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175 YEARS OF SULZER
Innovation at Sulzer Metco
Why solutions matter
Substantial economic value and growth can be unlocked from processes
used anywhere within an organization. Among all of these processes,
innovation is the most important driving growth factor for Sulzer Metco
and its customers. Innovation can be regarded as the main remaining
differentiator in the industry, enabling Sulzer Metco’s customers to create
value both in existing and in new markets.
S
ulzer Metco delivers added value
for its customers, by transforming
its mastered technologies into
valuable products, focusing on
increased performance and lifetime,
reduced complexity, and reduced cost of
ownership. As a technology-based business, the adaptation of its technologies
by the market is the pacemaker for
growth. There are many successful markets built on the adoption of Sulzer
Metco technologies, and there are others
still waiting to be led into new areas of
growth. Solutions for existing markets
and customers can be very different than
solutions for new markets. The different
implications of solutions can be derived
from the basic theory for the Technology
Adoption Life Cycle , which describes
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Basic theory for the Technology Adoption Life Cycle.
Technology fully
adopted
Disruptive Innovation to
conquer new markets
Innovators
4269
Chasm
Adoption intensity
Start technology
adoption
Sustaining innovation
to maintain/expand
market share
Pragmatists Conservatives
Time
Laggards
the specific technology adoption for
different markets.
This theory allows technology-oriented companies to group innovation into
two simplified profiles:
• In existing markets: Solutions focus
is sustaining innovation.
• Innovation to open new markets:
Solutions focus is disruptive
innovation.
Sustaining innovation
Within the existing markets, Sulzer
Metco's customers are educated and
strive to leverage their own technological
competencies to improve returns. Unless
suppliers along the value chain are able
to continually increase value for their
customers, the business becomes commoditized. In the commoditization
process, solutions (past innovations)
become generalized and are cut apart
into their ingredients, and, barring constant improvement and revitalization,
the strong downward price pressure
grows. Maintaining a focus on continual
improvement and solution selling, the
coating solution becomes the focus, and
the issues or pains it resolves are the
levers used to continually derive value
and open markets for customers—it's the
coating that delivers essential value for
customers.
Within these markets, sustaining solution-based innovation of the product and
service portfolio is the driver to maximize the existing educated customers’
value proposition and enhance Sulzer
Metco’s ability to support its customers
at various points along the value chain
while expanding the market.
Through strong partnerships between
Sulzer Metco and its customers, greater
opportunity exists to examine a larger
section of the value chain and provide
complete solutions to the market.
Addressing various aspects of the value
chain makes it possible to derive greater
value out of the process than a standard
single-point material or equipment
supplier relationship would permit.
Taking an example from thermalspray technology, a material and a spray
torch are quite useless by themselves, but
they add value when they are combined
with process know-how to produce a
life- or performance-enhancing coating
on a component. Hence the problem to be
solved is how to choose the right surface
technology and apply it on a part in the
best possible fashion, while adhering to
a given cost framework.
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ANNIVERSARY ISSUE
Solutions go beyond the development of
better materials, equipment, and application processes. Given their complexity,
they require far more knowledge and
resources to be executed successfully.
As a result, the value of a solution for
customers is far greater than that of its
component parts. Coating solutions
include the following elements:
• In addition, the total cost of ownership
from material sourcing to disposal
must be investigated in order to determine the cost impact and resulting
benefit of the coating; for example, corrosion-resistant coatings for the printing industry. Only by looking at the
entire manufacturing process of the
cylinder was the cost advantage of
High-performance microtools; coating: Mpower.
• Analysis of the working environment
of the component to be coated. This
requires in-depth knowledge of tribological and corrosion systems and
resulting wear and degradation mechanisms. The combined effect of these
attack mechanisms is what a coating
must overcome to increase the performance or life of the component in a
specific environment.
• Selection of the appropriate family of
coatings that fulfill the elements for
success.
• Part complexity further reduces the
type of coatings that can be used. Typically, most of the processes applied
are line of sight; how can internal and
other non-line-of-sight surfaces be
coated?
• Cost is the next element; the cost of the
coated component must be outweighed by the value generated
through its use.
