OEM は、少量のカスタム EV 板金サービスの調達中に高額な工具コストを回避するにはどうすればよいですか?
When it comes to research, development, or small batch pilot production of custom EV sheet metal service, the optimal solution would be soft mold forming + laser cutting. We switch to flexible manufacturing lines, so even if we cancel tens of thousands of dollars in mold opening fees, we still manage to get our first-piece within 7 days, which totally changes the issue of a high mold cost.
Cost-Effective Production Paths at Different Scales
If you want to achieve the lowest cost possible, then your decision for process selection should be aligned with the annual volume of production, like this:
1-50 pcs (Research & Development Stage): For the beginning stage use of a product, soft mold forming + laser cutting method is excellent. It doesn't involve the costly production of hard molds, delivers the first piece inside 7 days, has a somewhat higher single piece cost, but the trial and error costs are minimized greatly. This strategy is ideal for testing product iteration and having low cost sheet metal fabrication.
50-500 pcs (Small-batch Pilot Production) : This stage, the soft mold method is combined with the use of a CNC turret punch press, the main purpose is keeping a reasonable balance between efficiency and costs.Unit cost, in this case, got reduced by 30% compared to the R&D stage, delivery cycle is 15-20 days.
5000+ units (Mass Production): Progressive die stamping + laser welding methods, a significant investment in hard mold costs (approx $20,000-$50,000). Yet, unit cost is brought down by 60% which is the best practice for regular mass production.
Cost Control Tips and Service Support
Adjusting the battery box bending radius to R=1.5-2.0mm and minimizing deep drawing structures will not only simplify the mold but also save 20%-30% of mold costs, we do free DFM analyses to help you struct ure the product in a cost effective manner and eliminate cost waste.
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Being a professional custom EV sheet metal service provider, we are equipped with a flexible manufacturing line that can handle minimum order quantities of 5 pieces, which means that OEM customers can check the appropriateness of the battery box structure during the R&D stage with very low costs of trial and error. If your small batch trial production stage, please don't hesitate to contact us for a free cost calculation so that you can get the best processing solution and avoid high mold cost waste.
Figure 3: A battery module showing silver cells connected by orange wires.
Which Quality Control Protocols Ensure The Long Term Durability Of High Voltage Electric Vehicle Metal Parts?
Electric vehicle metal parts, in particular those operating with high voltage, need powder coating or insulating nylon powder coating that is very strong. Only in this way, the service life of these parts can be guaranteed to be over 10 years. Our insulation layer has a breakdown voltage of >5000V DC, That means the whole surface treatment process must be under quality control coverage.
Surface Treatment Process Quality Control
There are explicit quality control criteria for every point of the surface treatment process of Electric vehicle metal parts:
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Cleaning before treatment: Degreasing with an alkaline agent is done at 50-60℃, 10-15 minutes. Besides cleaning the surface from grease and other contaminants, the adhesion that is necessary for the subsequent steps is also achieved. This method is ideal for sheet metal surface finishing.
Silane Passivation: This is a newer technique which is also replacing phosphating (environmentally friendly) and gives the passivation film at 0.5 to 1.0μm thickness that results in coating adhesion and protective ability against corrosion.
ED (Electrophoretic Coating): The thickness of the electrophoretic layer is 20-30μm. The adhesion reaches the 5B level (cross-cut adhesion test) - absolute no peeling or flaking.
Powder coating: The thickness of the insulation layer is 80-120μm, the online measurement of thickness error is 5μm, the breakdown voltage is >5000V DC, so high-voltage insulation requirements are considered to be met.
Weather Resistance and Insulation Performance Testing
We do very strict testing to check the weather resistance as well as the insulation capability of our surface-treated products. Key test data are as follows:
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Test Item
Test Standard
Test Result
Industry Requirements
Salt Spray Corrosion Test
SGS 1000 hours
No red rust, no corrosion
720 hours,no red rust
Scratch Resistance Test
ASTM D3363
Scratch depth ≤0.5mm, no coating peeling
Scratch depth ≤1.0mm
High Voltage Breakdown Test
IEC 60664
Breakdown voltage >5000V DC
Breakdown voltage >3000V DC
Adhesion Test
ISO 2409
5B level
4B level and above
How Can Automotive Tier 1 Suppliers Find a Reliable Partner For Precision Sheet Metal Enclosure Manufacturing?
