Global viewpoints: technology leads the way
Dana develops idea filter
Being one of them, Dana Corp.'s Vice President of Technology Planning Chuck Jones knows how engineers can get caught up with an idea that, though clever, may have no practical application. "I think it's safe to say," he said, "that all of us have at some point worked on something where we thought, 'Boy, I hope somebody can use that.' Well, we can't do that anymore."
Jones is leading the effort at Toledo-based Dana to formalize an innovation screening process that the company calls the Front End. "When ideas come flying in, we use economic and strategic filters so we can apply our very expensive resources that are in short supply to ideas that have potential, not to any whim that comes down the pike," he said. Ideas hung up in the filters are not discarded; instead, they're put in a database for future consideration. Not many companies in the old economy industries are doing this, Jones noted, but it is a top priority at Dana.
The idea is not to quash innovative ideas, but to bring the worthiest ones to fruition in the most efficient manner possible, according to Jones. This, along with making sure innovative ideas are properly shared among Dana's 70+ technical centers worldwide, is one of Jones' primary responsibilities, and it's a tough assignment in a company as decentralized as is Dana (the automotive industry accounts for the largest share of company revenue).
Scouring the Internet and other sources for new technology ideas is another of his primary responsibilities. "We're the eyes and ears of technology for Dana," Jones said. Tech councils—consisting of 8-12 engineering directors across the global corporation—are formalized, cross-segment venues held 4-6 times annually for the exchange of technology ideas. The Technology Roundtable consists of 15 engineering directors and 16 senior managers who meet twice annually for a discussion of the future technologies being examined by the tech councils.
Being a technology leader is important at Dana, according to Jones, but the company doesn't necessarily turn its back on a technology if it's not a leader. In electronics, for example, "We're certainly not number one or two, but it doesn't mean we don't have expertise, and it doesn't mean we don't think it's important," he said. On the other hand, he added, "You don't want to go further down in the food chain than third if it's core."
Though Dana may never aspire to be a leader in automotive electronics in every sense of the word, "we need to know our way around," Jones said. "I don't think any company serving the automotive industry can get along without some electronics/electrical knowledge these days—on the product side and on the process/manufacturing side." Alliances with Motorola and others have helped Dana in the area of electronics, he noted.
To improve its expertise in electronics, Dana has secured the services of Rensselaer Polytechnic to instruct its engineers in mechatronics—the combination of mechanical components, electronics, computers, and controls. "When you think about it, it's really what the automotive industry is doing," Jones said. "And we're starting to see it come to life in our company."
Alive and well at Dana is modular capability, Jones said, despite the closing of the company's Rolling Chassis in Brazil that had been supplying the now-closed DaimlerChrysler Dodge Dakota plant there. And a heavy-truck independent rear suspension that Jones spoke of last year in AEI's May global vehicle development article is being developed with one major OEM and several smaller ones. "It will see the light of day," he said.
The program is helping Dana to understand vehicle dynamics in greater depth. "A suspension is 90% dynamics and 10% pieces or parts," Jones said. "It's more engineering-intensive than axles and frames, and it enables us to do a much better job on the modules and systems side." Virtual engineering tools play a big role in that capability. "We're doing more on computer than we ever have, more accurately, more quickly, and in some cases, we're doing what we couldn't do at all before," he said.
Though it doesn't relate to vehicle dynamics, one of Dana's newest innovations is Torque Transfer Technology as used in the new TXT axle differential. The company says TXT is the first axle differential to offer a cost-efficient solution for improved handling in all types of vehicles. Its space- and weight-saving features are particularly relevant in today's market with the increasing demand for all-wheel-drive passenger cars and crossover sport utility vehicles. Its flexible design allows it to be mounted on either axle to transfer torque front to rear or rear to front. It will also be available with electronic controls and, when combined with Dana's side-to-side Hydra-Lok differential, offers what the company calls an "unmatched" torque-control package.
Now that DaimlerChrysler has ended Dodge Dakota in Brazil, and thus the need for Dana Corp.'s Rolling Chassis, "We have a vision that within the next five years, a Rolling Space Frame will be a very viable alternative for one or more of our customers," said Mike Greene, President of Structural Products. "Our application of new technologies is advancing so rapidly—with such tremendous results in weight savings, performance, and innovation—that there is no question in our minds this (Rolling Space Frame) is an achievable vision."
Dana's spaceframe is a series of structural members assembled to create a skeletal system that supports the interior systems as well as the exterior skin and driveline components of a vehicle. Spaceframe architecture has been around for a number of years in low-volume niche vehicles. The advance of spaceframe architecture to mass-produced vehicles will be facilitated by tubular hydroforming, magnetic-pulse welding, and other enabling technologies, allowing OEMs to make greater improvements in fuel efficiency, occupant safety, performance, and speed to market, according to Greene. He said a Rolling Space Frame module would combine the benefits of the Rolling Chassis module with the advanced attributes of spaceframe technology, providing a module with more structural stability, allowing for innovative new design, and creating new opportunities to reduce weight and lower cost.
