What’s Now Happening In ME “Behind The Scenes” Development?
05-28-2018, 02:23 PM
#1
Safety Car
Thread Starter
What’s Now Happening In ME “Behind The Scenes” Development?
Where We Are Re the Status of ME’s IVERs (Integrated Vehicle Engineering Release)
To learn where we now are in the ME’s development process, we need to first a little venture back to the extremely-comparable C7’s process.
C7 History (Parallel Developments):
Stepping back, the first of the mules for the C7, 15 of them, were produced starting in September, 2010 in Warren, Michigan, around twenty-eight (28) months before the Stingray’s 1.13.13 reveal. Below (picture # 1) is an early C7 mule testing in Kapuskasing (GM’s winter testing home 560 miles north of Toronto).
The process of developing the next generation Corvette moved significantly forward during the C7 era. What worked especially well then, was a round-robin sharing of staff between the Warren, Michigan, Corvette engineering/development team staff and Bowling Green Assembly staff. That process not only helped develop a much better car, but resulted in cost savings to GM – and thus to us customers. Here’s how that specifically works. There is a team of individuals, located in the Detroit area, who are assigned to helped transition the car from concept to assembly reality. Their BGA counterparts comprise the second half of that team. The members of the team literally spend at least one week each month in the opposite location, so that at least several weeks every month, they work side by side in the next gen’s development.
The first C7 IVERS were built in September, 2011. Below, picture # 2, thanks to “Magazine CORVETTE” is a great picture of the C7 IVERS.
IVERS also are still composed of parts from the current and next gen – though mostly next gen parts. IVERS, in comparison to the earliest mules, in appearance more closely resemble what we have recently been from “in the wild” pictures, and minus its camo, will be what we see at its ME’s reveal. Component wise, an IVERS only has pre-production parts. At least five of them will go to “the crusher” for testing. All ME IVERS to date are experimental models, have an X in their VIN, are not later sale-able. Separate IVERS are used not just for road testing, but for prototype assembly purposes, including such things are interior panels, fitting IP and HVAC components, NVH testing/refinement, handling/braking/acceleration and more.
ME Mules/IVERS: Past Process & Current Status:
A “mule” pre-dates an IVERS. It has both current and some “next gen” components, basically being the initial cobbled together parts to start the testing process. Mules are used to initially verify the “proof of concept” of the next generation Corvette, yet also to initially test key/changed components. Below, picture # 3, is one of those ME mules (picture taken in January, 2015).
Exactly two years later we first saw our first mid engine IVERS undergoing winter testing at Kapuskasing (picture # 4 below)
The two-location-team, “development integration team” process has been going on for the ME. In the first year (roughly 2017), the Michigan team would go to BG for one week a month, then a couple of weeks later the BGA team would head to Michigan — also for one week. During the second year (this year), the Warren, Michigan team and the BGA team are traveling most of the time, with each spending two weeks a month in the opposite location. What is especially relevant and useful about the development team’s work, is not just the preceding described process, but the composition of the BGA team. The BGA team is not composed of just management and engineers, but has key/representative assembly staff who will later be going to put the ME together on the line. Including “line workers” was part of the secret sauce for the C7’s development. The current ME integration team is similarly composed. Having worked my way through college on an auto assembly line during summers, it is the hands-on staff that put the car together, who often have the best ideas as to what will functionally work, conversely what will not, what can be done faster, but even more crucially, what can be done with less parts damage, and done better and safer!
Below, picture # 5, is that two-location-team’s comparable work on the C7, with thanks and credit to Larry Edsall’s great book (complete citation below*). That same team is currently working on the ME, with each team member from both locations now traveling two weeks every month.
Thirty (30) ME IVERS have been produced so far!
As some as asked, why have we only see relatively few ME’s testing in the wild? And how come if 30 have been produced, we have only seen, as its highest testing number, just IVER # 8? Where are the rest?
GM’s Milford Proving Ground has 132 miles of test track. Almost all of it is hidden from even spy photographers super long camera lens. There a 4,800 GM staff working there in 110 buildings.
