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Global Viewpoints
Design and production of the Nissan Almera
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Design and engineering of new cars can be guided by unusual sets of parameters. For Nissan's new Almera, designed exclusively for the European market and built there, one was the 55 most common items kept in a car. The result of research was a major factor in the interior design, which includes details that may not set the auto industry back on its heels with surprise, but does incorporate elements that will please the customer. So, the Almera has nets on each side of the trunk to hold items, which can also be joined across the floor to secure loose items. The spare wheel has a waterproof lining that serves as a wet storage area. In the Almera's interior, the center console holds boxes of six CDs for the front-loading CD player—and there is a place for tissues or wet wipes. The car's ignition keys have favorite radio station and audio settings memory; a "secret" box holds coins or cameras; the door wells hold 500-mL (17-oz) bottles; there is a hook for shopping bags; the rear center armrest holds children's books, a computer game, and other paraphernalia; the rear garbage tray has a removable liner; and there are even straps to stop items such as briefcases and umbrellas from moving around.
All this and more adds up to Nissan's approach to interior design and execution. Important though these things may be in customer-satisfaction terms, they are just a tiny part of this major program, which was sharply focused on developing a thoroughly European car for assembly at the company's Sunderland, UK, plant.
When it was unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, Nissan was coy about the Almera's interior detail. Since then, it has revealed all, and invited AEI to its Sunderland production facility. Described as the first European model to use an all-new global Nissan platform, the company says that all its worldwide design and engineering resources were used in the Almera's development: notably the design centers in the UK and Germany, together with engineering centers in the UK and Belgium. Japanese and North American dedicated versions of the new car will be developed based on the same MS platform.
The three- and five-door Almera will be built by Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK (NMUK), which will also assemble 1.5- and 1.8-L gasoline engines. The new 2.2-L direct-injection diesel will come from Nissan's Cuatro Vientos engine plant in Spain. The car is being built alongside the Nissan Primera and Micra. The Almera Tino MPV will be built in Barcelona, Spain, and sedans in Japan and Mexico.
When it was decided that the Almera should be built at Sunderland, it was agreed by the company that there should be a "three models on two lines" philosophy. This involved keeping the Primera on its own line, producing the Almera on a second line, and building the little Micra hatchback down both lines. The three cars on two lines system starts in the bodyshop. The Micra/Almera line shift capacity will eventually be up by some 30%. New engine compartment framing and bodyside tooling specifically for the Almera increase line capacity and reduce cycle time on the main line from 60 to 43 s. The 43-s cycle time is Nissan's fastest anywhere in the world for this type of body build system. From here onward, each line has to be able to handle two sizes of cars.
This required another significant piece of innovation: the introduction of numerically controlled tooling. It is the first on its scale in the European motor industry, according to the company. The system "recognizes" the different models via a transponder and automatically adjusts the pickup points on the moving platform or overhead cradle to fix precisely on predetermined points on the body. It is programmable and adaptable for both current and future models. The transponder informs the welding robots of the next program to be applied.
The introduction of the Almera to the Sunderland production facility meant the addition of 60 extra robots. "When production started, more than 400 robots (including the new ones) had been taught new programs, while retaining their compatibility with the existing models. They allowed the new Almera to be our first-ever launch to be achieved without interrupting existing production," said Alan Hill, Nissan's Director of Engineering. "Teaching the robots their new programs took the equivalent of 13 man-years." Manufacturing personnel were trained to reprogram the robots themselves. Production of the Almera moved from zero to 233 cars per shift in six weeks. "That is the fastest buildup to full production ever attempted in Europe," said Hill.
Laser welding is a significant element in Sunderland's production process. Explained Hill: "It enables us to combine steels of different thicknesses and properties (such as corrosion resistance or malleability) within the same pressing. This has allowed us to create 30% more stiffness in the MS-based Almera with less material weight." The process creates a continuous high-quality automatic weld with no overlapping of panels or hard-to-conceal joints without necessitating additional reinforcement brackets. Nissan uses 45 kg (99 lb) of steel for added strength in key areas. Laser welding allows the material to be used selectively. Almera uses bake-hardened steel in some areas of exterior bodywork. It was decided by Nissan that conventional high-strength steels could not be used for some applications—which involve complex panel shapes—and still attain required surface finish. Bake-hardened steel has the same press-forming capability as conventional steel for a clean surface. It hardens during the heating of the painting process to give resistance to denting and stone chipping similar to that of high-strength steels. It is used for the hood, fenders, and doors.
The 55 Most Common
Items Kept in a Car
(according to Nissan)
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Map, cookies, business card, owner's manual, comb, receipts, tools, accident report, parking disc, flashlight, extinguisher, sunglasses, cigarettes, shoes, scraper, mineral water, first aid kit, blanket, cola can, warning triangle, lighter, hamburger, pen, address book, rubber boots, audio cassette tapes, waste cloth, umbrella, cosmetics, lunch box, coins, insurance certificate, razor, spare oil and fuel, gas coupon, jump leads, mop, calculator, handbag, attache case, scissors, spectacles, hair brush, steering lock bar, jacket, car inspection certificate, mirror, tissue box, trash, ice melting spray, gloves, photograph, notebook, magazines, telephone.
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Nissan is sharply focused on quality. It produced a small fleet of trial-build Almeras and handed them to driving schools to test. Hot test checks on production engines involved a random selection, subjecting them to a four-day run at maximum revs with a load equal to four passengers and their luggage plus a trailer (caravan). The normal production engine must retain its "as new" performance after the test.
If each of Nissan's 218 European suppliers were to deliver independently to Sunderland, their combined travel distances would be 113 million km (70 million mi) a year, according to the company. Instead, Nissan operates a "milk round" philosophy, with one truck collection from several suppliers—honing the distance to 14.5 million km (9 million mi). This will be reduced further by extending four logistics schemes now in operation. Two are running in the UK, one in Spain, and one spans Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. A French logistics scheme will be added to capture the final large group of suppliers still responsible for making their own deliveries.
As well as the Tino, the successor to the current Primera will be built on the MS platform. It is anticipated that European production of vehicles off this platform will reach 150,000 units per annum, while globally the MS platform is expected to be used for 700,000 vehicles a year. Key common components are the floor and body structure for the chassis and engine bay, engine types, suspension structure, braking and fuel systems, and heating and ventilating systems.
Stuart Birch
AEI March 2000
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