Automotive

Reliable quality assurance of functional and decorative coatings in vehicle construction.

Our measurement technology sets standards – and that's also true in terms of surface inspection in vehicle construction. What is it all about? Corrosion and wear protection, coating thicknesses, uneven surfaces and aesthetic gloss, tensile strength and hardness of paint coatings in vehicle construction, cathodic dip painting (CDP) and zinc coatings, PVD, DLC, NiP and other hard coatings, or even sound insulation foam.

Quality assurance of functional and decorative coatings in the automotive industry thus requires precise testing of coating thicknesses and material properties. After all, if the thickness, material composition or material properties of the coating on automotive components are not optimal, this entails considerable quality losses that pose a high safety risk and can result in immense costs. The requirements for the parts are clearly defined for the car manufacturers and their service providers and the measurements must be certified and traceable in accordance with standards such as ISO 17025, IATF 16949 or ISO 9001.

Fischer is aware of the high and uncompromising requirements in the automotive industry. The challenges you face also concern us. To safeguard your quality standards, we therefore offer a wide range of non-destructive measuring devices that measure manually or automatically, highly efficiently, with maximum precision and reliability.

Application examples

Paint coatings in vehicle construction
KTL and zinc coatings
PVD, DLC, NiP and other hard coatings
Soundproofing foam

Glossy or matte, bright colors or simple dark tones – the paintwork on a vehicle is the eye-catcher, the icing on the cake for the end customer. For you and us, however, it is not only the decorative aspect that is decisive, but in particular what lies behind the surface.

The paint structure is fundamental for the protection of vehicle bodies against influences such as temperature, moisture or salt. The material composition, layer thickness and mechanical properties of the individual coatings determine the longevity of the car body, thus preventing discoloration as well as corrosion, scratches, cracks or even chipping of paint layers.

Fischer offers a pre-destined product portfolio for this field of application – also in fully automated versions for direct inline integration into your production or quality inspection process!


Application Notes

In quality control in the automotive industry, the importance of corrosion protection for vehicle frames and bodies has increased considerably. The specified tolerance for the thickness of the cathodic dip coating or zinc coating must be reliably maintained, especially in hard-to-reach areas such as the inside of the spars and pillars of steel bodies or cast aluminum components. Duplex coatings such as zinc-nickel or zinc-iron are often used to improve the adhesion of the cathodic dip coating.

The quality of corrosion protection coatings in vehicle construction is relevant to safety, which is why they must be of particularly high quality. For example, zinc flakes are used to coat brake disks. This zinc-aluminum thin film offers long-term corrosion protection that can withstand cyclical loads in particular.

Fischer has developed measuring devices for non-destructive and precise coating thickness measurement and material analysis for applications such as these.


Application Notes

In the automotive sector, PVD (physical vapor deposition) and DLC (diamond-like carbon) coatings, surfaces made of nickel-phosphorus or other hard materials are increasingly being used. Functional coatings of this type offer a variety of benefits, including wear protection for engine components, for example.

To ensure that the coatings have the desired properties, precise quality control is essential. This also applies to metal and plastic components that are chrome-plated not only for finishing purposes but also for wear protection. In particular, the changeover from Chromium(VI) to Chromium(III) according to new legal directives brings with it increased demands on the accuracy of measurement technology.

At Fischer you will find a wide range of measuring methods specifically developed to meet the requirements of hard coatings such as PVD, DLC and NiP as well as chromium coatings - from precise material analysis to testing of mechanical properties such as microhardness and coating thickness measurement.


Application Notes

To reduce the overall weight of vehicle construction, great efforts are being made to keep the individual components as light as possible. One example of this is the use of sprayable acoustic insulation compound, which replaces heavy, large-area sound insulation mats in the vehicle interior.

This insulation compound must meet specifications for sound insulation, weight, ease of construction and cost, and its thickness must therefore be tested. Read our application notes to find out how Fischer measuring devices can be used precisely at this point. Take a look at it!


Application Notes

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