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visit ai.com.ai“We can design parts specifically for additive
manufacturing, which allows us to increase themanufacturing speed and benefit from the design
freedom offered by the technology.”– Jeannette Clifford, Head of Innovation – Sika Global Automotive.

innovation

Robotic cell foradhesive application.

3D additive technologies
add more flex to Sika Automotive
adhesive solutions
By: Ed Richardson

Advanced processes add speed and agility to customer requirements - adding value to lighter, stronger, safer,
quieter and greener vehicles.
These needs lead to innovative combinations of materials and thesubstitution of metal components by composites, plastics andother materials. Sika Automotive says up to 150kg, or 10%, ofvehicle weight can be reduced using its range of products.
Sika Automotive is a leading innovator and supplier of
automotive bonding, sealing, damping and reinforcing solutions
for the vehicle body structure as well as interior and exterior
components. It is also at the forefront of developments in 3D
polymer printing. According to Jeannette Clifford, Headof Innovation – Sika Automotive Global, the company
uses 3D printing during component development

Jeannette Clifford
Head of Innovation - Sika
Global Automotive.

and for the building of molds. Using in-house
technology, Sika can print a mold and injectprototype parts within 48 hours from the completion ofthe design.
In 2019, Sika received an Automotive Engineering Expo
Innovation Star Award for its new SikaPower® SmartFlow body
shop adhesive technology. This injectable adhesive allows newsolutions – for example, the bonding of profiles into castings.
Such push-in body structure connectors, as found in electricvehicles or lightweight designs, can now be reliably bonded. The
same adhesive can be used to bond structural parts over the2entire surface. Cavities do not need to be sealed before injecting
the adhesive, as the material seals the cavity itself.
Automotive Industries (AI) asked Jeannette Clifford
Head of Innovation - Global Automotive, where Sika’s leadin 3D concrete printing is being transferred to automotive
manufacturing.
Clifford: We are already supplying 3D printed solutions
where it makes economic sense, especially during the design anddevelopment phase. And we can design parts specifically foradditive manufacturing, which allows us to increase themanufacturing speed and benefit from the design
freedom offered by the technology. It enables
new concepts where one part fulfills functions
previously covered by multiple parts. We havereactive materials – proprietary adhesives andfoamable materials – that we can print, whichleads to new applications as well.
Sika has built up the “Digital Lab,” a competence center bundling the additive manufacturingknow-how for industrial and construction applications, thus bringing concrete printing knowledge together with similar efforts for our automotive materials
and combining it with visualization via virtual and mixed reality.
AI: What are the advantages to OEMs of being able tobond a wide range of materials, including printed parts?
Clifford: Having a broad range of bonding solutions at handallows OEMs to design their vehicles for the best performance andto choose the most suitable materials, including 3D printed parts,
be it plastic or metallic. Sika is in the unique position of being able
to offer solutions for bonding, damping, sealing and reinforcing.
This includes mixed material bonding, for which we supply

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adhesives that compensate for the different thermal expansionof the substrates. For example, SikaPower® MBX is used to bondcarbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) reinforcements to steel orthe aluminum outer skin to the inner steel structure, making thecar bodies lighter and stiffer than previous generations. Or in theBMW i3 electric vehicle, Sikaflex® Ultra-High Modulus bonds theCFRP passenger compartment to the aluminum chassis.
AI: Where are the cost savings?
Clifford: Besides giving customers versatility in choosing
the most suitable materials and processes, the major part of ourportfolio can be applied using standard robotic equipment andis very flexible in its use. Our dry solutions come in the shapeof tapes, pads, or engineered injection molded parts, some ofwhich are suitable for full automation. For example, SikaDamp®
Autopad, a sealing element for targeted noise damping, wasspecially designed for automated application.
But our products are also suitable for smaller series runs ormore manual production sites. We take advantage of 3D printing
methods for cost-optimized solutions for each customer approach.
Function integration is another area for cost savings. For
example, Sika offers parts which act as sealers and reinforcing
elements at the same time. Such solutions are developed by ourCAE and CAD specialists according to meet customer needs andcan save costs. One way of saving costs is through the use of highly
reactive or accelerated products that deliver short cycle times.
Our strong local presence around the world guarantees shortlead times for products and allows a straightforward exchangewith the various customer teams for focused development andfast, smooth implementation.
AI: Will bonding ever completely replace welding in the
manufacturing process?
Clifford: The joining concepts in a modern car are quite complex
and adhesives already play a substantial role with often 120m ofadhesive bond lines per car. The benefits of adhesives are widely
recognized: They help to increase car body stiffness, they increase
longevity by reducing fatigue effects, and increase the crash safety ofa car. And, they are proven to be a cost and energy-efficient solution.
Today adhesive bonding needs to be combined with thermal
and mechanical joining techniques (e.g., spot welds, rivets) in order
to fix the car body structure until the adhesive is cured in the e-coatoven. In general, OEMs have an interest in reducing the complexity
and costs of their joining processes. Therefore, we expect thatadhesive bonding as a sole joining technique will gain importance,
especially for cars produced on new manufacturing lines.
AI: What about structural reinforcing materials?
Clifford: Our products are an integral part of the vehicle
stiffness and safety concept. In the body shop we use heatcuring SikaPower® products. Here we have a new award-winningadhesive called SikaPower® Smart Flow which can be injected
into areas without sealing them off completely. It is particularly
suitable for the bonding of profiles to castings in aluminumintensive designs, such as “space-frame” construction.
For local reinforcement of the car bodies, we have theSikaReinforcer® product range. These injection molded partscontain a foam component that expands during the e-coat ovenprocess and bonds the parts to the car body. Our CAE engineers
design and simulate the parts to optimize the NVH and crashrequirements. For smaller cavities or selective panel stiffening,
structural tapes or pads can also be used.
In the assembly shop, it is mainly our Sikaflex® line which
is used to reinforce the body structure, e.g., by bonding theTO READ THE FULL VERSION OF