• The total cost of the coated component
must be taken into consideration. Surface coatings often enable the use of
cheaper and easier-to-machine substrates, therefore potentially reducing
the total part cost.
high-velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF)
spraying compared to hard chromium
plating fully understood.
Solution examples for sustainable
innovation
Aluminium alloy polymer-abradable
coating (Metco 601) for turbine compressors: The introduction of the Triplex plasma gun technology allows application
rates to be tripled as compared with previous technologies. This is achieved
through higher deposit efficiencies and
higher spray rates. Sulzer Metco has
developed a complete solution that
addresses an entirely new set of problems that arose due to the high application rates: handling systems needed
modification to accommodate the rapid
application rates, and the stress conditions in the coatings were completely
different thus requiring new thermalmanagement techniques.
Cutting tools need coatings that are
adapted to the material to be machined to
increase material removal rates, tolerance, and tool life while requiring littleto-no cutting or cooling fluid. To achieve
this goal, the thin, hard oxidation, and
18 | Sulzer Technical Review 2+3/2009
Refinery by night
wear-resistant coatings must be engineered in the nano and atomic range.
This is done using modular physical
vapor deposition (PVD) coaters that can
also combine arc evaporation and magnetron sputtering to create hybrid
processes. The Metaplas coatings are tailored to meet the needs of the various
applications. illustrates high performance micro tools coated with Mpower—
one coating from the new series M •A •C
(micro alloyed coatings).
Sulzer Metco has developed a
fundamental new gun-monitoring
device that enables real-time gun measurement: EvoLink™ Intelligent Gun
Technology—Data Acquisition—Data
Storage. As a result of this innovation,
significant process efficiency and
quality improvements become a reality
for our customers. The newly launched
process controller EvoCoat™ Liquid
Fuel HVOF System is the first available
HVOF spray equipment with embedded real-time gun measurement and
data acquisition.
EvoLink Intelligent Gun Technology—
Data Acquisition—Data Storage: Until
now, critical gun parameters were measured far away from the gun. With
EvoLink, these critical values are measured directly at the gun resulting in accurate data each and every time. EvoLink
was first introduced in the high velocity
oxygen fuel – liquid fuel (HVOF-LF)
Woka series gun (Version WokaJet-440
and WokaStar-640) and will be further
extended to other guns.
EvoCoat Liquid Fuel HVOF System—
Fast—Precise—Easy: The ready-to-go,
all-in-one HVOF-LF spray system, complete with console, TWIN-140 or 5MPE
HP powder feeder and Woka series guns.
The start-up cycle is up to 70% faster than
its predecessor and other systems available on the market. It has an easy, operator-friendly console with touch-screen
operation that shows the most important
functionalities. The integrated EvoLink
device enables unprecedented control of
all process data generated while spraying and storage of process data.
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Disruptive innovation
Entering new markets unfamiliar with
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175 YEARS OF SULZER
Sulzer Metco surface technologies entails
convincing and educating new customers
not yet familiar or experienced with the
technology itself. Therefore, the coating
solution and the industrialization of it
must be delivered as a complete solution
package in order to effectively build upon
identified opportunities within new markets. The customer must be able to implement the technology in an easy and efficient manner in order to realize the greatest gains. Disruptive innovations are
those that change the rules of the game.
The most attractive disruptive innovation
is the situation where the new solution
offer improves upon and replaces an
existing solution in a market that already
exists. New solutions in entirely new
markets, for example, SOFC (solid oxide
fuel cells) will take a much longer and
expensive development path.
Solution examples for disruptive
innovation
To open new markets with innovative
coating solutions, a respective business
model has to be developed. Sulzer Metco
actively drives new business opportunities. As such, several projects have been
launched. To illustrate, the SUMEBore®
project will be used.
SUMEBore, Sulzer Metco cylinder bore
coating solutions address friction and
surface resistance issues within combustion engines. It is the goal of engine
designers to reduce the friction present
within the engines and to reduce oil consumption. Two different functional principles of SUMEBore coatings allow these
goals to be reached.
• The first is linked to the creation of
solid lubricants during the spray
process of iron-based powders.
• The second enables superior friction
properties based on the porosity of
the coating in combination with a
mirror-like honing finish.
