Cleanliness Compliance Critical for Automotive Suppliers

Part cleanliness isn’t always a priority in many shops. However, when suppliers are compelled to adhere to cleanliness requirements in order to satisfy their customers, they are more likely to use the equipment and processes necessary to do so.

Although not every shop has been affected by cleanliness specifications, many suppliers to automotive OEMs are already complying with stringent cleanliness standards. North American OEMs such as Ford Motor Co., and in turn, their suppliers, have been required to comply with the ISO 16232 standard since 2005, when it was first put into effect.

“All automatic transmissions use precision-manufactured electro-hydraulic components with very small clearances,” says Lev Pekarsky, technical expert on contamination and filtration for Ford. “Presence of even small-sized debris in those systems could cause degradation of transmission function such as shift-engagement quality. That is the reason Ford and our competitors have been continuously improving cleanliness of all transmission components.”

As part of its long-standing culture of global competitiveness and fiscal responsibility, Ford says, it began developing its own contamination engineering requirements or specifications in 2001. These specifications are based on the German automotive standard VDA 19, on which ISO 16232 requirements are based. Ford’s engineering specifications include exceptions to the ISO standards, however, and answer additional questions that are required to integrate ISO into the Ford Production Quality System.

Pekarsky says Ford’s specs are detailed. “They answer questions such as what solvents to use, what is the parts collection process and what is a part’s disposition (scrap or reuse) after inspection.” He says they also outline for the user the special extraction (wash-down) procedures for individual sub-assemblies, and they explain how to calibrate a scanning electron microscope (SEM) for material identification.

Pekarsky explains that most OEMs, including Ford, conduct regular contamination inspection of transmission components in production using transmission plant contamination labs. The Ford Transmission and Driveline engineering organization also has its own product development contamination lab in Livonia, Michigan, that is responsible for developing new, advanced contamination inspection procedures and supporting special investigations. 

Ford specs include different stipulations for different types of transmissions. The small parts that make up the transmissions, such as valves, springs and gears, also are tested for particle contamination, mostly by Ford suppliers prior to shipping. Very detailed specification documents not only contain inspection process descriptions, but also include requirements for inspection system cleanliness prior to testing. Requirements defining the maximum number of particles and corresponding particles sizes for different types of components being tested are also included.

 Lab inspectors rely on the company’s contamination specifications to do its job every day, Ford says, and following these standards saves money on warranties and rejected parts. 

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https://www.pfonline.com/articles/cleanliness-compliance-is-critical-for-automotive-suppliers(2)

Article Post: 6/1/2018

LORI BECKMAN, PARTS CLEANING EDITOR