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..............edag....newsletter....No.4...2006.....
Issues:
»
Editorial
»
Innovation in Small Series Production
EDAG Eisenach produces bodies-in-white for the BMW AG Clean Energy Project
»
Vocational Trainees at EDAG
»
EDAG goes to Moscow
»
Fresh Look on the Web – The New Internet Site for EDAG · www.edag.com
»
Test Facilities for Fuel Cell Technology EDAG Recklinghausen
»
New Member of Supervisory Board
»
EDAG Special Edition
»
Illustrious Callers at EDAG · Reception in the Fulda City Palace
»
XL Sculpture ”Automobile” at Munich Airport
»
Riding a Bicycle to Work
Contact: Christoph Horvath
Manager Public Relations, Fulda
Tel.:++49 (0) 6 61-60 00-5 70
E-mail: christoph.horvath@edag.de
Graphics/Layout: Peter Grösch
Marketing Department
Tel.:++49 (0) 6 61-60 00-2 64
E-mail: peter.groesch@edag.de
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..............edag....newsletter....No.4...2006.....
The business unit Manufacturing Equipment has
even received orders from three European OEMs
for the construction or development of body
assembly plants for their new vehicle models and
has made a major contribution to the positive
commercial development of the EDAG Group.
Dear employees,
Competition on the international market for development services remains severe. Nor is the situation
any different in the sector of plant engineering and
small series production, where the competition for
the externally announced projects remains cutthroat
among providers. A trend which affected us in the
first half of the year and caused problems for us in
achieving our sales targets.
Other encouraging signals come from the business
unit Production, which has recently faced the
greatest challenges for the development of new
areas of business due to the noticeable reduction
in physical models and prototypes in the development process. It is therefore especially gratifying
that the strategy of expanding the segment of small
series production has been accepted by the market.
For example, our site in Eisenach is currently working as a series supplier to produce 65 bodies for
the project BMW AG project ”Clean Energy”.
Today yet another German OEM has placed an
initial series order for the manufacture of 500 body
assemblies for a special variant of a premium
vehicle with EDAG.
This makes the development of order entries since
the month of July all the more satisfying; despite
the tensions on the market, the EDAG Group has
been able to achieve overproportional results
against the competition. As of this time, we have
been able to consolidate an increase in our budgeted order entries of more than 20%. The major
share of this positive trend was contributed primarily by the activities on our home market in
Germany, while developments on the market for
our international subsidiaries were rather reserved
This positive feedback from the market is for me
simultaneously the confirmation and the demand
that we not only continue the path we have set out
on and maintain our tempo in the reorientation of
during this period.
Our business unit Product Development was able to
score a major success. A European OEM has given
us an order for the complete development of a
small-size car. The project, which is scheduled to last
three years, includes all of the engineering services
such as the development of the body assembly, the
exterior and interior and the electrical/electronic
components, the simulation, and the integration
EDAG, but that we continue to push ahead to
position EDAG permanently as the leading partner
to the international mobility industry.
of the power train, chassis, and the ”climate-heaDr. Klaus Blickle,
CEO
ting-cooling” as well as the trial engineering.
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..............edag....newsletter....No.4...2006.....
Framing station BMW E68, attachment of the
side frames and roof with the floor completely
Because of the relatively small number of produced
units, the shaping of the higher-strength stainless
steel parts had to be done using prototype tools
close to series production maturity. Other obstacles
were the joining of stainless steel and body sheet
metal using crash-secure point welding or the
attachment of the side walls to the platform by
means of stainless steel rivet connections.
Innovation in Small Series Production
EDAG Eisenach produces bodies-in-white
for the BMW AG Clean Energy Project
The price explosion at filling station pumps has
given the search for alternative energy sources
greater urgency. All of the manufacturers agree on
this point, but the OEMs are pursuing different
concepts in the technical realization: from CNG
drive with natural gas to biofuels to hydrogen
technology. But all of the concepts have one thing
in common: because of the changes in space
requirements for the energy storage cells and the
in part stricter safety requirements, substantial
modifications have to be made to the car body to
satisfy legal requirements. EDAG, being a bodyshell specialist, has been supporting the manufacturers in the realization of their concepts for some
time now: for example, in the modification of the
CNG vehicles for the customer Opel at the EDAG
site in Rüsselsheim.
In the middle of 2002, the cooperation with BMW
for the redesign of bodyshells as part of the Clean
Energy Project began at EDAG Eisenach. The strategic project of the BMW Group stands for a drive
using regeneratively produced hydrogen, environmental compatibility, economy, and efficiency in
the premium segment.