When assessing a sheet metal enclosure manufacturing company's ability to supply automotive-grade parts the main criteria are their hardware facilities, IATF 16949 certification, and their knowledge of APQP/PPAP tools. Solid suppliers make it easier for Tier 1 customers to alleviate the risks involved in the supply chain.
Critical Aspects Of Supplier Qualification Review
Before deciding on a Tier 1 supplier, what comes next four points deserve in-depth discussion:
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System Certification: IATF 16949:2016 system certification is a must. This is the bare minimum qualification for automotive-grade parts supply as it confirms the production process is compliant.
Tool Execution: Must be able to effectively implement the five core tools - APQP PPAP FMEA, SPC, and MSA - to help project risk minimization right from the starting stage.
Hardware Equipment: Have make metrology equipment like Bystronic laser cutting machines and CNC bending machines to maintain a processing accuracy of 0.05mm.
Testing Capabilities: Own testing devices like coordinate measuring machines (CMM) and helium mass spectrometer leak detectors, and provide full third-party testing reports.
Complete Compliant Supply Loop
We form an entire compliance loop starting from RFQ reception to PPAP submission, which ensures that the projects satisfy the customers' needs:
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RFQ Reception and Drawing Review: When a customer sends a quotation request, a complete 3D drawing review must be done within 24 hours and the DFM defect feedback must be given.
Risk Analysis: The use of FMEA in analyzing the Risk Priority Number (RPN) enables the creation of precise risk control measures for manufacturing defects prevention.
Production Control: We prepare in-depth control plans and keep track of the production activities continuously. For every batch, SPC control charts are given.
PPAP Submission: The submission of PPAP documentation, complete with the samples, test reports, and control plans, etc. takes place after the production of parts, adhering to customer acceptance standards.
Figure 4: Rows of metal frames in a factory, likely for EV battery structures.
How Did LS Manufacturing Deliver a High Precision Solution For An EV Automotive Custom Battery Box Fabrication?
Here is a detailed description of a case study illustrating our very accurate EV battery box fabrication solution provisioned to a top European electric bus company and reflecting our abilities in pain point addressing and the after effect. Also, it stands as a basis for similar works.
Customer Issue:
During creating a 350kW large capacity power battery pack, a European electric bus manufacturer experienced a difficulty: conventional welding methods caused the AL5052 substrate to be distorted by 1.8mm, thereby a 24% failure rate at the first attempt in the IP67 airtightness test was observed.
As a consequence, the customer was under the pressure of postponing the vehicle production line and facing the difficulties in meeting deadlines, which made the situation quite unbearable for them. So, they desired a skilled team that would be of great help to them in solving their problem.
LS Manufacturing Solution:
First, after our technical experts got involved, by analyzing the drawings through DFM (Design for Manufacturing), we realized that the split-welding structure was the biggest reason behind the thermal deformation.
We upgraded the design to a single unit operation combining CNC progressive die flexible forming and laser CMT (Continuous Metallurgy) welding. We also created a 12-point pneumatic rigid fixture which was used to pressurize the workpiece to 0.4MPa during welding, thereby restricting deformation and warping.
To guarantee sealing, we chose an automated helium vacuum chamber mass spectrometer leak detector, and set a leak detection threshold of 1.0 10 mbarl/s so that 100% online leak detection was achieved.
We changed the welding settings to this: laser power 4.5kW, speed 2.8m/min, argon gas flow rate 7L/min. These changes in parameters lowered thermal deformation and porosity, our experience also confirms that structural and process changes can resolve aluminum alloy welding warping issues.
Results and Value:
Thanks to process modification, flatness of the battery box sealing surface was kept within 0.15mm, IP67 pass rate reached 100%. Customer was saved $80,000 from scrap product, delivery cycle was shortened by 32 days, and the customer got a 5-year supply contract.
