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InsideLine.com online magazine recently visited
NUMMI and chronicled Truck production from start to finish. View
the article and slideshow.
 photo courtesy of Dan
Kahn, InsideLine.com
 STAMPING
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NUMMI
cars and trucks begin as giant rolls of coiled steel,
100% of which come from the Midwest. These coils
weigh 20,000 pounds or more. Every day NUMMI uses
over a million pounds of steel to manufacture its
vehicles.
Sheets of metal pass through stamping presses which
use different dies and molds to form three-dimensional
parts. The dies weigh 40-60,000 pounds each.
In order to understand the vehicle manufacturing
process at NUMMI, we will follow a well recognized
part - a door - through the various departments.
This door started as a flat piece of metal, and
through a series of three or four pressings we end
up with the finished product. Now it’s off to Body
and Weld… |
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| BODY
AND WELD |
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We
have a large robot welding line that uses over 50
robots to weld outer bodies together.
Here’s the door again.
Throughout NUMMI we have 496 robots, 25 different
types.
The number of welds per vehicle are
| Corolla |
3694 |
| Vibe |
4001 |
| Tacoma
2 door |
1638 |
| Tacoma
extended cab |
1811 |
| Tacoma
4 door |
1925 |
Once completed, the door is attached to the vehicle,
goes through a thorough inspection, and then it’s
on to Paint. |
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| PAINT |
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Inspection
is the key in the Paint department. Vehicles are
repeatedly checked throughout the entire paint process.
When the vehicle comes out of Body and Weld it may
have dirt, dust and grease on it. It goes through
a 12-step cleaning process and then a phosphate
bath that roughens the surface to make paint adhere
better. That's followed by what's known as an Elpo
bath, which prevents rust and corrosion and adds
an electrical charge that helps paint bond better.
Next, sealer is applied to all seams for waterproofing
and noise reduction. Asphalt sheets are applied
inside the vehicle to reduce road and engine noise.
Then robots prime and paint the vehicle - edges
and door jambs are done by hand, and robots finish
the job. The vehicle is oven cured at four stages
- after cleaning, after sealing, after priming,
and after painting. Finally, a team member inspects
everything to ensure quality.
Total time in the paint process is about 11 hours.
Let’s visit the Plastics department next. |
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| PLASTICS
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Plastics
supplies the assembly lines with bumpers, instrument
panels and numerous small parts. Small plastic pellets
are melted then inserted into molds in a process
called injection molding. Using cooling lines, the
plastic solidifies to make the finished product.
Here, the mold is separated, and the instrument
panel is gently removed (it’s easily scratched at
this time) and sent to Paint. |
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| ASSEMBLY
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After
Paint, the first step in Assembly is to detach the
doors, making it easier for team members to work
on the vehicle as it travels down the line. The
door is finished in another area of the plant. Toward
the end of the line, our door meets up with the
body and is reattached.
Other steps in the Assembly process include installation
of parts such as…
engines
tires
seats |
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| QUALITY
CONTROL |
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 Quality
isn’t something we only check for at the end of the process;
it is built into NUMMI cars and trucks at each stage.
Our Quality Control and Quality Assurance departments
conduct inspections, tests and audits to ensure customer
satisfaction. They also work with all areas of the plant
to address and prevent problems and to increase awareness
of the importance of maintaining quality in each work
station.
The end result is a quality vehicle that finds its way
to a General Motors or Toyota dealer and, eventually,
the customer. |
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