windscreen to the frame and making it a functional part for thebody stiffening. In the 2-component range, we received theSwiss Innovation Award 2019 for the new SikaForce® Powerflextechnology. This structural adhesive features a combination ofstrength and permanent elasticity. The high elongation material
opens up new design possibilities for composite materials. For
more production freedom, it works as a “curing-by-design”
material, enabling immediate curing after a desired flexible opentime, reducing production time.
AI: Please tell us more about comfort-related solutions.
Clifford: Passengers enjoy a quiet ride, and this can beachieved by sealing common noise transmission paths in vehicle
body cavities with SikaBaffle®. These foams expand in the e-coatoven. Our portfolio contains molded or extruded parts, tapes andbulk solutions. Recently, we expanded our SikaBaffle® productrange with the introduction of a low bake material, SikaBaffle®-455LB, which works at oven temperatures as low as 140°C or withshorter dwell times at higher temperatures. This allows energy
savings in the production process and the use of baffle materials
in areas where the material temperatures remain low.
Audible noises are also generated by vibrating body panels.
Strategically-placed dampers can reduce those vibrations
significantly. The SikaDamp® Ultralite technology is the lightest
high-performance damping system on the market and won theAltair Enlighten Award 2018. Its low density allows one to save up
to 5 kg of weight on a mid-sized car.
AI: What about end of life? How “green” is the Sika range?
Clifford: Sika has been a member of the World BusinessCouncil for Sustainable Development since 2010 and uses its
methodology for sustainable portfolio management. There must
be no permanent damage to the environment throughout theproduct life-cycle, from raw material extraction to product disposal.
We are driven by the principal “sustainability meets performance,”
which means that, besides adding value for our customers, all new
developments must be more sustainable than existing solutions.
Our products enable greener vehicle concepts, but we workon greener Sika products as well. For example, 10 years ago wewere the first to introduce water-based pre-treatments for direct
glazing applications - our Sika® HydroPrep-100.
And we work hard at reducing our production footprint,
particularly CO2 emissions, energy and water consumption, as
well as waste generation. Our sustainability efforts are driven by
top management and accordingly enjoy a high priority.

Baffle cavity: SikaBaffle® improves comfort forpassengers through acoustic cavity sealing

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3NEXT GENERATION VEHICLES NEEDTO BE LIGHTER AND QUIETER,
BUT WHERE DO YOU START?
Start with award-winning acoustic technologies - recognized throughout the industry. Start with a provider of
acoustic solutions for every application - from engineered insertable parts and versatile body-in-white adhesives,to lightweight, multilayer damping materials. Start with a trusted partner that can deliver global innovation on a
localized scale - wherever and whenever it’s needed. Start with a commitment to continuous improvement andthe knowledge that it takes years to become an overnight success. START WITH SIKA.
SEE HOW SIKA CONTRIBUTES TO LIGHTWEIGHTING INITIATIVES: sikaautomotive.com/solutions

LIGHTER | STRONGER | SAFER | QUIETER | GREENER
BETTER VEHICLES START WITH SIKA