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If your electric vehicle (EV) battery box fabrication project also encounters problems like welding deformation and airtightness failure, please reach out to our engineering professionals so that we can provide a personalized high-precision solution that fits your project requirements perfectly.
よくある質問
Q1: What is the standard lead time for custom EV battery box fabrication prototype at LS Manufacturing?
By using our full CNC flexible machining line and with automotive-grade AL5052 aluminum alloy materials always ready in stock, we are able to make very precise prototype parts for you and also provide a detailed non-conformance report within 7 to 10 working days from you upload your drawings, which will allow R&D testing of the prototypes.
Q2: How does LS Manufacturing determine the initial tooling cost and unit price for an EV sheet metal fabrication service project?
We always aim at making our pricing system fair and understandable. The unit prices are calculated accurately based on material usage, total laser cutting length, bending steps, and welding time. To help customers at the R&D stage in small-batch trial production, we can offer them a soft mold transition without any hard mold fee, So cutting down on costs for them.
Q3: Will LS Manufacturing be able to produce low-volume custom battery enclosures for niche EV models?
Yes, In fact. In particular for R&D and racing/commercial vehicles, we even have a flexible, lightweight production line with the lowest order quantity requirements being only 5 to 10 units. This allows customers to verify the structural design of the battery enclosure in the early developmental stages and Much reduce the trial-and-error costs.
Q4: Which third-party testing reports do you provide to validate the quality of electric vehicle metal parts?
Upon every shipment, we are able to furnish comprehensive automotive-grade quality certification plus the original Material Test Record (MTR), coordinate measuring machine (CMM) dimensional measurement reports, hardness and tensile test reports, and SGS-certified 1000-hour salt spray corrosion and IP67 leak detection data.
Q5: How does LS Manufacturing protect the Intellectual Property (IP) and proprietary CAD designs of our EV battery housing sheet metal?
Our company considers intellectual property to be its very existence. We enter into a legally binding NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) before any technical data is given to us. We encrypt all CAD/STEP drawings and keep them on a separate secure offline server that only core project engineers can access.
Q6: What is the maximum thickness and processing tolerance of sheet metal fabrication for EV components at your facility?
Our company is capable of precision forming aluminum alloys, stainless steel, and high-strength steels ranging from 0.5mm to 6.0mm thick. With the aid of Bystronic laser cutting machines and CNC bending machines, we are able to keep control of critical batch processing tolerances at an impeccable 0.05mm level.
Q7: What is your method for leak testing finished custom EV sheet metal service enclosures to verify their compliance with IP67 standards?
We are not going to revert to the old and inefficient immersion method that can easily miss leaks. Instead, we rely on automated airtightness pressure drop testers and high-precision helium vacuum mass spectrometry leak detectors to make sure that every battery case manufactured undergoes a thorough leak-proof check at the molecular level.
Q8: Is LS Manufacturing able to carry out downstream surface finishing such as powder coating and busbar copper plating done simultaneously?
Yes, we offer a complete one-stop turnkey manufacturing service. Our factory boasts fully automated automotive-grade electrophoresis (ED) lines, electrostatic powder coating lines, and precision copper busbar heat shrink insulation tubing processing equipment. These ensure that high-voltage insulation and corrosion protection treatments are not compromised by quality control issues related to outsourcing.
Summary
EV battery box sheet metal fabrication involves numerous engineering activities like integrating precise dimensions, sealing and insulation etc. which can directly change the safety and mileage of the electric vehicles.
The main challenge of manufacturing lies in controlling the process parameters accurately, selecting the right materials scientifically and finally strict quality control. We use our practical hands-on experience and approved qualification to break down the barriers and provide cheap solutions throughout the entire supply chain.
Does your EV battery case project face pain points such as welding deformation, air tightness failure, or tooling budget overruns? Go ahead and send us your STEP, IGS or DXF 3D drawings and our senior experts will offer you a free DFM analysis and detailed cost quote by the next day with strong data to protect your project!
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