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Klasse 1 Welding Morgan Aero 8 |
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Superform shape the Cars of the future UK based Superform Aluminium are helping famous car makers like Rolls Royce/Bentley, Aston Martin and Morgan revolutionise the way their cars are made. Originally developed for aircraft component manufacture, the Superforming process is now the number one choice to supply complex three dimensional formed aluminium body panels for the luxury and sports car markets. Already renowned for their technical expertise, Superform have invested heavily in new technology and production processes by opening a new production unit at their Worcester headquarters specifically for large part manufacture. With a capacity of 3m x 2m x 600mm, the new facility offers unrivalled capability for car body panels, rail interior and exterior panels, building cladding panels and many other applications. In the Superform process a sheet of aluminium alloy is heated to about 500˚C then formed into a single surfaced form tool under air pressure. Benefits of the process include: low tooling costs, short lead times, no springback in parts, excellent repeatability and the ability to trial different material thicknesses on the same tool. Over the past few years Superform has made great in roads into the automotive market through the application of new technology with in house CATIA based tooling design and prototyping, combined with new tooling technologies which deliver the Class A surfaces required by leading car makers. Morgan Cars are one famous manufacturer who have fully embraced the Superform process. Superform technology was first introduced into Morgan in the ‘90’s when the process was used to manufacture wings on all their models, replacing a 3 piece steel fabrication with a single Superform alloy component proving lighter, more corrosion resistant, dimensionally accurate and a superior finish, so improving the quality of fit during car assembly. The success of this approach led to Morgan specifying the process for manufacturing most of the body panels on the new Aero 8, the company’s all new 160 mph supercar.
The Aero 8 takes its name from a pre war Morgan sports car and is the result of a 4 year development programme. It utilises an advanced lightweight aluminium chassis clothed in a combination of hand formed and Superformed aluminium body panels powered by a high performance V8 engine. Marketing Director Matthew Parkin says "We were already using Superform to make the wings of the traditional models and so were very familiar with the process which we found gave superb quality with modest tooling cost. Aluminium is the perfect material from which to manufacture a high performance vehicle such as the Aero 8 . It is extremely light but strong and using natural materials is in keeping with the traditional image of the Morgan. Our image is as far away from glass fibre as you can get!"
Managing Director Charles Morgan adds "We need to produce Class A surfaces which lift both the quality and finish of the car. The Superform process is unique in that it allows complex shapes in a stress free panel". With the new large part forming production facility now in place, and a series of prestigious new automotive contracts awarded, Superform are now set to literally help form the shape of the luxury car market. For more details on the huge range of applications for this unique process visit the company’s new web site at www.superform-aluminium.com. |
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