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Advances in automotive technology have been amazing over recent decades. Electronics has entered the scene as an enabler of improved mileage and performance. Yet, as impressive as electronics integration has been, the future holds even greater promise.
Electronics use has a dual impact upon auto performance. The first is the ability to optimize performance in real time through precision control technology. It also offers the ability to help reduce weight considerably, thereby yielding significant miles per gallon (MPG) improvement. Though the exact MPG increase depends on the weight of the car, every 100 pounds of weight reduction will improve fuel efficiency approximately 2 percent.
Examples of common weight reductions resulting from electronics are multiplexed communication buses and electric power-assist steering, which also reduces belt loading on the engine, thereby offering additional MPG improvements.
Hybrid cars will demand a wide variety of electronic improvements, which will entail new requirements for capacitors. The extent to which capacitors will be challenged will correspond to the hybrid car type — e.g., plug-in hybrid, mild hybrid, etc.
Power capacitors will be required for decoupling the power source and the drive train. Although electrolytics are commonly used now, as voltages increase and failure mode considerations expand, film capacitors appear to be winning favor on next-generation higher voltage inverters and converters.
Supercapacitors are commonly used in regenerative braking schemes, but design trends have already pushed supercapacitors to higher power density for larger energy recovery schemes. A novel design trend is calling for smaller case size, smaller values with dramatically lower ESRs for use in “point of load” circuits within vehicles.
Safety capacitors are being required throughout hybrid vehicles on high voltage lines in large numbers. Safety capacitors typically utilize ceramic or film technology. High voltage snubber capacitors are being required to work at temperatures above 125°C. There is a growing need for high-voltage, high-temperature capacitors to evolve quickly to protect expensive IGBTs and other sensitive electronic components.
The typical trends of higher C/V and reliability will continue for automotive-grade small signal capacitors. Form factor will need to change as well, from traditional case sizes to filter configurations. Because of concerns over hybrid vehicle EMI emissions and susceptibility, automotive-grade versions of miniature SMT EMI filters have already been introduced to designers.
This is just a snapshot of major capacitive trends within the hybrid vehicle. External trends of charging, monitoring, and control all have their own set of significant requirements on other capacitor types.
Hi Ron,
Automotive companies are notoriously tough on their suppliers–usually for good reason, when driver safety is involved. Can you give our colleagues some pointers on how to get the attention of an automotive supplier if you are not already in the door?
who are the leading providers of this tech? Is it dominated by megsa companies aor are smaller outfits getting a look in?
There are several major manufacturers in the capacitor market, including companies like AVX, Kyocera, Kemet and Vishay. Over the last 10 or more years smaller manufacturers have emerged in Asia that have taken market share in the lower end of the sector forcing companies like AVX and Vishay to target higher-end and cutting-edge products. This is where they are making a difference and hence their focus on technology differentiation in consumer segments like automotive and wireless communications. As Ron Demcko points out, companies that are able to offer technologically advanced products will get the opportunity to have their components designed into hybrid cars, high-end vehicles and military equipment.
thanks Bolaji – very interesting
I am asking this out of curiosity, is there any hybrid vehicle already in market that uses these capacitors.
Hey Ron; I was showing some of our friends in Greenville this new dielectric material I came across at the TED Conference. What do you think the value of a trully biodegradable dielectric material is? One that when put in a landfill would actually benefit the environment and help things grow. What I trully had to grasp was that the production process to make the dielectric is about 50% of the current cost of goods sold for OPP or large Can PET capacitors; and what really got me going was that it was moldable into abstract shapes (like the Greatbatch wet tantalums). Anyway, if there's a scientist in the USA that can understand something like this its you. P.S I was at a meeting in DC a few months back and the current powers that be were trying to evoke innovation as the way out of economic woe and a second dip. He said- “Can American Innovate its way out of this.” I liked that.
Hi Gerry–thanks for providing the data on Mexico manufacturing costs vs. China. I think the predominating opinion is still China is much less expensive because of labor, but as Charlie Barnhart once pointed out: labor is a small fraction of costs in a highly automated manufacturing business such as electronics. So I've always wondered how much savings there is really is.
Chinese companies venturing into Mexico to set up manufacturing operations are eager to get a strong position for their products in North America. NAFTA gives them certain advantages that they may not get if the products were made in China. Aside from this, Gerry's points in the article are important. Companies must evaluate the total cost of ownership before deciding where to site manufacturing facilities or outsource production. There are so many issues at play here that I don't think it is possible for OEMs to make such decisions without external assistance. Consulting companies specialized in outsourcing advice can help. So, can suppliers and distribution companies because of their “feet-on-ground” expertise. Does Avnet offer such services?
Well Mexico do offer cost benefits and I guess it being geographically close to USA also adds to the point.
Paumanok knows his onions. He also knows a thing or two about innovation as a catalyst for growth too. Ron, can you help educate the rest of us on the questions Paumanok raised? What are the major differences between all these applications as the industry tries to find new ways to upgrade products for use in hybrid vehicles? The reason hybrid auto emerged was due to the need to reduce carbon footprint and the entire bill of materials that goes into a vehicle therefore has to contribute to the attainment of that goal, including capacitors made by your company.
If there are costs savings from making biodegradable dielectric components as Paumanok says the industry should be exploring it. The company that finds a way to do this benefits from lower costs, which can be passed onto customers and used as leverage for securing supply contracts, and also gets to boast it is contributing to “Saving the Earth.” Are these types of components heading to market anytime soon? If not, what kind of research is being done and how soon will we see this type of products that can go into a landfill without negatively impacting its environment?
If the only benefit Mexico holds is cheap labour than i think it is far from being the next china.
