Coveme, the San Lazzaro di Savena-based company that is a global top player in surface treatment and polyester film conversion, is investing a lot to enlarge its business: Seventy million euros in the last ten years.
What are the aims? Customers in Sweden, Germany, the United States, Spain, England, and new markets, two production sites in Italy and China, three research and development laboratories in Italy, China, and Germany, a new branch opened in the United States in early April of this year, and 14 production lines.
The latest one, Line 11, inaugurated in Gorizia a few days ago, totals around 300 employees. Line 11 performs various treatments on polyester film to enable customers to use it for subsequent processing in various industries, from screen printing to fashion, automotive to interior design and printed electronics.
From a trading company of insulating materials for the electromechanical industry, Coveme has grown and adapted to the changes in the world around it, becoming a reference point for polyester film processing.
Amedeo Maccolini, CEO of the company said: “Today, to stay on the market and remain competitive, you must invest. We need to employ resources in research and the development of innovative, high-quality, efficient, and sustainable products while expanding our commercial network, seeking new markets. That’s why we opened our new branch in the United States.”
Great and large investments for Coveme
Aeolian Islands, suggestive stage of electric mobility thanks to Koelliker Group
Koelliker Group is partner of Aeolian Islands Music Fest also for the 2023 edition. With a range made up by strictly green vehicles, Koelliker brings the most important product models and novelties in 2023 to the Islands, such as for instance made in Italy Microlino, the first electric Koelliker-branded scooter and Maxus Mifa 9, the luxury shuttle service with 100% electric design.
Considering the success of last year, Aeolian streets will be coloured also by Wuzheng 3MX, the fully electric three-wheeler that suits any type of arrangement, from agriculture to delivery services and up to the street food.
Maxus eDeliver3, sturdy and reliable strictly full electric commercial vehicle confirms to be the official means of the staff of Aeolian Islands Music Fest. In Marina Corta square, in Lipari, the public of the event and all artists will have the opportunity of admiring from close up other models exclusively distributed by Koelliker: the SUV coupé Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross PHEV, Korando by KG Mobility (former SsangYong) and the aCar by Evum Motor, the first commercial electric 4X4 Pick-up.
After Microlino, Koelliker widens the offer of fully made in Italy solutions of urban mobility with the new 100% electric scooter Koelliker powered by Askoll.
Italian electric motors for the Chinese NIO
The Italian manufacturer Mavel will supply the Chinese NIO with electric drive systems consisting of motor, controller and transmission.
Furthermore: NIO Capital has led a new round of funding that should convey tens of millions of dollars into the Italian company’s coffers to supply the components to NIO’s electric cars. The choice fell on the Italian Mavel because the motors developed by the Italian company feature an innovative structural and engineering design and offer significant highlights in terms of power density and efficiency.
For the Italian company, the investment by NIO represents the umpteenth confirmation of the validity of the work it is carrying out in the development of electric powertrains. At present, we do not know the details about what electric drives it will develop for NIO, but we can remind the collaborations already undertaken with other prestigious brands such as Aston Martin, Ducati, Energica, McLaren and Norton.
Giuseppe Nardella. 1938 – 2018
Suddenly, on January 6th, Giuseppe Nardella, chairman of the publishing group Tecniche Nuove, passed away. He founded the group in 1964 with the precise aim of spreading professional information, starting from mechanics and gradually developing the activities and editorial products at all the fields of industry.
Giuseppe Nardella builded a large company with the force and concreteness of ideas and he lived to the last day with the enthusiasm of the beginning. Tecniche Nuove is, at the moment, the largest publishing group in Italy covering widely professional and scientific editorial fields.
Employees and collaborators of the group – Tecniche Nuove, New Business Media, Senaf, Accademia Tecniche Nuove, Grafica Quadrifoglio, Ariesdue, Ticino Edizioni, Centro Marketing, Jonio Comunicazione, Brazil Media Communications – along with the family, tighten around Ivo Alfonso Nardella who has been leading the company with his father in the last years and will continue his work.
“I am convinced that in every company there is an invisible soul, a sort of common thread, which can be interpreted as harmony in the relationships between the Management and the people who work around it; if this harmony and soul develop together with the company, success is assured “.