The Yuma GM test facility, over 2,000 square miles with 40 miles of roads, is located within a U.S. military base, and consequently is one large no-fly zone – so not even drones can see in there.
Eight-five (85) IVERS were built for C7 development testing. In addition to the already built 30 ME IVERS, way more will be built, in fact, some are scheduled to be built within BGA the second week of July, more this August (still a full year before the first customer ME’s will be delivered). Perhaps as with the C7 process, July’s assembling of the ME’s could start getting closer-to-production components, be the “phase II” IVERS?
As the process continues, the phase II IVERS are assigned both to the top members of the Corvette team staff for daily use evaluation (we have all seen pictures of Tadge,Harlan, Kai, and others driving them), other IVERS have already been assigned to GM development testing drivers, and near the end of the process as was recently done this past winter with the ZR1, even given to contracted, outside test drivers (those driven by Roush Engineering staff in Florida on Alligator Alley and other parts of Florida).
Lots more IVERS yet to be built, tens and tens of thousands more of both real world and test site development yet to be undergone before we get our first ME’s – roughly 15 months from now.
*Source of much of the C7 information is from an excellent book: “The Seventh Generation of America’s Sports Car,” by Larry Edsall, ISBN-13 978-0 7603-4384-5. Monthly, I now find myself re-reading parts of different chapters, especially the chapter ”On the Road, But Under Camouflage” to figure out what is happening on the ME’s development at this time.
To learn where we now are in the ME’s development process, we need to first a little venture back to the extremely-comparable C7’s process.
C7 History (Parallel Developments):
Stepping back, the first of the mules for the C7, 15 of them, were produced starting in September, 2010 in Warren, Michigan, around twenty-eight (28) months before the Stingray’s 1.13.13 reveal. Below (picture # 1) is an early C7 mule testing in Kapuskasing (GM’s winter testing home 560 miles north of Toronto).
The process of developing the next generation Corvette moved significantly forward during the C7 era. What worked especially well then, was a round-robin sharing of staff between the Warren, Michigan, Corvette engineering/development team staff and Bowling Green Assembly staff. That process not only helped develop a much better car, but resulted in cost savings to GM – and thus to us customers. Here’s how that specifically works. There is a team of individuals, located in the Detroit area, who are assigned to helped transition the car from concept to assembly reality. Their BGA counterparts comprise the second half of that team. The members of the team literally spend at least one week each month in the opposite location, so that at least several weeks every month, they work side by side in the next gen’s development.
The first C7 IVERS were built in September, 2011. Below, picture # 2, thanks to “Magazine CORVETTE” is a great picture of the C7 IVERS.
IVERS also are still composed of parts from the current and next gen – though mostly next gen parts. IVERS, in comparison to the earliest mules, in appearance more closely resemble what we have recently been from “in the wild” pictures, and minus its camo, will be what we see at its ME’s reveal. Component wise, an IVERS only has pre-production parts. At least five of them will go to “the crusher” for testing. All ME IVERS to date are experimental models, have an X in their VIN, are not later sale-able. Separate IVERS are used not just for road testing, but for prototype assembly purposes, including such things are interior panels, fitting IP and HVAC components, NVH testing/refinement, handling/braking/acceleration and more.
ME Mules/IVERS: Past Process & Current Status:
A “mule” pre-dates an IVERS. It has both current and some “next gen” components, basically being the initial cobbled together parts to start the testing process. Mules are used to initially verify the “proof of concept” of the next generation Corvette, yet also to initially test key/changed components. Below, picture # 3, is one of those ME mules (picture taken in January, 2015).
