Driving automotive efficiency further Hilite

DRIVING AUTOMOTIVE EFFICIENCY FURTHER

Hilite was founded in Germany in 1999 and is a global leader in the development of engine and transmission products designed to improve fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. Philip Yorke talked to Oliver Altmann, the company’s vice-president of sales and marketing, about its latest investments and products in addition to its new developments.

Headquarters in Marktheidenfeld, Germany Sales and R&D centre, Orion

Hilite International is a leading global supplier of automotive system solutions with a special focus on fuel-efficient engine and transmission products for passenger cars and commercial vehicles. Hilite products are installed in many of the world’s leading automotive OEM brands, including VW, Chrysler, Ford, GM and BMW. The company is owned by the international investment Group 3i along with its co-investor, the Chinese Investment Corporation (CIC) who are dedicated to growing and developing Hilite’s global engineering capabilities.

Hilite is headquartered in Marktheidenfeld, Germany, and today the company employs over 1,300 people at eight locations across Europe, North America and Asia. In 2012 Hilite generated revenues of more than €387 million.

Cutting-edge automotive systems technology

Since its establishment in 1999, Hilite has grown to become a globally active supplier to the automotive passenger car and commercial vehicle industries. Today the company’s advanced, highly innovative products for engines and transmission systems set the standards across the automotive industry sector. Modern transmissions make a significant contribution to meeting future demands for the reduction of emissions and fuel consumption. With the trend towards automatic transmissions that offer wide ratio ranges of seven, eight or more gears and the growing potential of hybrid vehicles designed to improve energy efficiency, Hilite’s innovative concepts and applications have kept it at the forefront of today’s drive-train technology.

The relentless increase in the demand for global energy and the subsequent rise in oil prices, in addition to the challenge of global warming, have increased the demand for new concepts in drive-train technology to reduce fuel consumption. Currently the trend is moving towards the implementation of double-clutch transmissions (DCT), continuous variable transmissions (CVT), automatic manual transmissions (AMT) or simply refined automatic transmissions. These are increasingly being applied to the growing number of hybrid engines. At the heart of these transmission controls are the control valves, which constitute the electrical signal in the TCU and the mechanical realisation of functions, such as actuating the clutch or shifting gears.

Hilite products are setting the standards for modern solenoid valve technology and are designed for specific applications based upon clients’ individual requirements. Solenoid valve functions are therefore developed regarding system pressure, hysteresis, leakage and other dynamic specifications such as response time and control stability. Today Hilite is recognised worldwide for its commitment to achieving optimum functional performance, energy efficiency, dynamics, durability and cost-effectiveness.

Mr Altmann said, “At Hilite we operate two distinct product groups: engine applications and transmission products. We place a very high priority on our investments in R&D in order to maintain our position as the technology leader in our field. We have recently invested in a new state-of-the-art sales and R&D centre in Orion/Michigan/USA and this new centre of excellence will also be developing our latest torque distribution products for OEMs’ four-wheel-drive vehicles. We are a first-tier supplier to the big global automotive manufacturers and work in close partnership with them to optimise their engine and transmission systems. Our latest double clutch transmission products have been developed inhouse and offer the most advanced products of their kind on the market. We are also investing in the development of systems, including solenoid valves for controlling regulated oil pumps, thermo management of oil and water systems and multi-channel valves with integrated functions like regulating oil pumps and switching piston cooling functions along with a range of innovative products for torque distribution in four-wheel-drive vehicles.”

Altmann added, “We are also increasing our investments in head-count, which will be rising from 1335 people at present, to more than 1600 in the upcoming years. We will also continue to grow organically in all regions with our operations located in close proximity to our key automotive customers’ manufacturing bases.”

Continuous camphaser technology

Another technological development from Hilite is its continuous camphaser that undertakes a smooth relative adjustment of the camshaft dependent upon the load and speed of the engine. These phaser systems receive their oil supply directly from the oil pump of the engine and because of their low leakage they minimise the energy required to perform the adjustments during operation. Hilite camphasers are designed to be able to perform equally efficiently in ‘hot-idle’ mode, at low oil pressure and low oil viscosity, as well as under normal driving conditions. Through its extensive use of aluminium components, Hilite has reduced the total weight of its camphaser system with chain and belt drive. In particular, this lightweight phaser can also reduce the inertial masses involved.

This is especially important for small engines where weight and performance are deciding factors in choosing such a system.

Hilite continues to push the technological boundaries when it comes to automotive valve technology, and for its new generation of solenoid valves the focus has been firmly on durability, low weight, variability, modularity, efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Furthermore, through its optimised electromagnetic circuit, the relationship between stroke work, volume and weight of the solenoid valve has been significantly improved. The high electromagnetic efficiency of the valve also leads to lower power consumption. This efficiency is further improved by minimising leakages and pressure losses between the valve ports, leading to an optimised energy balance, which is especially noticeable when using output-minimised oil pumps. n

For further information about Hilite’s latest cutting-edge technology products visit: www.hilite.com

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