Industry Products Company (IPC), Piqua, OH, develops in-transit materials that support the manufacturer’s need to deliver an appealing vehicle to its dealerships and ensure an enjoyable test drive experience for the retail customer.  Deceptively simple in appearance and never seen by the auto buyer, interior door covers, bumper protectors and wheel covers require extensive knowledge of material design and durability to create the most efficient protective product for the right car model.

For more than 40 years, IPC, a tier one supplier, has successfully integrated its expertise and customer relationships to deliver cutting-edge solutions in a timely manner. From research and development to tooling, materials consultation and manufacturing, IPC helps its customers deliver vehicles with parts that work.  IPC offers:

In-transit materials (applied during assembly and removed at the dealership) ensure a smooth driving experience, a flawless appearance and perfect vehicle performance. Wheel film in particular must be composed of material that can withstand temperature extremes across a vast geography – from Death Valley’s 100-plus degree summers to the -30 degree winters of Alaska.

Wheel cover film must be tested to make sure it doesn’t splinter into multiple pieces or deposit residue on the wheel surface. It must stay securely on the wheel at high speeds and resist gaps that allow moisture to collect on the surface of the disc brake causing rust and pitting to occur. 

One major auto manufacturer was using molded cardboard cover impregnated with wax that fit inside the wheel. However, the part occasionally caught fire, and another protection method deposited a non-environmentally friendly residue on the rotor.

The manufacturer’s engineers turned to IPC, noted for its expertise in wheel film, and sent a team to the Piqua company to establish a year-long collaboration. Together they would determine a suitable alternative to the cardboard cover across their range of geographic markets, including Japan, the United States and Canada. The objective would be to develop, test and introduce a new prototype; obtain global agreement within the manufacturer and launch a new part for the next model design.

Throughout the intense first nine months, IPC worked at a rapid pace on product trials, sample development, tests of both traditional prototypes and those that “pushed-the-envelope” to generate new materials and concepts. The customer would run parallel tests with the same lab parameters as IPC. As a variety of materials were tried and tested, the teams identified new options, and made the switch from PVC to polyethylene film.

Several challenges were overcome during the R&D process:

The solution developed through the collaboration was an innovative wheel-film prototype developed that IPC presented to Brake Division engineers at the customer’s Japan and North American sites.  IPC successfully demonstrated a unique wheel-film prototype that addressed product capability, durability, materials and part specifications.  The company expanded its work with the customer by becoming an extension of its North American development teams to further fine tune the product.

For four months, IPC R&D, engineering, design, program management, customer service and sales teams interacted with the auto manufacturer via e-mail, videophone, expedited delivery and fax to design and deliver the final new wheel film part that would launch in the coming year’s models. The customer asked for and received a maximum three-day turnaround for each iteration of the part during R&D, easily accomplished onsite due to IPC’s in-house tooling capabilities. 

IPC’s expertise allowed it to meet specific manufacturing and die cutting requirements for the wheel film -- two-millimeter sheets with the adhesive already affixed. This required a delicate, “kiss cutting” process, with the machinist partially cutting through the material using a consistent and level press with sharp precision, tolerance and cutting control to ensure the film backing and adhesive stayed intact.

The wheel-film product concept introduced and customized by IPC for its customer is 100 percent in use today in both Japanese and North American automotive manufacturing plants. The innovation replaces what was a hazardous and non-environmentally friendly product with a refined solution that was accepted by teams globally.

“This project has to be the most rewarding for IPC to date because it engaged every level of expertise offered by our company on a global scale.  Our earned expertise in wheel film helped a major auto manufacturer replace its poorly performing part with a new one initially innovated by IPC. Along the way, IPC provided excellent customer service, met each deadline and solved problems in step with the customer. All in all, this experience is a model to live by.” - Steve Wykes, Account Manager, IPC.