MacLean-Fogg Engineered Plastics Co. (EPC) has been recognized by the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) at the 48th annual Automotive Innovation Awards Gala as the Powertrain Category winner and the Grand Award Winner for its contribution to Dayco’s Vacuum Generation System. SPE recognized nine category winners and one grand award winner for the most innovative use of plastics.
Dayco, the system integrator, utilized EPC for the partnering development of all 10 vital plastic components that made their highly efficient brake boost system possible. Dayco’s Vacuum Generation System was first used on the 2017 Ford F-150 platform and has since proliferated to other vehicle platforms because of the advantages it offers over traditional brake boost systems.
Dave Davis, EPC director of sales and marketing, said, “EPC is excited about having contributed important plastics engineering attributes to the Dayco product. We modeled, engineered, designed, prototyped and launched 10 critical components to help make this revolutionary system solution a production reality.”
According to Dayco, the system advantages achieved using engineered plastic technologies include: 70 percent cost reduction, 80 percent weight reduction, 20 percent system performance increase, improved fuel economy, a smaller packaging footprint, and utilization of eco-friendly 100 percent re-processable thermoplastic DuPont resin systems.
The success of this Vacuum Generation System is leading Dayco to an entire family of close tolerance plastic component systems for future valve and actuator solutions.
“We approach every challenge by asking, ‘How Might We?’” said Dan Dye, general manager of EPC. “Our team of plastics experts in part design, materials and tooling accomplished what others purported not possible. Our EPC team is proud of this recognition and our ability to solve our customer’s challenge.”
This is the fourth year in a row that EPC has been named an Innovation Award finalist, and the first time EPC has won the Powertrain Category Award and Grand Award.
