Throughput analysis and simulation-based improvement of baked varnish stacking for automotive electric drives

A critical part in the process chain of manufacturing electric drives is the production of laminated stacks. Due to their excellent isolating characteristics, electrical sheets that are coated with baked varnish are often considered to be electric benchmarks. Besides a pure loss evaluation of the laminated stacks, a cost reduction of the overall system should also be aimed for. This paper deals with the optimization of a real production line and focuses on the process chain: stamping with subsequent baking of single-tooth stator stacks for automotive application. The main focus of the improvement potential lies on the baking process, including the necessary pre- and post-processing. In order to optimize the existing line, the simulation software Tecnomatix Plant Simulation was used. Through bottleneck analyses of the modeled system, targeted improvements were derived to achieve a significant increase of the output. Those simulation studies enable virtual adjustments to the running system and a quantification of the expected effects. In the context of a real example, quantitative improvement potentials are presented and the limitations of the process chain baked varnish stacking are shown.