BMW and EDAG together faced a broad range of
technical challenges in integrating hydrogen technology into the 7 Series models. Higher-strength
body sheet metals and stainless steels had to be
combined with carbon fiber elements.
Wheelhouse area BMW E68 inside rear, attachment of
stainless steel parts with higher-strength body sheet metal
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The results produced by the EDAG specialists for
prototype construction and small series production
at the Eisenach site were convincing. Following the
presentation of the first three concept vehicles,
some 70 more BIW assemblies were produced in
Eisenach in the course of 5 phases (construction
steps) from test to prototypes, prototype demonstration, and pre-series manufacture. Naturally,
EDAG claimed the right to act as series supplier in
this project as well. Once EDAG had ensured that
its assembly processes met all of the preconditions
for direct series connection to BMW, it was awarded official approval as a series supplier to BMW AG.
The first series of about 65 units is currently being
manufactured in Eisenach. EDAG’s conduct of this
project once again provides proof of the company’s
competence in the sector of small series production.
Today yet another German OEM has placed an
initial series order for the manufacture of 500 body
assemblies for a special variant of a premium vehicle
with EDAG in Eisenach.
Vocational Trainees at EDAG
EDAG Engineering + Design AG has trained more
than 670 young people since 1973. 10% of the
4,000 employees at EDAG today come from the
company's own training department.
Contact:
ralf.schueler@edag.de
Tel: (0 36 91) 69 22-2 36
Fax: (0 36 91) 69 22-2 35
34 young people began their vocational training at
EDAG on August 21st, 2006. These young people,
just starting their professional careers, will be trained as specialists in 11 different training occupations and in-service training parallel to courses of
study (BA courses) over the next three to three and
a half years, enabling them to contribute in the
future to the development of motor vehicles and
production systems. ”Due to the constantly growing
need at EDAG for specialized and highly specialized
employees, it is absolutely essential for us to train
our staff for tomorrow ourselves,” emphasizes
Alexandra Dantmann, head of the training department at EDAG. ”Our own training program remains
an important pillar of our personnel recruiting,
above all in view of the conditions on the free labor market today which make it very difficult or even
impossible to find people with certain qualifications.”
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Left to right: Erwin Hetke, Marc Wild, Victor Kraizer, Ivan Wolf (all EDAG)
EDAG Goes to Moscow
was demonstrated using bulletproof glass panes
and body sheet parts. The aim to the presence at
the Moscow trade fair was to send clear signals that
Russia is an important future market for EDAG.
EDAG is already working on development projects
for Russian manufacturers and the supplier industry.
For the first time in the company’s history, EDAG
was represented as an exhibitor at the Interauto in
Moscow, which was held simultaneously with the
Moscow Motor Show and Car Salon. The focus of
the trade fair presentation was on the overall
depiction of EDAG’s range of services and its newly
organized business units. The company’s competence in general vehicle development was demonstrated using the exhibit ”Mercedes B Class” as an
example. The roller hemming technology was presented as an example from the EDAG business unit
Manufacturing Equipment and Production, and the
know-how in the sector ”Light Armored Vehicle”
Reinhard Bolz, Director for Trade Fairs + Exhibitions,
expressed his great satisfaction with the visitor response at the EDAG trade fair booth at the end of
the fair on September 03rd, 2006. ”It was a great
advantage, especially for our sales team, to be able
to offer a meeting point for their current and future
customers where contacts could be intensified.”
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..............edag....newsletter....No.4...2006.....
Fresh Look on the Web –
The New Internet Site for EDAG
www.edag.com
For the third time since 1999, EDAG has completely
redesigned its Internet site on the ”World Wide
Web”. Constant new developments in graphics as
well as topicality are what make the Internet such a
vibrant medium. So the marketing team has given
the EDAG site a visual rejuvenation, ensuring a con-
nents results in a visually modern site. Since the
middle of August, visitors have, for example, been
able to move interactively through the picture
archives from 1969 to 2006 under the section
History or learn about the worldwide EDAG site
network with the help of the animated maps.
Besides the new layout, new functionalities such as
the new concept of the download section in
Marketing/PR/Trade Fairs are available to anyone
coming to the EDAG pages. Visitors will find here
a wealth of information material regarding the
EDAG Group, including printable picture material
for downloading.
temporary appearance for the largest independent
engineering company in the world. The objective
was to communicate the new structure of the
EDAG business units and to present their complex
services within a clear structural form online.
In cooperation with the Stuttgart agency ”reseen”,
interactive and dynamic Flash animations were
integrated as a way to set visual accents. The combination of objective content and Flash compo-
You can naturally find out more by logging onto
www.edag.com. We look forward to your visit!
