Versatile CAM Application: ALPINA Steps on the Gas With hyperMILL®
ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG | Buchloe (Bavaria), Germany
ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG creates exclusive automobiles for discerning customers, using BMW models as a basis. The automobile manufacturer, located in Buchloe in Germany‘s Allgäu region, has been successfully using OPEN MIND Technologies‘ hyperMILL® CAM system to create NC programs for years.
5-axis Machining: BMW ALPINA B4 Bi-Turbo model
Typical ALPINA customers use their cars a lot, driving 20,000, 30,000 or even 50,000 kilometres a year. They require cars perfectly suited to everyday use, but don‘t wish to forgo a touch of exclusivity. ALPINA CEO Andreas Bovensiepen describes his core customer base as “businessmen, independent contractors and freelancers” with a penchant for technology and automobiles; people who know how to appreciate the high quality and individuality offered by ALPINA’s vehicles.
In addition to its production of road vehicles, ALPINA is also actively involved in the auto racing scene. 2011, ALPINA even reached first place at Germany‘s GT Series, the ADAC GT Masters.
“hyperMILL® has provide us with lots of opportunities to manufacture components and create designs that we just weren't able to previously.“
Matthias Schau, Development Engineer
To produce quality components at every stage of the manufacturing process
Anyone who wants to be as successful as ALPINA when it comes to road cars and racing needs the best possible tools in order to produce quality components at every stage of the manufacturing process, and introduce new ideas wherever possible. 2008 ALPINA decided to use hyperMILL® for its CAM system. Not only does the program have the required functionality, it is ‚made in Germany‘ and the two companies are located in close proximity – both deciding factors in ALPINA‘s decision.
Reduced programming expenditure
hyperMILL® allows users to program any type of machining – 2D, 3D, HSC and 5‑axis milling, as well as mill turning – from within a standardised user interface. After all, there are hardly any modern components that require only one type of machining.
In particular, the user is presented only with options that are task-oriented, practical and safe, instead of every imaginable configuration. This is one of the reasons that users are able to progress so quickly. “An additional hyperMILL® speciality is its ability to work with indexed axes. 5‑axis machining is not about completing as many movements as possible; it is about milling economically. And that is achieved when a task can be completed with a minimum amount of movements,” explains Andreas Leser, Sales Director for OPEN MIND.
It is particularly important to the vehicle specialists at ALPINA that hyperMILL® provides a simple user interface, with tried and tested commands which allow them to reach their goals quickly. The safety technology integrated into the CAM system, which automatically avoids collisions, is also very important.
Gallery
Our interviewees in Buchloe (from left to right): Andreas Bovensiepen (ALPINA), Andreas Leser (OPEN MIND) and Matthias Schau (ALPINA).
Suspension strut clamp; a sample component in hyperMILL®. The component is made of high-strength aluminium.
The suspension strut clamp on the 5-axis machining centre from DMG.
Laminating tool, milled using hyperMILL® and the finished CFK component.
ALPINA racing car (BMW ALPINA B6 GT3) with hyperMILL® decal, a symbol of the relationship the two companies share.
The suspension strut clamp installed in a BMW ALPINA B6 GT3.
Customer Story
ALPINA Burkard Bovensiepen GmbH + Co. KG
Buchloe, Germany