Continental Receives 2008 Automotive News PACE Award
DETROIT, April 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Continental, one of the world's
largest automotive suppliers, has received a 2008 Automotive News PACE
(Premier Automotive Suppliers' Contribution to Excellence) Award in the
Product-Europe category for its groundbreaking gasoline piezo injector
technology that saves consumers money at the pump while reducing emissions
and improving engine performance.
"It is very satisfying to have one of our products that is contributing
to environmental sustainability earn a PACE Award as this award is accepted
around the world as the industry symbol of innovation," said Bill Kozyra,
president and CEO Continental North America in accepting the prize Monday
evening in Detroit.
"The piezo gasoline injector from Continental achieves two goals:
First, it helps automakers and consumers alike to achieve more fuel economy
from gasoline engines and second, it improves engine performance. In a
sense, this innovation has the potential to keep the gasoline engine around
as a viable power plant into the future, making it competitive with diesel
and hybrid power plants."
The 14th annual Automotive News PACE Awards competition, presented by
Automotive News, Microsoft, SAP and the Transportation Research Center Inc.
(TRC Inc.), recognizes superior innovation, technological advancement and
business performance among suppliers that contribute products, processes,
materials or services directly to the manufacture of cars or trucks.
"Receiving this recognition demonstrates to our customers that they can
rely on Continental for automotive powertrain breakthroughs and
cost-effective solutions as they look to meet the fuel economy demands of
the 21st century," said Kozyra. "This is further proof that innovation that
addresses consumer demands for increased efficiency and performance is
alive and well in the automotive industry: The piezo gasoline injector from
Continental can contribute an estimated 20 percent savings in fuel
consumption and a 40 percent reduction in hydro-carbon emissions. It is
part of the wide range of products that Continental can supply today --
from optimized tires to electronics -- that combined could reduce fuel
consumption by up to 40 per cent."
Continental's Powertrain division is the pioneer of piezo injection
technology. The company has used its extensive electronics and mechatronics
knowledge along with its diesel piezo technology experience to achieve
extremely fine control over gasoline piezo injectors. Production of the
first generation of piezo injectors for diesel engines began in 2000.
Production of gasoline piezo began in 2006.
The gasoline piezo injector from Continental is the industry's first
mass-produced piezo direct injection system for gasoline engines suitable
for stratified charge. This completely new mechatronic system takes full
advantage of the fast switching speeds and precise fuel metering of piezo
technology, making it possible to use a spray-guided stratification
combustion process in a gasoline engine for the first time ever.
During the combustion process, gasoline is directly injected into the
combustion chamber near peak pressure to better utilize the fuel. This
results in a combustible mixture formed in the upper part of the combustion
chamber in the immediate area of the spark plug. In this way, the
innovation creates the conditions for a stratified charge.
Spray-guided combustion, which is the most efficient form of stratified
charge, is only possible with the performance features of piezo technology
because a precise, constant and stable injection must be directed to the
immediate spark plug area. The nozzle needle completes its full stroke in
just 0.2 milliseconds, while the maximum deviation between individual
injected quantities of fuel is 2 percent -- even with the typically short
injection pulses under driving conditions.
For cleaner combustion, extremely fine atomization of the fuel must be
maintained. At an injection pressure of approximately 200 bar, the average
diameter of the fuel droplets is only 15 thousandths of a millimeter.
Together with injector nozzles that open into the engine cylinder, an
optimally prepared cloud mixture at the edge of the spark plug is yielded
under nearly all operating conditions. The innovation is the only solution
on the market able to do this.
This spray-guided combustion process is a first in a gasoline engine,
and as a consequence, the extent of operating conditions that allow
stratified charge is considerably expanded. For example, high displacement
engines are able to achieve greater fuel economy at partial loads, while
ensuring optimum cylinder charging at full load. This, too, is a first, and
makes the innovation a viable new technology for production vehicles.
The auto industry is already recognizing the importance of the
innovation. For example, during the ceremony when the BMW 335i Twin Turbo
3-liter engine was named to Ward's 10 Best Engine List of 2007, BMW
specifically recognized the company and the innovation's contribution, the
only OEM of the top 10 to do so.
With targeted annual sales of more than EUR26.4 billion for 2008, the
Continental Corporation is one of the top automotive suppliers worldwide.
As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for the powertrain
and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics,
tires and technical elastomers, the corporation contributes towards
enhanced driving safety and protection of the global climate. Continental
is also a competent partner in networked automobile communication. Today,
the corporation employs approximately 150,000 people at nearly 200
locations in 36 countries.
The Powertrain division within the automotive supplier Continental AG
integrates innovative and efficient system solutions throughout the
drivetrain in vehicles. This boosts performance and enhances riding comfort
while reducing consumption and emissions. As partner to the automotive
industry, the division develops and produces a wide-ranging product
portfolio at over sixty locations worldwide, beginning with gasoline and
diesel injection systems and engine and transmission controls and extending
through to components and systems for hybrid drives. Based on fiscal 2006
the Division posted sales of around EUR5 billion with a workforce of
approximately 31,000 at present.
SOURCE Continental AG
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Related links:
http://www.conti-online.com
http://www.contitevesna.com
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/437525.html /
CONTACT:
Jim Gill, M.S., APR of Continental AG,
+1-248-393-5210, or cell, +1-248-882-6309,
jim.gill@us.contiautomotive.com
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