More comfortable yachts with electric fins
Adding a new category of fin stabilizers to its marine equipment range, SKF promises a quieter, more comfortable onboard experience, along with cost-saving and environmental advantages. Spotlights are cast on the powerful, compact non-retractable SKF EFZ type fin stabilizers, designed for luxury yachts measuring 55 metres or longer. They feature a high-torque electric motor that meets the highly dynamic demands of stabilization, whether the vessel is at anchor (zero speed) or under way.
Christopher Schnäckel, Director Fin Stabilizer and Steering Gear, SKF, summarises the significance of this development. “While most fin stabilizers are operated electro-hydraulically, especially on larger yachts, the EFZ system has no hydraulic unit. As a result, its operation is virtually silent. It is also more compact, easier to install and has lower ongoing maintenance and related costs. ”The system takes up less space and has great flexibility for use with the onboard direct or alternating current electrics. Energy consumption is lower, as there are no wasteful conversions between electrical, hydraulic and mechanical devices, which is beneficial both economically and environmentally. The key components of an SKF EFZ fin stabilizer package are its motor, gear unit, fin shaft and mounting unit, together with the fin itself, in sizes ranging up to 12 square metres. The 360-degree constant high torque electrical actuator offers unlimited working angles. Other features include a high-precision SKF bearing system and a VGP (Vessel General Permit) compliant sealing system, which guards against pollution.
The electric motor cooling vision
To outline the state-of-the-art from the engineering point of view about Electric motor cooling in automotive applications, involving academic world and industries, it was organized a highlighting workshop that has called, to share their vision, players in automotive induced activities, from OEM, to Tier One and Tier Two suppliers. Technology is evolving to allow higher and higher efficiencies and more performing motors.
How much is it important, what is the state of the art and what are next technological moves concerning the electric motor cooling in automotive applications? Outstanding representatives of the academic and industrial world have provided their expertise and vision on this issue.
At the helm of the event, organized by Electric Motor Engineering and Tecniche Nuove and broadcast last January 31st, we have found Professor Marco Villani, professor of Electrical Machines Design and Electric Systems for Mobility at the University of L’Aquila.
The session was opened by Alessandro Ventura, Corporate Technical Director Meccanotecnica Umbra, who has cast the spotlights on Mechanical seals for electric motors cooling systems. The range of products he evaluates includes Mechanical Seals for different appliances: for automotive, for household, for aviation sector, but also for medium-duty and Hi-duty application and for hydropower applications.
Reference markets are manifold: automotive, aviation, agriculture, food&beverage, mining, energy, refrigeration, civil sector, appliances, Pulp&Paper, chem/pharma and industrial general purpose.
The stator housings and Rotor shafts for Electric motors with integrated cooling circuits were instead the theme of the speech by Philipp Bucher, Head of Sales LCD LaserCut AG. Under the magnification lens, the added values of 3D additive manufacturing in terms of improved motor cooling: integrated housing cooling, integrated shaft cooling, integrated end shields cooling, integrated power electronics cooling, integrated peripheral features, integration of weight reducing holes and minimal material need. Among the important topics that they have considered in 3D additive manufacturing there are housing and shaft designs that need to be developed from the very begin, based on the specific 3D manufacturing requirements and chances.
Giada Venturini, E-Machine Engineer Motor Design Ltd, and Husain Adam, Thermal Specialist Engineer Motor Design Ltd, spoke instead of Advanced Software for Thermal Analysis of Electric Motors. High power density, high efficiency, low cost are the advantages that can be given by advanced cooling systems. Several solutions and configurations for eMobility are discussed more in details.
«Thermal response analysis is essential for meeting the performance: machine operating temperature limits the electric loading, increasing in operating temperature cuts insulation life, magnet performance is very sensitive to temperature and copper loss is temperature dependent.
The message sounds clear: effective thermal management is critical to ensure high power dense machine lifetime and reliability. The two young engineers stressed Ansys Motor-CAD capabilities concerning both thermal and Cooling types. Wide room was also dedicated to Direct Stator Cooling & Flooded Stator Cooling and to Oil Spray Cooling, Oil jets and Oil Dripping Cooling.