Exactly two years later we first saw our first mid engine IVERS undergoing winter testing at Kapuskasing (picture # 4 below)
The two-location-team, “development integration team” process has been going on for the ME. In the first year (roughly 2017), the Michigan team would go to BG for one week a month, then a couple of weeks later the BGA team would head to Michigan — also for one week. During the second year (this year), the Warren, Michigan team and the BGA team are traveling most of the time, with each spending two weeks a month in the opposite location. What is especially relevant and useful about the development team’s work, is not just the preceding described process, but the composition of the BGA team. The BGA team is not composed of just management and engineers, but has key/representative assembly staff who will later be going to put the ME together on the line. Including “line workers” was part of the secret sauce for the C7’s development. The current ME integration team is similarly composed. Having worked my way through college on an auto assembly line during summers, it is the hands-on staff that put the car together, who often have the best ideas as to what will functionally work, conversely what will not, what can be done faster, but even more crucially, what can be done with less parts damage, and done better and safer!
Below, picture # 5, is that two-location-team’s comparable work on the C7, with thanks and credit to Larry Edsall’s great book (complete citation below*). That same team is currently working on the ME, with each team member from both locations now traveling two weeks every month.
Thirty (30) ME IVERS have been produced so far!
As some as asked, why have we only see relatively few ME’s testing in the wild? And how come if 30 have been produced, we have only seen, as its highest testing number, just IVER # 8? Where are the rest?
GM’s Milford Proving Ground has 132 miles of test track. Almost all of it is hidden from even spy photographers super long camera lens. There a 4,800 GM staff working there in 110 buildings.
The Yuma GM test facility, over 2,000 square miles with 40 miles of roads, is located within a U.S. military base, and consequently is one large no-fly zone – so not even drones can see in there.
Eight-five (85) IVERS were built for C7 development testing. In addition to the already built 30 ME IVERS, way more will be built, in fact, some are scheduled to be built within BGA the second week of July, more this August (still a full year before the first customer ME’s will be delivered). Perhaps as with the C7 process, July’s assembling of the ME’s could start getting closer-to-production components, be the “phase II” IVERS?
As the process continues, the phase II IVERS are assigned both to the top members of the Corvette team staff for daily use evaluation (we have all seen pictures of Tadge,Harlan, Kai, and others driving them), other IVERS have already been assigned to GM development testing drivers, and near the end of the process as was recently done this past winter with the ZR1, even given to contracted, outside test drivers (those driven by Roush Engineering staff in Florida on Alligator Alley and other parts of Florida).
Lots more IVERS yet to be built, tens and tens of thousands more of both real world and test site development yet to be undergone before we get our first ME’s – roughly 15 months from now.
*Source of much of the C7 information is from an excellent book: “The Seventh Generation of America’s Sports Car,” by Larry Edsall, ISBN-13 978-0 7603-4384-5. Monthly, I now find myself re-reading parts of different chapters, especially the chapter ”On the Road, But Under Camouflage” to figure out what is happening on the ME’s development at this time.
Last edited by elegant; 05-28-2018 at 02:32 PM.
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05-28-2018, 09:27 PM
#2
Never seen some of those pictures. I wish GM did some of this after the release of each gen or big model.
05-29-2018, 05:32 PM
#4
Melting Slicks
John
This is a excellent short dissertation on the IVER phase of a new car design. I think it is great that they include the manufacturing technicians in the design and engineering equation. The synergy between all groups will always enhance the final result.
This is a excellent short dissertation on the IVER phase of a new car design. I think it is great that they include the manufacturing technicians in the design and engineering equation. The synergy between all groups will always enhance the final result.
Last edited by skank; 05-29-2018 at 05:54 PM.
05-29-2018, 06:29 PM
#5
Safety Car
Thread Starter
At BGA, GM implemented a great assembly line training program for every employee during last fall’s, 13 week re-tooling shutdown. Almost all (if not all) of that training process will be repeated next spring prior to the ME’s assembly.