How much overhead does cheap labor actually save? So yes as Gerry says, this is not a linear equation with just two simple variables, its more complex. Cheap labor is not enough reason to move to mexico, if it were, Africa would have been a better choice, there are countries were people work only for food as their pay.
Dear Friends,
Looking at the rate at which the US Federal Reserve is devaluing the US Dollar today,Crude Oil will very soon be over USD 100/Barrel.From there the all time Highs of USD 147/Barell are not that far away.At those prices will it be cost-competitive (along with much Higher Manufacturing wages in China) to manufacture anything,Big and Bulky for US Consumption???
I don't think so.
In that sceanario Production of Big,Bulky items will move either back to America or to Mexico from where its just a short truck ride(and Mexico falls under NAFTA too) for big items to enter America.
On the other hand if you are looking to manufacture for Chinese consumption then you would need to based either in China or South East Asia(most of which continues to have very cheap labor compared to China too).
Regards
Ashish.
Ashish,
China's trump card in high-tech manufacturing–heck, any sector of the economy for that matter–is the potentially huge purchasing power its growing middle class is likely to wield globally. If Gerry Fay is correct and China ends up with 600 million middle class people, that would represent a humongous target for all manufacturers. It would be dumb therefore not to have a presence in China or in a location close by from where these new consumers can be serviced. You are right, the devaluation of the U.S. dollar will play a role but is it a sustainable action on the part of the Federal Reserve? Will they really be able to keep it up just to boost domestic production?
By the way, there's another factor at play here. The electronic supply chain is not so easily manipulated. Companies outsource to areas where the support structure is in place to facilitate production. It's taken China decades to compile the group of support services providers — aw material providers, fabricators, component vendors, contractors, etc.– that electronic equipment makers now depend upon to service their activities. It won't be that easy to shift all that back to another location. We are likely going to see China's role continuing to increase though perhaps at a lesser pace.
I wonder how reports of drug wars in Mexico is affecting business in the country and foreigners' willingness to relocate production to the country. If I have a company, I personally wouldn't want to outsource to Mexico. Like “thank you very much. I understand your labor costs are now closer to those of China but how about some safety first?”
Whether manufacturing centers in Mexico have been impacted or not we really don't know but the image Mexico is getting worldwide right now is that of a drug-war zone. There are reports each week of policemen and politicians getting killed and the Mexican government seems incapable of stopping this. Why don't we take a poll. How many companies in Mexico or considering moving to Mexico are worried about the security situation in the country? Sure, it may make financial sense to relocate facilities to Mexico but good luck getting some of your current employees to move there!
Will Mr. Demcko respond? I find Paumanok's questions interesting even though it is a bit technical. The last bit about whether or not America can innovate its way out of a recession is quite important. The challenge is that as America is innovating so are other parts of the world. Will we all innovate ourselves into first place? I don't think this is going to happen in all countries and for all economy sectors. I would like to know, though, if the hybrid capacitor innovations Mr. Demcko identified are all American or if other companies based elsewhere are similarly involved. The consumer may not care about where the product was developed, though. If it works well and is better and cheaper than the alternative, I don't care who designed or produced it.
Hawk,
You are very true in your line of reasoning that the Drug war is a big problem prohibiting new manufacturers from moving there.
But in my opinion it really depends on which manufacturers you are speaking about.Western/American manufacturers would most probably think twice before moving to Mexico today(given the Violence that the media harps on again and again).But chinese Manufacturers??? I am not sure.
You have to understand that chinese companies operate in far more dangerous zones than Mexico(for instance Western Africa & Afghanistan) where their employees are routinely kidnapped or even killled.But that has'nt stopped them from increasing their investments there.So I don't think this current bout of negative publicity for Mexico will affect Chinese manufacturers decisions on whether or not to outsource production to Mexico.The Chinese think very,very long-term.
Regards
Ashish.
Anna,
Your line of thinking (adds on to what I was saying in my post) and makes perfect sense.If you want to target the Chinese market you have to be based in China or S.E.Asia.No doubts about that.
When it comes to Supply-Chain,everything has become so discrete and distributed that if Manufacturers feel they have an obstruction in one part of the business because of Tarriffs,Component costs,etc they can very easily(within 2 years tops) move production elsewhere.
For them its just a question of ripping up the existing plant and moving it to a more favorable location(their suppliers will also see the rationale of moving if it makes economic sense for them).Let me give you an example,the Japanese Auto companies today are facing heavy strikes in China from Labour who want the companies to raise Wages by 20%+.And right now they have agreed to these demands.But if Labor demands 20+% wage rises again for next three years straight the Auto companies will see their margins wiped out.So they are building back-up production facilities(they already exist) just need to be expanded further in Thailand and they are looking aggressively at Vietnam/Cambodia.The Japanese also are cutting production at home in Japan because the rising Yen has made Production in Japan very expensive.
Most Global manufacturers have that capability.
So its not really a big deal for manufacturers today to move production elsewhere depending on costs.
Regards
Ashish.
Ron,
Its good to see increased & more aggressive adoption of Capacitors in Hybrids,but is it possible for Capacitor manufacturers to reduce size of the Devices themselves(because the lighter they are the more fuel-efficent the car will be??)
I personally know a lot of Battery manufacturers are experimenting with different metals to see which works best(durability and efficency point of view).If we can get super lightweight,Cheap and long-lasting Batteries for Hybrids,Hybrids will see an increase in sales like theres no tommorow.
And Californians won't be upset about paying $10/Gallon at the pump either…
http://www.noonproposition10.org/
Its a stupid idea(raising Gasoline taxes to pay for public transportation and paying Bloated Union salaries,but if alternatives to Gas driven automobiles exist,a lot of Californians might go with it)…
Regards
Ashish.