350 µm
a
the right powder chemistry
and morphology
b
the right coating structure, including solid lubricants
100 µm
c
the right surface finish
The success factors of SUMEBore®.
a
to
modular powder chemistry
address the different main requirements
of the surface, a reactive spray process to
transform powder chemistry into the
required coating properties—a typical
coating structure is shown in b—and a
smooth, mirror-like honing non-crosshatch finish c.
Process design
As the process chain is paramount for
the customer, becoming the expert
beyond the traditional thermal-spray
horizon is key. The language of the cus-
tomer must be understood. The complete process must first be demonstrated then implemented to the customer’s
complete satisfaction so the expectation
levels are met .
The business model
Ultimately, the careful assessment of the
market requirements, a clear understanding of the benefits the technology
provides, who is best positioned to gain
from those benefits, and the alternative
solutions available to them leads to the
development of the business model.
RotaPlasma® rotating plasma gun coating a cylinder bore.
This surface topography and the benefits
derived from them are sustained over the
entire life of the engine.
How SUMEBore® works
The success of SUMEBore depends on
three main components: an engineered
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Carbon Friction Liner for Synchronizer Rings.
Benefits of a SUMEBore® coating
The primary benefits are the superior
surface properties of a cylinder surface
as compared with today's solutions. In
addition, known future requirements
driven by efficiency improvement targets and emission restrictions are fulfilled.
• Reduced friction leading to higher
engine performance or reduced fuel
consumption or both.
• Optimized surface topology enables
reduced oil consumption.
• Modular material chemistry enables
the surface to be tailored towards corrosion resistance by using stainless
steel, wear resistance by building
metal matrix composite with a high
ceramic content, and scuffing resistance by alloying molybdenum into the
base material.
•
•
•
•
These primary benefits are known and
typically the first requirements the customer brings forward. Diving further
into the subject, the value from secondary benefits becomes more apparent.
•
Secondary benefits
SUMEBore technology enables coatings
to be sprayed directly onto highly efficient high-pressure cast aluminum
engine blocks. This allows the engine
designer to use the full freedom of
design:
• The engine becomes smaller and
lighter as the cylinder distance can be
reduced. The elimination of liners
reduces the equivalent of 2 kg of alu-
20 | Sulzer Technical Review 2+3/2009
minum in a straight four-cylinder
engine block, plus four times 1 kg per
liner. The total potential weight reduction is approximately 6 kg in a fourcylinder aluminum engine.
The higher combustion pressure
issues associated with downsizing is
not an issue for a SUMEBore surface as
the coating tolerates the mechanical
deformation of the engine block.
Through-cylinder-wall heat transfer is
homogenous, unlike the uneven heat
transfer of cylinder liners and can be
designed using right material selection.
Due to the applied thickness, the coating is by far more failure tolerant to
casting defects than alternative plating
technologies, leading to significantly
lower defect costs on the casting side.
The coating provides a near-ideal
structure for the modern honing technologies and does not require laser
structuring at all. The porosity that
provides the „smart“ characteristic
while wearing down is built into the
coating during spray process.
The requirement for engine overhaul
is less frequent due to better wear
resistance and, if required, the ability
to remanufacture the cylinder geometry back to the original size eliminates
all oversize piston requirements.
These benefits have positive maintenance and environmental impacts on
the life-cycle costs of the engine.
When Sulzer Metco started developing
the SUMEBore business, the potential
market was viewed in its entirety without further subdivision of the market.
However, as market knowledge grew, a
further segment of the market emerged
and it became necessary to develop
segment-focused value propositions.
Within the SUMEBore business model
a separate segment-specific business
model was developed to address the
pains of truck manufacturers struggling
to implement measures to comply with
the emission restrictions. As a result of
this decision to custom tailor a solution
package for this market segment, a leading truck manufacturer recognized the
value of the technology and became convinced that Sulzer Metco was the right
partner to work with to address this pain
and build a stronger position in the marketplace. This solution is currently being
scaled-up and will be implemented into
their production process soon.