The training started with every employee repetively watching a video on what they would later be “real world doing,” i.e., seeing on that video what tools they they would use for each step during the five minute period that they work on the car. After the video, they went to an actual mock-up station where they practiced what they learned, this time with actual car parts that they assembled, using the actual tools needed for each/every one of their jobs, doing this over and over as many times as necessary, until they got the sequence perfectly completed on a repetitive basis. After they successfully performed the physical steps identically to the video, they got tested. Each employee was required to reach an exact job “performance level certification” score. Then after that, they went back to the mock-up station and once more re-did their jobs. Those who did not perform to the exacting standards for their exact job, got re-trained, re-tested progressively until complete “performance level certification” was achieved for their job. All this happened last fall before they touched the 2019 cars (which of course only have after the plant production resumed).
Every employee was/is trained and performance certified on at least two assembly line jobs, again was required to meet the full standard on each one. Each area’s “team leader” was skilled trained and tested on every job within his/her area to standard.
This process will be again used sometime during next Spring — when a shorter plant shut down will occur; this will occur before an employee starts any assembly work on an actual ME.
If one wants to see the Kai Spande video which nicely visually amplifies this training process (start @ 7:20; goes to 12:20):
The training started with every employee repetively watching a video on what they would later be “real world doing,” i.e., seeing on that video what tools they they would use for each step during the five minute period that they work on the car. After the video, they went to an actual mock-up station where they practiced what they learned, this time with actual car parts that they assembled, using the actual tools needed for each/every one of their jobs, doing this over and over as many times as necessary, until they got the sequence perfectly completed on a repetitive basis. After they successfully performed the physical steps identically to the video, they got tested. Each employee was required to reach an exact job “performance level certification” score. Then after that, they went back to the mock-up station and once more re-did their jobs. Those who did not perform to the exacting standards for their exact job, got re-trained, re-tested progressively until complete “performance level certification” was achieved for their job. All this happened last fall before they touched the 2019 cars (which of course only have after the plant production resumed).
Every employee was/is trained and performance certified on at least two assembly line jobs, again was required to meet the full standard on each one. Each area’s “team leader” was skilled trained and tested on every job within his/her area to standard.
This process will be again used sometime during next Spring — when a shorter plant shut down will occur; this will occur before an employee starts any assembly work on an actual ME.
If one wants to see the Kai Spande video which nicely visually amplifies this training process (start @ 7:20; goes to 12:20):
Last edited by elegant; 05-29-2018 at 06:36 PM.
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05-30-2018, 01:36 PM
#7
Safety Car
Thread Starter
This new process is so improved far from my training as a summer fill in employee at Ford’s Mahwah Assembly Plant decades ago. Each Monday morning at 6:00 AM start of shift, the team leader would take me to my “that week’s” work station, show me the tools, demonstrate what I would be doing, watched me do it once, and left (all within a maximum of five minutes) — always with the stern admonition, “do not pull the line stop cord.” Once as he walked away he said, be careful, for the guy doing this job on Friday is in the hospital, with a broken hip and two broken legs when he dropped the school bus chassis on myself. Oh, and when I walked in the morning, it was always 100 degrees; most days it around 120 degrees inside the plant when I walked out 12 1/2 hours later.
Last edited by elegant; 05-30-2018 at 01:37 PM.
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JerriVette (05-30-2018)
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05-30-2018, 10:44 PM
#9
Race Director
This new process is so improved far from my training as a summer fill in employee at Ford’s Mahwah Assembly Plant decades ago. Each Monday morning at 6:00 AM start of shift, the team leader would take me to my “that week’s” work station, show me the tools, demonstrate what I would be doing, watched me do it once, and left (all within a maximum of five minutes) — always with the stern admonition, “do not pull the line stop cord.” Once as he walked away he said, be careful, for the guy doing this job on Friday is in the hospital, with a broken hip and two broken legs when he dropped the school bus chassis on myself. Oh, and when I walked in the morning, it was always 100 degrees; most days it around 120 degrees inside the plant when I walked out 12 1/2 hours later.
Now that site is a tata or rather Land Rover jaguar headquarters.
Sheraton there now too.
Nothing left of the ford site these days....
Interesting story and a small world for sure.
Last edited by JerriVette; 05-30-2018 at 11:02 PM.
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