The usage of spotwelder in Malaysia bodyshops is picking up over the years. This trend is mainly contributed by the standard and repair guidelines released by the original car manufacturers. It is since made compulsory for authorized repairers and independent bodyshops to follow. Spot welding is not a new technology in the automotive industry. It is widely used in assembly plants and is now a popular choice in the after market as well. This is due to the fact that more and more advance high strength steels are used to build a vehicle today. Advance high strength steels are sensitive to heat application, therefore spotwelder is the best equipment to be used for joining metal sheets. MAG welder will have a bigger heat affected zone.
The behaviors of advanced steel is not the same as traditional mild steel. Heat can be applied on mild steel during repair,however it is not allowed on advanced steel repair. Excessive heat will weakened it’s structural integrity thus changing crash behavior during a collision. Passenger vehicles are designed with crumple zone, an area where the structure is suppose to fail to absorb crash energy. When heat is applied to advanced steel, the structure of the vehicle will not fail in a predictable manner putting danger to the passenger of the vehicle. That is why manufacturers are so strict in their repair methodology.
Spotwelder machine is made a compulsory equipment in a bodyshop to replace MAG welder in many ways. In areas where the spotwelder clamps can access and reach, they are mandatory to be used. For areas where the clamps are unable to access, then MAG welder will be the second option for joining purpose. To know what specifications is suitable in today’s modern body repair shop, see below. This will be a good benchmark guideline to a suitable spotwelder purchase:
- Welding current must be at least 10,000 amp and above. Ideal range will be somewhere between 13,000 – 15,000 amp
- Automode welding is a must. The machine must be able to work automatically without the need to input material type and thickness. The machine will send a pre-current to measure the resistance in between the metal sheets. From the outcome of the measurement, the machine will be able to calculate the optimum current and welding time needed to make a good spot
- Minimum clamping force of 300daN. To make a good join, the machine must be able to provide a squeeze force of at least 300daN during welding to ensure a good fusion.
- Watercooled to the electrode tips. The process of resistance welding produces a lot of heat to the machine. Coolant must circulate around the machine to ensure optimum cooling of the entire machine. This is to prevent overheating and also to allow continuous welding. Aircooled type spotwelder is not recommended as the cooling is inefficient and the machine will overheat after approximate 15 to 20 spotwelds.
IMS TRAFO 14500 Spotwelder
An inverter watercooled spotwelder that is suitable for advanced steel. Made in France
- 14,500 max welding amp
- 550daN max clamping force @ 8bar
- Automode, OEM mode, Manual mode
- Come with 5 sets C-clamp
“Follow OEMs Repair Methodology”