Test Facilities for Fuel Cell Technology
EDAG Recklinghausen
with GM FCA in Honeoye Falls, USA. Location
director Lothar Sunke regards the fuel cell technology to be a field of competence which he would
like to expand within the EDAG association. It is
therefore only logical that on August 17th, 2006,
he joined the ”Competence Network Fuel Cells
and Hydrogen of the State of North Rhine-West-
Since 2003, the Recklinghausen site has been
supporting EDAG activities in the field of fuel cell
technology by developing and constructing test
facilities for fuel cell components. In addition, a
phalia” so that he could establish even more contacts to potential customers and/or partners.
component for the anode side has been developed, validated, and further developed to maturity
for small series production in close cooperation
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..............People.....
New Member of Supervisory Board
six employee representatives on the EDAG Supervisory Board and had resigned her position for
professional reasons. On behalf of Dr. Helmig,
Dr. Blickle, and ourselves, we wish to thank
Ms. Haas for her commitment at EDAG and wish
her all the best in her personal and professional
future.
Effective on July 06th, 2006, Mr. Michael Pilz, general
manager at IG Metall Hanau/Fulda, was appointed
by a court to be a new member of the EDAG
Supervisory Board. He is the successor to Ms.
Babette Haas, who until that date had been one of
EDAG Special Edition
A special issue about the EDAG Group will appear
in October 2006 in conjunction with the professional journal ”Automobil Produktion”. The 28-page
magazine, which will be sent out to the 16,000
readers from the automotive industry with the
October issue of ”Automobil Produktion”, contains a detailed portrait of the four new business
units at EDAG. Articles about EDAG, innovations,
the show and concept cars from the past eight
years, and a long interview with EDAG head
Dr. Klaus Blickle round off the editorial concept of
the EDAG special issue.
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Illustrious Callers at EDAG
The Hessian Minister of Economics, Dr. Alois Rhiel,
paid a visit to EDAG headquarters in Fulda on July
19th, 2006. The purpose of the one-hour ”one-onone discussion” with EDAG CEO Dr. Klaus Blickle
was the intensification of the personal relationships. Dr. Rhiel emphasized that the direct contact
between the worlds of politics and economics was
an important component of his work. ”EDAG, being
one of the largest and most innovative employers
in the region, is especially important to me because
I used to be the mayor of the city Fulda.”
Left to right: Dr. Alois Rhiel, Minister of Economics
of the State of Hesse, and Dr. Klaus Blickle, EDAG CEO
Reception in the Fulda City Palace:
High-ranking politicians from the Prefecture Fukuoka made sure that their European trip included a
visit to the company EDAG and the city of Fulda.
EDAG just opened a branch in Fukuoka in
November 2005 and was strongly supported by
local politicians. ”We are delighted that EDAG
chose our prefecture for its branch location. It is an
honor for us to be invited to the EDAG headquarters in Fulda,” emphasized Junichiro Nakashima,
Executive Director of Prefecture Fukuoka during his
visit to Fulda at the beginning of July.
Left to right: Osamu Takashima (Director), Junichiro Nakashima,
Executive Director, Gerhard Möller, Mayor of Fulda,
and Christoph Horvath, EDAG Press Speaker
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XL Sculpture ”Automobile” at Munich Airport
Airport until September 18th, 2006. The landing
maneuver for the large piece was also quite a bit
more sedate that that of the flying giants on the
neighboring runways. Just as for the debut in front
of the Brandenburg Gate on April 06th, 2006,
specialists from EDAG were hired to act as ”flight
controllers.” After the stopover in Munich, the
sculpture will head for another destination, probably one abroad.
What is undoubtedly the largest and, with a
weight of 10 long tons, undoubtedly heaviest car
in the world has ”landed” at the Munich Airport.
The XL sculpture, realized by EDAG as the technical partner for the image campaign ”Germany –
Land of Ideas”, will be on display on the open
space between Terminals 1 and 2 at the Munich
the campaign ”Riding a Bicycle to Work” in June
of this year. The campaign is initiated annually and
advertised nationwide by the AOK and ADFC.
During the last three months, the car was left in
the garage – whenever it was at all possible – and
the people made their way to work on their own
muscle power. As a further incentive, the participants divided up into five teams and compared
their performance on the cycles in both a friendly
and competitive spirit.
For example, one group booked an average of
40.3 trips per capita, while another group turned
in a mere 15 trips per participant. In total, the 20
participants rolled up a highly respectable figure of
more than 7,000 kilometers.
Riding a Bicycle to Work
Even the automobile enthusiasts at EDAG know
that riding a bicycle is a healthy way to get exercise.
That is why 20 colleagues from Fulda took part in
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