Jul 31, 2023 12:00 PM
thyssenkrupp Dynamic Components celebrates 10 years of rotor shafts for electric motors, and continues its global expansion strategy
Production of rotor shafts for electric cars began 10 years ago
Transformation from a manufacturer of classic drive components to a provider of electric mobility solutions
Global expansion of the production network
thyssenkrupp Dynamic Components GmbH, headquartered in Ilsenburg, has been producing rotor shafts for electric drives for ten years now. This means the company initiated the transformation of its drive components business at a time when it was still relatively uncertain how electric mobility would develop in the automotive industry. Rotor shaft production has already been established at the Chemnitz and Ilsenburg sites for several years now. Now, due to increasing customer demand, production is being expanded internationally to include sites in China and Mexico.
With the classic valve train for internal combustion engines as its jumping-off point, thyssenkrupp started to develop and industrialize new products for electric drives a decade ago. Today, the drive specialist produces rotor shafts for well-known automotive manufacturers, and is chalking up growth rates above general market values with this product.
Karsten Kroos, CEO of thyssenkrupp Automotive Technology: "The automotive industry is undergoing a process of change. It was necessary to adapt our business model in order to maintain our market leadership in this environment. Even though electric vehicle production was certainly still a niche ten years ago, we knew that rotor shafts would be an ideal fit for our core competencies. By including the rotor shaft in our product portfolio, we have gradually made ourselves independent of the classic internal combustion engine, and we are continuing steadily along this path. In five years, we want electric drive components to account for around 30 percent of our sales."
The rotor shaft, which ten years ago was predominantly a solid component, transmits the kinetic energy generated by the alternating electromagnetic field between the rotor and stator to the transmission, and can thus be thought of as a key component in electric motors. Rotor shafts transmit torques that are many times higher than those in conventional passenger car camshafts. The camshaft spins with an average speed of about 3,500 rpm – whereas rotor shafts reach speeds of 20,000 rpm.
The rotor shaft from thyssenkrupp is characterized by its assembled design. Here, the company benefits from its decades of experience in the development and manufacture of assembled camshafts. A key advantage of the assembled design is that the shaft is hollow. In the case of particularly powerful electric motors, the cavity can be used for additional functions, for example cooling. A cooling effect can be achieved at the rotor due to the convective heat transfer into the rotor shaft, and this increases the performance of the electric drive.
thyssenkrupp Dynamic Components made the first rotor shaft in volume production for the VW e-UP in 2013. Initially, global sales activities were limited to the European market. Since May of this year, the first rotor shafts have been produced for Volvo in Changzhou (China). Production of almost 1.5 million rotor shafts worldwide is planned for the current fiscal year. The drive component specialist is growing rapidly in the field of rotor shafts, and is supplying significant vehicle platforms with its products.
In the research and development area, thyssenkrupp Dynamic Components is continuing the transformation towards electric mobility: An additional product line in the field of thermal management for electrified vehicles is in the works. In the hybrid and conventional internal combustion engine business, further profitable growth is also being derived from the efficiency potential of applied technologies that make state-of-the-art internal combustion engines even more powerful and with lower emissions. The business unit is characterized by a high level of production and automation expertise. The new products are manufactured on the basis of similar production processes to those used for internal combustion engine components. Here, thyssenkrupp can achieve synergy effects because, in some cases, the same machinery and equipment is already being used within a plant to build production lines for different drive types.
About thyssenkrupp Automotive Technology
The Automotive Technology business segment is one of the leading suppliers and engineering partners to the international automotive industry. The range of products and services includes high-tech components and systems, as well as automation solutions for vehicle manufacturing. The product range includes chassis technologies such as steering and damper systems and the assembly of axle systems as well as powertrain components for conventional and alternative engines. thyssenkrupp Automotive Technology also develops assembly lines for body-in-white construction and produces lightweight car body components in series. The business segment achieved sales of 4.8 billion euros in fiscal 2021/22.