UK prototype development CGI castings foundry Grainger & Worrall (G&W)
of Bridgnorth, Shropshire, played a vital role in bringing Ford’s 2.7-litre
EcoBoost gasoline engine to market.
The engine, developed
for Ford’s market-leading F-150 pick-up truck – an engine that is widely
rumoured to play a part in some other Ford vehicles in the future – is the
world’s first volume production gasoline engine with a compacted graphite iron
(CGI) cylinder block. The material has played a key role in a wide range of
diesel engine engines, but not heretofore in gasoline engines.
G&W, which
claims to be the world’s leading total casting solutions
provider, has won the prestigious Component of the Year
accolade at this year’s Cast Metal Federation (CMF) Awards. Recognising
the best of British casting, the event profiles exceptional projects and
components delivered by firms from across the country. The CMF is based at the
National Metalforming Centre, West Bromwich, UK.
G&W was
presented with the award in recognition of its bespoke engine block development
for the Ford US pickup truck.
The 2014 ceremony
marks the second year in a row the UK specialist foundry has scooped the
Component of the Year – a testament to the world-leading innovation and
engineering carried out by the global firm.
Development of
the award-winning engine block development began in 2010 when Ford first
approached G&W to prototype an all-new lightweight iron block for its best-selling
F-150 pickup truck.
The links between
Ford Motor Company and G&W go back to the early development stages of the
2.7-litre V6 Lion diesel engine when the US OEM’s engineers, based at Dunton and
Dagenham, Essex, UK, contacted the Shropshire-based company. The V6 Lion was
manufactured at Ford’s Dagenham Engine Plant and appeared in Jaguar and Land
Rover vehicles. The Lion was the first CGI engine to be machined and assembled
in the UK. This experience stood G&W in good stead – the UK company
subsequently worked on a number of Ford CGI engine programmes.
To achieve the
US-company’s target specification, the F-150 engine block needed to be trimmed
from the 5.4 litre V8 to a 2.7 litre V6 – an indication of Ford’s long-term
intent to reduce its C02 output with ultra-modern EcoBoost platforms.
Working alongside
Ford, Grainger & Worrall supported all aspects of the prototype development
– from concept through to simulation, tooling and casting, through to finish
machining. G&W’s foundry has for many years made use of the SinterCast CGI
control system.
The launch of the
vehicle at the globally renowned Society of Automotive Engineers Show in
Detroit earlier this year was a huge success and further cemented Grainger
& Worrall’s reputation as an industry-leading engine castings provider, as
well as showcasing the next-generation capabilities of the British foundry
company.
Edward Grainger,
director at Grainger & Worrall, commented: “It’s a great honour for us to
receive the CMF award two years running and a real testament to the dedication
and skills of our team. We’re incredibly proud of our work with Ford and
see this as an exciting time not only for Grainger & Worrall, but for the
UK’s casting industry as a whole.”
Grainger privately told this
newsletter this week: “Although
our involvement with CGI in NASCAR and the Nano project (which won us the CMF
Award earlier this month) is widely documented, it’s difficult to disclose too
much more information beyond this, due to client sensitivities. However,
we can confirm that we have supported prototype programmes for major OEMs from
US, China and Japan – notably some high performance commercial applications
(100Kw per Litre) and research work for blocks for ultra-high cylinder
pressures.”
This is the first time
Grainger has mentioned G&W having CGI customers in China and Japan.
In the ultra-secretive
world of prototype castings technology, where development has to begin years
ahead of an engine going into production and the utmost security is required,
G&W has worked with a wide range of leading automotive
companies in Europe and the US. Accordingly, it has established a pre-eminent
position for itself as the leading provider of major engine components, such as
cylinder blocks and heads, including those used for NASCAR racing where the
technology can be leading edge, both in terms of providing high strength as well
as light weight. Even now, some of its customers’ names cannot be revealed.
The Ford EcoBoost
vee-block configuration was among the most challenging that G&W’s engineers
have worked on - that it can reveal publicy at this stage.
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