The workshop was ended by the speech EV/HEV motors and advantages in terms of thermal dissipation through potting, delivered by Alberto Menozzi, Plant Manager – Technical Director, Demak Polymers of Demak Group, which can boast mechanical and chemical know-how: the company’s great value precisely derives from the combination of these two competences.
The core of his speech is the resin encapsulation of electric motors for EV/HEV applications.
Thanks to the experience gained during these last years, many advantages of a full resin potting compared to other technologies, such as impregnation and trickling. The resin is a perfect electrical insulator, and it delivers properties that are absolutely incomparable to other insulating methods, including: enhanced water and dust resistance, chemical resistance, less vibration, less noise and most of all, perfect heat dissipation and improved thermal shock resistance.
The 2030-world of electric cars
A research recently published by Boston Consulting Group reveals that – in 10 years – new electrified cars will constitute 51% of the global market, so surpassing the number of vehicles with endothermic motors.
The study, entitled “Who Will Drive Electric Cars to the Tipping Point?”, shows that in 2030 the sales of pure electric cars will constitute 18% of the total on a world scale.
Shifting to other electrified segments, the market of hybrid rechargeable will account for 6%, standard hybrid for 7% and light hybrid for 20%. These shares, together with pure electric one, make up the optimistic 51% datum.
In this scenario, the diesel share will have decreased by 4% and petrol cars will constitute 44% of the market.
If we focus the magnifying lens on the European market, the study highlights a more incisive boom of pure electric cars: in 2030 there will be a bigger incidence, with 25% of sales, whereas diesel and petrol will drop by 35-55%.
The authors of the research are Xavier Mosquet, Aakash Arora, Alex Xie and Matt Renner.
Pioneer of the e-revolution
Today, “electromobility” is one of its keywords. We are talking about GROB, a top player who broadened its product range significantly by moving into this area. As a turnkey supplier in the system business, GROB already has an excellent reputation in the market, but with its technology, electromobility is calling for a new way of working and thus for changes in approach. And the company is ready.
Electromobility is gaining importance at an increasingly fast pace and transformations in vehicle drive technology have already begun. The markets have responded to these changes in various ways. GROB, with its inherent strength and experience of making highly productive manufacturing and assembly lines, has already squared up to this new challenge.
After several years in installation and development, this new line of GROB’s business is now well established. Indeed, four years ago, in response to the increasingly progressive pace of technological change with vehicle powertrains, GROB established a Research and Development team that focuses solely on electromobility. In collaboration with the automotive industry, engineering processes and methods for the series production of high-efficiency electric motors and extremely compact battery modules with a high power density are being developed and trialed on over 2,500 m² of space.
The choice to win
To accelerate the set-up and development phase, GROB consolidated its knowledge of winding and inserting technology and, in early 2017, acquired a renowned mechanical engineering partner for the production of electric motors – DMG meccanica. To complete its integration and optimize its structure, DMG meccanica has undergone the final step of the acquisition and been renamed GROB Italy Srl in January 2018.
The cooperation between GROB and DMG meccanica was a win-win situation for both companies. GROB took this step in order to strengthen its many years of research and development work in the field of electromobility and DMG meccanica has found in GROB a strong, globally-oriented partner for series production.
A place to design and manufacture
To expand these technologies further investments are planned, like the new plant in Pianezza in Italy which is currently under construction. The transfer of the GROB Italy plant from Buttigliera Alta to Pianezza is part of a long-term development plan which intends to make Pianezza a place of reference regarding the design and manufacturing of special machines and automation solutions for the production of electric motors. To support this important technological development, GROB has set up the new plant in Pianezza as a highly functional center, with an area of 24,000 m², of which 4,800 m² are dedicated to production and 3,300 m² to offices and services. It is intended to pool the whole production cycle from conceiving an idea to its practical implementation and with its expertise as a turn-key supplier, recognized by the automotive industry on many occasions, GROB has already mastered all the processes and technologies required to offer system concepts for reliable and cost-efficient series production.
