with up to seven media via a common controller. This reduces the investment costs and the space requirement on the assembly line. In addition, we now equip all Compact systems with the new G³Blue adapter generation, which is substantially lighter and faster than the previous models.

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During engine and transmission system production, the components have to be cleaned between various process-ing stages. We have developed an energy-efficient solu-tion for this in the EcoCVac dry cleaning system. Unlike conventional systems, EcoCVac does not work with com-pressed air, which is energy-intensive to generate, but with the new technology of short-cycle vacuum suction. This yields energy savings of more than 50 %. Another benefit of the new dry cleaning system is that the chips machined from the component are not merely distributed around the work chamber, so the risk of re-contamination is reduced.

Clean Technology Systems

In the field of thermal exhaust-air purification we have driven the development of a new generation of gas burn-ers. Our TARCOM-series gas burners heat exhaust air from production processes, thereby rendering pollutants harm-less. We have optimized the geometry of the new TARCOM VI version such that significantly lower emissions occur in the combustion process. We are currently testing the TARCOM VI under real conditions in the Bietigheim- Bissingen Technology Center. On completion of these tests, it will become the new standard burner in our exhaust-air puri-fication systems.

We are working intensively on combining micro gas tur-bine technology and exhaust-air purification technology.

This integrated solution enables a dual benefit when incin-erating volatile organic compounds (vocs)[ p. 220 ] The micro gas turbine allows the operator not only to achieve the temperature of around 1,100 °C needed for VOC incin-eration, but also to produce electricity at the same time and thus lower his operating costs. We are planning to launch the system commercially in 2017, though we have already achieved an important milestone: In 2015 we de-veloped a special micro gas turbine combustion chamber which achieves very good cleaning efficiencies and emis-sion figures.

Woodworking Machinery and Systems

The HOMAG Group unveiled a world first in panel cutting at LIGNA, the leading international woodworking trade show, with the robot-based HPS 320 flexTec cutting cell.

The fully automated system allows flexible batch size 1 production. At its heart is an industrial robot with a suction

arm which is responsible for all handling of the workpieces.

The energy-efficient cutting cell requires little mainte-nance and achieves a high level of uptime. Thanks to its modular design, we are able to build bespoke cutting lines to the customer’s specification.

We have launched the powerProfiler system for window production, enabling all the necessary components to be processed on a single machine. The innovative gripping and clamping systems allow customers huge operational flexibility. Its dedicated tool store has a large capacity and is designed to accommodate large, heavy tools. The powerProfiler can also machine whole arch sections, round windows, doors and conservatory elements.

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12.5 %

In 2015 the Group’s workforce grew by 4.9 %, to 14,850 (Dec 31, 2014: 14,151). We gained 191 new employees fol-lowing the acquisitions of iTAC, Mhitraa and Shenlian.

Apart from our regular workforce, we also take on external staff so we can respond more flexibly to changes in work-load.

At the end of 2015, 54 % of our employees were based in Germany, where we saw a 3.6 % workforce expansion. The highest increases in the number of employees were record-ed in our two largest markets, China (+ 12.4 %) and North America (+ 10.8 %). We had 4,419 people working in the emerging markets (including China), which is 11.2 % more than at the end of 2014. The proportion of employees in the emerging markets accounted for 30 % of our total workforce, slightly higher once again than the previous year (28 %).