American
Coach switches to LORD engineered adhesives to improve aesthetics
Mexico’s
American Coach is a national manufacturer of premium intercity coaches. After
learning that several major automotive manufacturers had used structural adhesives
to minimize the use of unsightly screws on the body work of more than 50
million cars for 25 years, the company decided to evaluate their merit as well.
In 2005, American Coach sought to replace the typical metal design of the
luggage doors on their HL2 and HL models using fiber reinforced plastics
(FRPs). However, this change presented their design team with the challenge of
finding a better way to bond the assembly of FRP parts. Once they finished the
new design of the luggage doors using FRP and conducted several trials with
different adhesive and sealant manufacturers, the team leaders of the project,
Engineering Manager Martin Amezcua and Product Engineer Jaime Cruz, contacted
LORD Corp., a pioneer in specialty structural adhesives and polyurethane
coatings, as well as electronic, vibration, and noise-control solutions.
According to Cruz, LORD Corp.’s structural adhesives allowed American Coach to
obtain a perfect appearance on the FRP with the expected strength bonding.
LORD’s solution was LORD 406/19 GB, an acrylic adhesive that bonds a variety of
prepared and unprepared metals and engineering plastics and FRPs. In use for
more than a decade, these adhesives have proven to be extremely reliable when
exposed to demanding outdoor environments.
“Not only were the aesthetics of the doors improved, but the use of LORD
adhesives also reduced the time spent in the post finishing and weight of the
parts, all contributing to a 10% reduction in cost,” said Cruz.
According to Arnulfo Garcia, LORD sales representative, the use of these
adhesives enabled the removal of unsightly screws on the outside body,
resulting in a more durable and appealing coach. Another benefit was the
savings in labor and material costs. Once the crews became accustomed to the
adhesive-bonding process, they quickly recognized its speed, which had a direct
impact on their weekly production goals. The adhesives are also expected to be
a quieter solution than welded doors and panels due to the fact that a bonded
component cannot warp out-of-plumb because of its superior stiffness. Other
attributes include impact resistance and vibration control. Since the
integration of adhesives, not a single failure has occurred.
Ben Zamora, Western Region sales manager at LORD Corp., recounts that, while
learning about American Coach’s needs, LORD also had the opportunity to suggest
another improvement: a mounting option for the coach’s powertrain suspension
and cooling suspension.
“American Coach was already using LORD Corp.’s Torsilastic primary suspension
system,” Zamora
said. “We recognized additional opportunities to improve the noise vibration
and harshness of their coach through the application of LORD mechanical
products. We analyzed their powertrain suspension and their cooling suspension.
A six-degree-of-freedom analysis allowed us to determine which mechanical
products would optimize the suspension systems. The suspension systems were
prototyped, the optimization was realized, and they elected to switch to LORD
products.”
Zamora claims
that the integration of LORD adhesives and mechanical products supports the
American Coach vision of producing a coach tailor-made for the Mexican market.
“Other manufacturers apply coaches designed for other markets to the Mexican
market, but coaches designed for other markets do not provide the durability
and comfort needed in Mexico,” he said. “LORD products contribute to American
Coach’s ability to produce a market-differentiated coach. Further, the
adhesives improve the aesthetics and dovetail with our mechanical products to
improve durability and performance. Concurrently, our products reduce cost and
complexity.”
