Page 27 - Industrial Technology February 2020

DESIGN ENGINEERING

Spot welded tray assembly

WIRE FORMED COMPONENTS

SPOT WELDED UNDER SEAT
STORAGE TRAY OPENS UP NEW
APPLICATIONS FOR WIRE FORM
SPECIALIST WITH LEADNG OEM
AUTOMOTIVE MANUFACTURER

illiam Hughes has come to the aid of an
automotive seat manufacturer, providing a
spot welded grid assembly to complete an
Wunder-seat storage unit for a market leading
city van. Such an intricate part had to meet stringent
criteria for robustness and aesthetics, while assuring ease
of integration into the under-seat structure.
The seat is manufactured by a global leader in
automotive seating and associated electrical and
electronic systems. This company had no problem forming
the tray base and three of the sides as part of the larger
welded structure, but the fourth side proved more intricate
and the company saw value in subcontracting the
assembly to a third party. William Hughes was able to
demonstrate its capability in the area, and its ability to
provide the part at a price that made it attractive thereby MORE INFORMATION: www.wmhughes.co.uk • sales@wmhughes.co.uk • Tel: 01963363377
winning the contract.
The part comprises three mild steel wires running to the storage tray. The grid assembly is spot-welded in William Hughes constructed the jig especially for the
horizontally from one end of the storage tray to the other, two processes: first the straight wires and the bent wires project, assuring absolute consistency in appearance and
with two u-shaped bent wires welded across them to are positioned into what will be the finished grid, loaded performance of the finished part. With the assembly only
complete the grid structure and form a robust fourth side into a jig on a trolley and wheeled into the spot welder. required in fairly low volumes, the grid is welded
manually. Spot welding was chosen in preference to other
welding techniques as it provides a cleaner finish and the
operator can carry out a visual check on the quality of the
weld, assuring the performance of the finished part. With
the grid assembly complete, end brackets are then spot-
welded to the grid in the second process.

Protective coating
Once complete, William Hughes coats the grid assembly
on a KTL black electrophoretic paint line, which deposits
a shiny black coating just a few microns thick. This
coating technology is used extensively within automotive
applications, combining an aesthetically appealing finish
with a high level of protection against even the most
challenging environmental conditions. And because the
coating is so thin, it doesn’t interfere with the functionality
of a part.
The finished part is supplied to the seat manufacturer
at its factory in France where it is attached to the seat
structure to form the fourth side of the storage tray. By
manufacturing the assembly at its plant in Bulgaria,
William Hughes is able to take advantage of materials
supplied locally and provides a beneficial location for the
supply of finished parts to European manufacturers.
The success of the project has opened the door for
William Hughes to quote on a number of similar
applications for the next generation of the city van from
the same automotive OEM.

February 2020 •INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY 27