3M Is Innovating To Deliver End-to-End Automotive Solutions

Originally published on 3M News Center

From design to recycling, the automotive industry is moving at breakneck speed to create new products and solve new challenges. 3M is a key partner at each stage, providing innovative technologies and one-of-a-kind solutions, expert collaboration and insights, and the trust and relationships the industry needs to enable mobility for a better world.

Manufacturing and assembly

The automotive manufacturing process is more complex than ever, with processes measured in microseconds and output measured in the hundreds of thousands. 3M’s Automotive Manufacturing Solutions are engineered to help pull big opportunities out of the smallest details at every stage. Recommending the right solution means understanding the entire assembly process, then optimizing applications at each step.

One example is the 3M™ Finesse-it™ Robotic Paint Repair System, which automates end-of-line or in-line paint topcoat defect repair by identifying and quickly delivering an exact repair strategy for each defect. By automating the process, the Finesse-it system can help reduce labor challenges, improve ergonomic challenges, and enable more consistent quality compared to manual repairs

Driver experience

Consumers can elevate their vehicle and make it their own with 3M™ Automotive Films, which offer a range of customizable style and protection options. These include:

• 3M™ Window Film helps a vehicle look and feel cool, with different levels of window tint that provide UV protection, heat rejection, increased security and reduced glare.

• 3M™ Paint Protection Film adds a layer of protection that guards vehicles against the elements and gives owners peace of mind.

• 3M™ Wrap Film can transform vehicles with a variety of colors, textures and finishes that make unique eye-catching designs.

Service and repair

At 3M, the art and science of automotive collision repair is a crucial part of our longstanding connection to our customers. For decades we have crafted abrasives, adhesives and coatings to solve the latest auto body repair demands, all backed by the guidance of our expert technical team. As collision repair evolves, 3M is creating new solutions that enable body shops to resolve new challenges in profitability, labor and inventory supply chains.

3M™ RepairStack™, a combined hardware and software inventory management system, optimizes and automates day-to-day shop processes like inventory management, blueprinting and billing, and business performance analysis. RepairStack integrates easily, works with 3M and non-3M materials, and automates re-ordering from preferred vendors to ensure necessary materials are on hand.

Engineering and design

Creating tomorrow’s vehicles means solving an array of challenges, from improving design assembly efficiency to achieving lighter weights to faster repair throughputs. 3M’s comprehensive view of the automotive space allows us to solve industry challenges; design, build and test new solutions; drive efficiencies; and support customers worldwide.

Repurpose and recycle

As the electric vehicle (EV) market expands, establishing a circular economy for EV batteries is crucial for a substantial reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, the design of battery packs is evolving to seamlessly integrate with the overall vehicle structure. This design trend poses new challenges, such as factory rework, field repair, and end-of-life disassembly to OEMs.

Utilizing our expertise in material science, we are exploring new technologies that employ an array of debonding techniques to disassemble key components within battery packs, which will help create new opportunities to reduce waste, enable repairs, and repurpose or recycle batteries.