Rational production of sandwich structures for energy efficient passenger transportation

Important results from the project

The goal of developing more rational and more cost-effective manufacturing methods of sandwich structures for electric vehicles has been met by looking at the entire chain from design, material selection, manufacturing and assembly. The applications have been the electric car ZBee where rational production and choice of materials have been the focus and electrified buses where thermal insulation for efficient climate control is also important. The sustainability perspective has been leading both in terms of manufacturing and the overall environmental impact of the products.

Expected long term effects

A full-scale prototype for a section of a bus has been developed and tested both in terms of mechanical performance and thermal insulation. The supporting work has resulted in documented guidelines for the design of sandwich structures. This includes both material selection, manufacture and calculation methodology. More rational production of the sandwich structure in an electric car has been demonstrated through design changes and manufacturing concepts. The effects shown are both cost and weight savings without sacrificing mechanical performance and safety.

Approach and implementation

The development of guidelines for designing sandwich structures in bus applications has focused calculation- and optimization models verified in practical tests and full-scale prototype. Concepts for more rational production methods for the electric car ZBee have been devised by breaking down the production into individual work steps and drawing up production scenarios optimized for different production volumes. In practical experiments, measures have been verified to improve the elements that have been shown to be most important for more rational production.