Ken
Gone but not forgotten
From Kentucky New Era:
Dana unveils new aluminum spaceframe for 2006 Corvette
By TONYA S. GRACE [email="tgrace@kentuckynewera.com"]tgrace@kentuckynewera.com[/email]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Hopkinsville Mayor Rich Liebe hailed the new Z06 Corvette as a symbol of partnership, technology and speed.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]He praised the vehicle for its ability to outrun a space shuttle.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]And Liebe, who said he'd wished for a Corvette on his last birthday, noted that it was still "all good" if his recent visit to the Hopkinsville Dana Corp. plant was as close as he got to the luxury car.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]"There's something about that automobile," said Liebe, who spoke during ceremonies on Tuesday that unveiled a new, all-aluminum spaceframe the local plant will be producing for the 2006 Z06 Corvette.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Weighing some 136 pounds less than its steel counterpart, the new spaceframe is expected to bring better power and speed to the Corvette, increase affordability and offer a safe ride to its passengers.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]In crash tests, the all-aluminum frame performed as well or better than the steel frame, according to officials.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]B.J. Kroppe, the director of product engineering for Dana, described the car as a "new product. It's all about speed and power."[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Kroppe said the spaceframe is the first all-aluminum frame for Dana, and he noted that the Hopkinsville plant is producing this new frame for the first time. The local plant will begin production of the spaceframe in July, with full production slated to be in place by the end of August.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Kroppe said the plant likely will continue to produce the frame for several years in an ongoing relationship with the General Motors Corvette Assembly Plant in Bowling Green.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]He said Dana was originally approached by General Motors in 1999 about producing the all-aluminum frame.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]General Motors had already launched the Corvette C5 and wanted its next model to be a lighter weight alternative with increased horsepower and structural rigidity, according to Brent Deep, the project manager for the Z06 Corvette spaceframe.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Deep noted that the spaceframes will be shipped to the assembly plant in Bowling Green once they are manufactured here.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]A team including General Motors engineers from Detroit, General Motors personnel from Bowling Green, Dana engineers from Reading, Pa., and two groups from the local Dana plant worked together to develop the new spaceframe.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Kroppe said the two groups from the Hopkinsville plant contributed their knowledge and experience in manufacturing to the project.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]He noted that employees at the plant have been trained in the manufacturing of the spaceframes, and a "fair amount" of new manufacturing equipment was brought in for the production of the frames.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Located in the Hopkinsville Industrial Park off Pembroke Road, the local plant has been in Hopkinsville since 1989.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]It also produces full-perimeter frames for GMC Savanna and Chevrolet Express and stamping for the Tundra and Sequoia frame assembled at Dana's Owensboro facility.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]The plant was named one of "IndustryWeek" magazine's top 10 plants in North America in 1998.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Chuck Heine, Dana Corp.'s president of technology development and diversified products, lauded the new Corvette and its frames as an example of progress.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]"The vehicle's a great vehicle, and I believe this is the step that is going to take us forward," he said. "If we get back into these types of projects, the automotive industry will get back to where it was."[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]TONYA S. GRACE can be reached by telephone at 887-3238 or by e-mail at tgrace@kentuckynewera.com.
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Dana unveils new aluminum spaceframe for 2006 Corvette
By TONYA S. GRACE [email="tgrace@kentuckynewera.com"]tgrace@kentuckynewera.com[/email]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]
[/size][/font]
Visitors to the local Dana Corp. plant examine a spaceframe like those the company will produce for General Motors' new 2006 Z06 Corvette.
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Hopkinsville Mayor Rich Liebe hailed the new Z06 Corvette as a symbol of partnership, technology and speed.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]He praised the vehicle for its ability to outrun a space shuttle.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]And Liebe, who said he'd wished for a Corvette on his last birthday, noted that it was still "all good" if his recent visit to the Hopkinsville Dana Corp. plant was as close as he got to the luxury car.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]"There's something about that automobile," said Liebe, who spoke during ceremonies on Tuesday that unveiled a new, all-aluminum spaceframe the local plant will be producing for the 2006 Z06 Corvette.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Weighing some 136 pounds less than its steel counterpart, the new spaceframe is expected to bring better power and speed to the Corvette, increase affordability and offer a safe ride to its passengers.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]In crash tests, the all-aluminum frame performed as well or better than the steel frame, according to officials.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]B.J. Kroppe, the director of product engineering for Dana, described the car as a "new product. It's all about speed and power."[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Kroppe said the spaceframe is the first all-aluminum frame for Dana, and he noted that the Hopkinsville plant is producing this new frame for the first time. The local plant will begin production of the spaceframe in July, with full production slated to be in place by the end of August.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Kroppe said the plant likely will continue to produce the frame for several years in an ongoing relationship with the General Motors Corvette Assembly Plant in Bowling Green.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]He said Dana was originally approached by General Motors in 1999 about producing the all-aluminum frame.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]General Motors had already launched the Corvette C5 and wanted its next model to be a lighter weight alternative with increased horsepower and structural rigidity, according to Brent Deep, the project manager for the Z06 Corvette spaceframe.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Deep noted that the spaceframes will be shipped to the assembly plant in Bowling Green once they are manufactured here.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]A team including General Motors engineers from Detroit, General Motors personnel from Bowling Green, Dana engineers from Reading, Pa., and two groups from the local Dana plant worked together to develop the new spaceframe.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Kroppe said the two groups from the Hopkinsville plant contributed their knowledge and experience in manufacturing to the project.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]He noted that employees at the plant have been trained in the manufacturing of the spaceframes, and a "fair amount" of new manufacturing equipment was brought in for the production of the frames.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Located in the Hopkinsville Industrial Park off Pembroke Road, the local plant has been in Hopkinsville since 1989.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]It also produces full-perimeter frames for GMC Savanna and Chevrolet Express and stamping for the Tundra and Sequoia frame assembled at Dana's Owensboro facility.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]The plant was named one of "IndustryWeek" magazine's top 10 plants in North America in 1998.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]Chuck Heine, Dana Corp.'s president of technology development and diversified products, lauded the new Corvette and its frames as an example of progress.[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]"The vehicle's a great vehicle, and I believe this is the step that is going to take us forward," he said. "If we get back into these types of projects, the automotive industry will get back to where it was."[/size][/font]
[font=times new roman,arial,helvetica][size=+0]TONYA S. GRACE can be reached by telephone at 887-3238 or by e-mail at tgrace@kentuckynewera.com.
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