Other great examples for disruptive
innovation demonstrate the benefit of
this approach:
Friction systems
The carbon liner technology developed
by Sulzer Metco is the most successful
friction system for high performance
synchronizer rings. The carbon friction
layers solution represents a disruptive
technology over the traditionally used
brass friction surfaces. Properties and performance are superior to the traditional
solution, thus accelerating the adaptation
to the new technology and changeover
from the old. With the established synchronizer know-how and the in-house
facilities of steel stamping and heat treatment, it was possible to provide full synchronizer solutions to the transmission
manufacturer.
The additional value released during
the transition from traditional coatings to
carbon based friction layers represented
a win-win solution for Sulzer Metco and
it
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Plasma-PVD sprayed YSZ Coating.
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200 µm
its customers. When the disruptive technology was introduced, due to a greater
understating of the value proposition,
Sulzer Metco was better suited to
address a larger segment of customer’s
value chain and drive the transition more
quickly into the end market.
VANEShield
VANEShield is another Sulzer Metco venture project; here, the well-known existing low-pressure plasma spray technology (LPPS) has been further developed
into the plasma spray physical vapor
deposition (PS-PVD) technology producing columnar thermal-barrier coatings
out of the vapor phase . Traditionally,
these protective coatings were made by
using the electron beam physical vapor
deposition (EB-PVD) technology. The
current EB-PVD solution does not
address the need to coat non-line-ofsight areas. The PS-PVD process enables
non-line-of-sight areas to be coated. A
material, equipment, and process solution, VANEShield that addresses the coating needs for this market in a cost effective manner coupled with a solid understanding of the value chain will enable
Sulzer Metco to introduce a disruptive
innovation into this new market. The following added value is given to the customer:
• Non-line-of-sight (NLOS) capability;
allows the application of a thermalbarrier coating (TBC) on nozzle guide
vanes and also on the narrow gas path
areas between the airfoils. Platform
and airfoil can be coated in one process
at the same time. This opens up completely new design features for the turbine parts. Parts with simple geometry, for example, small blades can be
coated very economically using multiple part fixtures.
• Cooling holes remain open during
coating .
Coating over a cooling hole of a blade
• Application of different coating materials in one machine is possible:
MCrAlY bond coat and yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) top coat. In addition to the standard TBC material YSZ,
other types of TBC can also be applied.
This gives the customer a maximum
degree of flexibility in production.
• Adaptation of the TBC coating properties to customer requirements: maximum thermal-cycling behavior versus
erosion resistance. In all cases, the values exceed the numbers of air plasma
sprayed (APS) TBC coatings.
Solutions matter
Sulzer Metco sees disruptive innovative
solutions in the context of opening new
markets with surface technologies and
providing outstanding value to the customer by offering a compelling coating
solution package for an existing problem. Understanding the existing problem
and formulating a compelling value
proposition requires one to speak the language of the customer and truly understand the problem and issues from the
customer's point of view. None of the
projects tackled so far could have been
mastered internally; Sulzer Metco needs
to strategically align itself within the
market through customer and key inputprovider partnerships.
As the market offers many untapped
opportunities where sophisticated surface technologies are not used to solve
the existing problems, thinking along the
technology adoption life cycle is more
appropriate than thinking along product
50 µm
Columnar coating structure
life cycles. To open new markets successfully, a focused business model is the fundamental element.
In summary, simple solutions make
customers more successful through:
• The right coating for the application
increasing performance and life.
• Reduced complexity by taking care of
pre- and post-processing.
• Reduced total cost of application and
ownership.
• Delivering a product in a manner that
fits the customer’s business model.
This is valid within the sustaining innovation of existing markets as well the
disruptive innovation in new markets as
they enable Sulzer Metco to address
greater segments of the value chain and
to maximize the overall market potential
unlocked via coating technologies.
Richard K. Schmid
Sulzer Metco Management AG
Zürcherstrasse 12
8401 Winterthur
Switzerland
Phone +41 52 262 30 14
[email protected]
Hans-Michael Höhle
Sulzer Metco Europe GmbH
Am Eisernen Steg 18
65795 Hattersheim
Germany
Phone +49 172 6212 735
[email protected]
Adrian Zaugg
Jim Girgulis
Sulzer Metco AG
Rigackerstr. 16
5610 Wohlen
Switzerland
Phone +41 56 618 81 92
[email protected]
[email protected]
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