Dana
Holding Corporation has begun the production of Victor Reinz multi-layer steel
(MLS) cylinder head gaskets, exhaust gaskets, and transmission valve body
separator plates at its facility in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, China.
The
China based 129,000 square-foot technical centre is a comprehensive engineering
and manufacturing facility that enables the company to develop and produce
Victor Reinz sealing solutions within its Wuxi campus, according to a press
note issued by Dana. The expanded manufacturing footprint will immediately
support Dana's key customers with local operations in China, as well as offer
further support for customer growth in the Asia-Pacific region.
"The
Asia-Pacific region remains a strong focus for Dana and we regularly evaluate
the product needs of our customers to ensure our manufacturing strategy aligns
with their needs," said Dwayne Matthews, president of the Dana Power
Technologies Group.
"Launching
production of the MLS gasket and transmission plate technologies enables Dana
to meet the growing product demand and also support current and future customers
with an extensive technology portfolio in this region," Matthews added.
Dana's
MLS cylinder head gasket designs consist of multiple layers of stainless steel,
coated with a proprietary elastomeric material to provide a robust seal against
cylinder head and block surfaces.
Mechanical embossments around the combustion chambers and oil and
coolant openings provide custom designed load distribution for optimized
sealing of gases and liquids. The coated
and embossed layers are then assembled to form the finished gasket. The facility's flexible production
capabilities allow for the manufacturing of any of Dana's global MLS gasket
designs, including Dana's patented Wave-Stopper technology.
In
addition, Dana will produce MLS exhaust gaskets, which are designed to fit a
wide variety of advanced hardware conditions, and enable emission reduction and
high-temperature performance. This capability also includes the use of
ThermoGlide 1000, a proprietary high-temperature coating with low friction
performance at temperatures up to 1,000 degrees Celsius.
The
Wuxi facility also will produce Dana's MLS transmission valve body separator
plates, which allow for optimised channel paths and smaller valve bodies
through the reduction of fasteners that can interfere with desired flow paths.
Through this technology, Dana can substantially increase valve body sealing for
high-performance transmissions with operating pressures of up to 80 bar. This
capability helps automakers eliminate leak paths thus increasing efficiency of
advanced multi-speed, dual clutch, and continuously variable
transmissions.
Source: Dana Holding Corporation / Picture
MLS gasket