Developed as a speculative investment over five years at a cost of millions of Euros (and the help of one Horizon 2020 research project), the process increases output from 1-2 bolts per minute to 100 bolts per minute. Compared a standard forging process, which holds the fastener vertically – and which the company uses to make small volumes of parts for helicopters and F1 applications – this is process is horizontal. It produces threaded fasteners with diameters from 4mm-12mm, while offering a relatively low minimum quantity.
In addition, Poggipolini’s new production line, branded the Smart Fastener Factory, incorporates other processes, including thread rolling, fillet rolling and other operations, to produce a finished product.
CEO Michele Poggipolini (pictured) says: “We started from the hot forging machine; it was very much modified and tuned with our partner. We were thinking of how to be flexible during production, how to be autonomous during production using software and digital planning systems.”
The line is currently in production and certification approval for Boeing, though he adds that the process is something that the main players of the aerospace industry is not used to.
The line also makes titanium fasteners for its second market, automotive. While Poggipolini has produced hypercar wheel bolts in titanium for more than a decade, it is now planning to break into the higher-volume luxury cars market. A second line is planned.
This is possible thanks to the line’s speed, which reduces the cost of producing parts out of titanium, which is a more expensive raw material than steel, and generally requires more complex processing, he says. But its primary benefit is that it is far lighter than steel.
“The idea is to substitute steel bolts in propulsion and suspension – all of the critical areas of the car. And if you think about electrification, in my opinion it’s a must to use titanium; if you take a battery pack of a common full-electric car, you can save a minimum of 10kg,” claims Poggipolini.
If anything, this is a bigger innovation in automotive than aerospace, he says. “Titanium fasteners exist in aerospace, but automotive uses only steel. We are changing not just the material, but optimising the design, which will impact the full supply chain and how you build the car.”
However, disruptive change is the modus operandi of the Bologna-based company, begun by Michele’s grandfather Calisto in 1950. An aerospace engineer friend supplied titanium bars to Michele’s father Stefano, a professional motorcycle racer, who saw the performance advantage of the lighter material and began machining them for his own use. That spiralled, and the company began supplying Ducati motorcycles, a nearby neighbour, with titanium fasteners in 1975. Formula 1 beckoned, under which it developed a 20-year long partnership with nearby Ferrari for engine fasteners and hydraulic fittings. That came to a near-halt in 2010 when new rules restricted the number of engines used. The company’s business dropped by 65% in six months.
“We had to think about our future,” recalls Poggipolini of that difficult time. And the plan was to move into aerospace. But before it could do so, it needed certifications such as NADCAP, which would take time to achieve. So it started to bring its F1 expertise and weight-reducing titanium fasteners to hypercars. As, in parallel, it received aerospace approvals, the company grew in technical capability. Once it received NADCAP, it began to expand in aerospace thanks to the early support of aerospace helicopter OEM Leonardo. Many other OEM qualifications for helicopters, and then civil aviation, followed.
Poggipolini concludes: “Only with teamwork, and that includes not only internal but also external partners – with universities, start-ups, suppliers – working together you can achieve great things in a short time. With this approach of being very innovative and testing new technologies, we can accelerate past very giant competitors.”
