Vidya Pratishthan’s College of Engineering
Baramati
Visit Report
A Visit to Piaggio Vehicles PriVate limited (PVPl)
Baramati
by
B.E. E & TC
on 24th Feb, 3rd And 4th March 2015
As per the permission, from the Principal of VPCOE Baramati, Department of E &
TC Engineering organized one day visit to “Piaggio Industries Private Limited
Baramati”. The main objective of this visit was to see actual Automation and use of
PLC for different processes. 150 students of BE Electronics along with three staff
members visited “Piaggio Industries Private Limited Baramati” on 24th February, 3rd
and 4th March 2015.
INTRODUCTION TO PIAGGIO
Company Profile
Founded in 1884, Piaggio and C. s.p.a is today one of the leading manufacturers of
2-wheeler and small commercial vehicles in the world. With its registered office in
Pontedera (Pisa), Piaggio is the market leader in Europe and has expanded its
operations to 24 countries, including a major presence in Asian markets.
The product range includes scooters, mopeds and motorcycles starting from 50 to
1,200cc under the Piaggio, Vespa, Gilera, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi, Derbi and Scarabeo
brands. The 3 and 4-wheeled light transportation vehicles are marketed under the
Ape, Porter and Quargo brands.
Summary of Visit
Students gathered outside the company premises at 10a.m. in the morning, and after
passing through main gate we were given visitor passes by the security. We were
then guided in elegantly designed conference hall of the company which was
decorated by photographs of old models of 3 and 4 wheelers. We were welcomed
by the company officials and were briefed about history of the company, motives
and products. It was a very interactive session and we were counseled about the
application of electronics and automation in Piaggio by using PLCs.
The list of shops visited is as follows.
1. Welding shop
2. Drilling
3. Robotic Arm
4. Painting
5. Server room
6. PLC units
Shop-floor 4Wheeler Chassis Welding Shop
Shop floor consists of an assembly line where chassis is built in a sequence on
conveyor belt and at the end we get a complete chassis. The body is designed using
steel and zinc-ms alloy. There are two types of welding used spot and gas welding.
We were demonstrated how a spot weld is done by the employee. The most
fascinating was the robotic arm fitted with a roller which is used for pressing and
finishing of edges of door. The arm is fully automated and is fitted with a proximity
sensor. The door is held intact in position with clips maneuvered by the computer,
which work in sync with roller. Re-inspection is done after every stage by workers
to prevent faults and quality control. Quality standard DS-14000 is maintained. Plus
Kaizen quality principle is implemented for quality. The total length of conveyor is
11km and there are such 12 conveyors for transportation between departments.
FigShop Floor of 3-Wheeler Chassis Welding Shop
Paint Department
The glistening and attractive look is provided in paint department which is divided
into 2 main stages PT Line and CED. The chassis is hanged on conveyor belt and
dipped in tub of 4000lts capacity. PT line consists of 12 stages. At first the chassis is
washed by hot water of 80ºC. Then it is degreased where it is freed from rust and
grease. After cleansing it is activated by chemical for primary coating. Paint is
electro-deposited on surface, body is negatively charged and paint is positively
charged. Thus a very thin and uniform coat of paint is applied. This whole process
is controlled using PLC. PID controllers are used in heat exchangers for temperature
control. For control of PT line there are TAIKI-SHA and SIGMATECH PLCs. It
consists of Miniature Circuit Breakers (MCB), Timers, Relays of 230V-5A, level
controller, temperature controller. I/O module consisted of 24V relays. For painting
a chassis spent two and half hours in paint department. A total of 800 four wheelers
are manufactured daily in Piaggio.
Fig- Shop Floor of 3-Wheeler PT line
Body Mounting and Testing Unit
This is the final unit where vehicles take their final shape and are fitted with engines
and other mechanical parts. They are fitted with electronic sensors and battery. This
unit also consists of assembly line where at the end we get ready vehicle. We can
see the complete transformation of chassis into a 4 wheeler which is driven and
tested by a computer. This entire experience is capturing.
Fig- Shop Floor of 3-Wheeler Chassis paint Shop
There is a final vehicle testing where dynamometer testing, acceleration, braking,
power and lighting is tested. Here torque, speed, acceleration, braking is tested by
mounting of vehicle onto a roller and then ran up to maximum limit. At the end of
testing, computer generates a report which shows the performance. If some fault is
occurred then it is checked and corrected.
Fig- Shop Floor of 3 Wheeler Chassis PLC unit
Server Room
On our request we were also shown the server room. The optic fibers are laid in
whole campus and LAN is maintained. SCADA is built where reports and data from
every department are stored in central computer. This whole data is backed up in a
data center at Pune. The network is connected to central office in MUMBAI on real
time basis for order placements and inventory management. The topology is a
client-server model where officials work on their client PCs and data is stored on
server. The server room is temperature controlled and maintained at 20ºC.
Thus, we completed our trip by group photo with the staff and officials. We are
thankful to Sr. Maintenance Manager Mr. L. S. Karnachi and Mr. K.J. JOSHI sir for
their guidance and valuable support and other Piaggio staff for their help. We are
also thankful to Prof. Surwase V.S. for organizing this visit and giving us
unforgettable experience.
Prof. V. S. Surwase
(Staff Coordinator)