MAPAL tool management for DEUTZ in Spain
Engines were already being built in 1875 at the site in Zafra where DEUTZ today has its main factory for processing engine components.
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Engine blocks, cylinder blocks, connecting rods and gears are produced here by around 500 employees in modern manufacturing facilities for the Group’s assembly lines in Cologne and Ulm as well as for other customers.
DEUTZ’s new 3.9-litre diesel engine is mostly used in agricultural and construction machines. As an industrial engine, it is designed for long service life and is to be built until at least 2035. Series production is to start in the coming year after the current prototype phase. 50,000 units are to be produced per year. This engine, which will be available in a power range from 55 to 160 kW, represents an important future project for Deutz. As it is the same size as its 3.6-litre predecessor, it can be installed in the same vehicles where it will provide very efficient performance.
“Our engines are typically deployed in off-highway applications like agricultural and construction machines, which are in constant use and move heavy loads. We’ll continue to need internal combustion engine to move those machines. For the time being, it will be in the form that we use today: the diesel engine. Synthetic fuels or hydrogen can considerably prolong their deployment,” explains Alejandro Castilla De La Hoya, Zafra Plant Manager. He points out that the income from this area finances DEUTZ’s investments in the green segment, which is dedicated to the mobility transformation. The 3.9-litre diesel engine is already set to run on gas or hydrogen in the future. “Based on today’s design, this diesel engine can become a green engine in the long run,” says Manuel Rodríguez López, Industrialization Manager. This is possible thanks to a package of small modifications, particularly to the cylinder head. However, the engine remains mostly the same otherwise. MAPAL is already collaborating on DEUTZ’s first hydrogen engine – a whopper at 7.8 litres.
Two weeks from design freeze to offer
“Our clients’ development periods for new parts are becoming shorter and shorter,” explains Thomas Spang, Global Head of Tool Management at MAPAL. For tool manufacturers or complete suppliers like MAPAL, this represents a growing challenge. This is above all true if plans change at the last minute, while the deadline for the tool design remains the same. For the engine block of the new 3.9-litre diesel engine, MAPAL only had two weeks after the design freeze to complete a final offer.
An ardent team of experts in Aalen were able to complete this ambitious task on time. Well-tuned workflows proved advantageous for the team as did the many years of experience with the client’s production methods. MAPAL has been conducting tool management for DEUTZ in Spain for 18 years. Several projects have been completed together over the years.
MAPAL already engineered the machining of the engine blocks for the predecessor 3.6-litre diesel engine, which meant they were able to draw on practical experience and didn’t have to start from scratch. For example, the tool experts already knew which machines the engine manufacturer has from previous projects. DEUTZ has equipped its assembly line in Zafra with new five-axis machines over recent years, so they can switch to new products with relative ease.
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