Technical focus
One of the core processes in the production of an electric motor is the process of guiding the copper wires into the stator. GROB covers all known processes here, including wave winding technology, the hairpin process and fan-coil technology. GROB Italy Srl also covers the winding/inserting technology as well as the needle winding. The design of electric motors is aimed at a high power density and good efficiency. This requires very precise machines and systems. The challenge lies in the manufacture of process-stable and precisely timed systems, since very tight tolerances are specified to achieve performance. For battery cells currently round, prism and pouch cells are used. These are assembled to form a module. Planning parameters such as degree of automation, cycle time and output quantities are individually adapted to customer requirements. New processes, materials and technologies are researched and tested with regard to their suitability for use in the automotive industry. A very varied mechanical engineering is required for module assembly (cell assembly, module assembly, packing assembly). This means that GROB can market and operate all the production processes required in the automotive industry.
Corrada celebrates 90 years
Controlled by 100% by EuroGroup Laminations, where it merges in 1987, the Milanese company Corrada stands out in the production of high-precision progressive dies for the blanking of magnetic laminations used in electric motors and generators. Class 1933, the company, today managed by the third generation, in these 90 years has evolved from the manufacturing core consisting in machines for the marble processing, to reference reality for the blanking of electric steel, sector where it has innovated due to the pioneering use of hard metal.
To meet the market requirements and the exponential growth of the Group’s job orders, Corrada has doubled the surface of its factories in Lainate headquarters and in 2023, with manufacturing areas from 4000sq. m. to 8000 sq. m. of covered surface.
Thanks to the in-house know-how and to the synergies with the other companies of EuroGroup Laminations, currently Corrada can boast 43 active patents on a world scale.
Electric Motors Talks, great success for “High-Efficiency Motors and Testing”
Last April 14th took place the first meeting of the cycle of technical insights “Electric Motors Talks”, a digital initiative by University of L’Aquila and Coiltech, as response to the cancellation of Coiltech Deutschland 2021 exhibition scheduled in May.
Spotlights were cast on tests and the high efficiency of electric motors, with the attendance of representatives of the academic world and of the industrial field: research and production, on the other hand, are the key pair for sector developments and its innovation potential.
Prof. Marco Villani, from University of L’Aquila and technical manager of our review Electric Motor Engineering, published by Tecniche Nuove, chaired the meeting. In the course of the event, Prof. Edoardo Fiorucci, from University of L’Aquila, intervened, focusing the attention on the uncertainty evaluations in efficiency measurements. He explained a concept to give a numeric estimation of the measurement quality.
It is probable to obtain different measurement results even for the same parameter of an object under test, if the measurements are performed in different ways, or a different measurement setup is adopted.
Finally, the processing of the extended uncertainties in the measurement or efficiency can lead to additional issues concerning the classification of one tested motor, in comparison to IE efficiency levels.
Another academic speech was by Prof. Alberto Tessarolo from University of Trieste who spoke of Regenerative full-load testing of modular high-power machines that constitutes an alternative to the back-to-back method. The professor assessed that off-shore wind generation is expected to grow faster and faster in the next future towards increasing power levels. The direct-drive solution is one of the most promising thanks to its reliability. However, this solution issues committing challenges in terms of generator manufacturing and factory testing.
Design of Electric Motors for the Automotive Applications 12/05/2021 10.30-12.00; 14:30-16:00
Cooling of Electric Motors 26/05/2021 10.30-12.00
Magnetic Materials 09/06/2021 10.30-12.00
Manufacturing of Electric Motors for the Automotive Industry 23/06/2021 10.30-12.00
Insulating Materials 07/07/2021 10.30-12.00
The relator has explained how vibrations’ behaviour has been investigated to get a very low torque and force ripples by means of multidisciplinary optimization.
Some solutions of Rare Earth free SR motors developed by Spin Applicazioni Magnetiche are also presented for different power and speed values, including a detailed comparison between simulation and test results concerning the electromagnetic and vibration response of the motor.
SR motors and Ferrite PMASR versions are now suitable for low-cost / high-performance use in e-mobility, industrial and automation applications.
Moreover, Dragana Popovic Renella from Senis AG company, went into the detail of the fast magnetic angle sensor for smooth motor control: Senis is moving the limits of the feasible in magnetometry and sensor technology.
Sebastian Kuester, CEO of Quickfairs, ended the event and reminded next meetings of Webinar cycle.
(by Lara Morandotti)