NGC全民英检超级工厂-法拉利.doc

Megafactories: FerrariNGC全民英檢:超級工廠法拉利播出時間:07月05日 星期日 11:00-12:00Ferrari!For decades, one of the most legendary namesin automobiles.Now a new model is hitting the streets.One and a half tonnesof high performance sports car. Engineered with the precisionof a spacecraft.The fastest, most powerful production carFerrari has ever designed.And this is where its being made!Inside Ferraris mega factory!Few cars have carried such an aura of legendand mystique through the decades.The Ferrari of the formula one track.The winningest name in the historyof the sport.The Ferrari of the open road.An iconic sportscar of the ages.Whether for the race track or for the road,every Ferrari is hand crafted.Northern Italy. the town of Maranello.This is the site of Ferraris mega factory.part hi-tech garage,part art studio.a place where raw metal is transformedinto raw power and where carsare created like sculptures.Its buildings are every bitas sleek and modern as the cars created here.Because Ferrari makes cars for the streetand for the racetrack,the factory boasts some unique features.A wind tunnel for research and developmentdesigned by Italys super-architect,Renzo Piano.An engine works flooded by natural light,with trees to provide exactly the right humidityfor engine construction.Even a three kilometer private racetrackused to trial Ferraris latest racecarsand road test its sportscars.These are the buildings through whichevery Ferrari makes its first journey.And for the three thousand workersalong the way, being here is an Italian dream.For us Italians, Ferrari has alwaysbeen a myth, always.I mean, the boys here grow up with Ferrariin them.Few outsiders and even fewer camerasare ever allowed into Ferraris factory.Security is intense.For Ferraris formula one teamthats based at the factory,theres the ever-present threatof industrial espionage.And Ferraris formula one secretsgo straight into its street cars.This is the fastest and most powerfulproduction car Ferrari has ever designed-the Fiorano 599.Its speed tops 330 kilometers per hour-and its price? Over 200,000 euro!Ferraris president- Luca Di Montezemolo.For me this kind of car means freedom.braking acceleration, handling, engine using.all these ingredient make the Ferrari unique.Five years of research and developmenthave gone into Ferraris newest model.So have sixty years of history.Ferraris legendary founder Enzo Ferrariwas a racing purist.To him, Ferraris street cars were just a wayto help fund his formula one team.Early Ferrari sportscars may have been beautifulto look at, but they were notoriouslyhard to drive.Their racing characteristicswerent suited to the open road.But over the decades, Ferrari has movedcloser and closer to designing a sportscarthat puts all the companysformula one experienceinto the ultimate street machine.The Fiorano 599 is that car.Ferraris designers and workersface a daunting challenge:build a car with the soul- and speed-of a formula one racer-but that handles smooth as silkon real-world streets.Make it beautiful-befitting the Ferrari legacyof art-in-motion.And dress it in luxuryworthy of its 200,000 euro price tag.Race car- street car-work of art- luxury item.A tall order- for the teamat Ferraris Maranello factory.Its a vast complex. Forty-five buildings-with enough space to fit fifty football fields.In all- eight separate sectionsof the factory will build the 599 from scratch.From the fires of the foundry.to the beauty of the body shop.From the robotic precision of the engine worksand the paint shop. to the handcraftingof the 599s leather upholstery.and the final assembly linewhere it all comes together.The factorys first challenge?Giving the 599 its signature trait- speed.The 599 boasts a v-12 engineputting out 620 horsepower.And the foundry is where that key componentbegins its life.Here- Ferraris metalworkershave to cast the two core elements of the engine,the cylinder head and the engine block.Most factories mass-produce these parts-but Ferrari turns them out one at a time.A separate mould is made for every single engine.Theyre made out of compacted sandand resin.Other car companies use sand casts. At high-end factories like Ferrariworkers finish the sand moulds by hand.It takes around five hoursto hand finish the mouldsfor a single v12 engine.Theyre fitted together like an intricatethree dimensional jigsaw.to minimize the chance of chips,cracks or flaws.This will be cast into the cylinder headof a 599.A flaming torch blackens the sand modelwith a thin layer of carbon.The carbon layer acts as a lubricantto let the molten metal flow smoothlyinto the spaces of the cast.Its time. the moulds are ready.The precision of the casting procedureis critical. Any flawcould cause the finished engineto under-perform.The molten metal is preparedjust as carefully as the sand moulds.In the melting process, obviously,there cant be any mistakes.It has to be of the highest qualityto be able to sustain a carthat goes over 200 miles per hour.At temperatures of over 700 degrees Celsius,the heart of the 599 enginebegins its fiery birth.This is what theyre going to build.This is where it starts.In the Ferrari foundry,the main furnace is fired up.The metal that will be cast into the coreof the 599s mighty engine is being melted.Some of the raw metal being fedinto the furnace comes frompreviously cast componentsthat have failed Ferraris quality checks.The metal melts almost instantly,as massive electrical chargesare fired through it.Melting the two tons of metal in the furnaceuses enough electricity in one dayto light a house for a year!The raw molten metal pours into a giant cruciblefor further purifying.At 1300 degrees,it looks like liquid silver.At 700 degrees, it looks like liquid silver.But this is a super strong-super secret aluminum alloyspecifically created for Ferraris engines.Nitrogen pumps through the metalin the crucible, combining withany impurities- which float to the surface.The pure alloy is transferredto smaller holding tanks,from which the engine components will be cast.This mould of compacted sandis about to become the cylinder headof one of the most powerfulproduction car engines ever made.The metal gushes into the mould.Theres a casting here every ten minutes.Incredibly, only one in every fifty componentsfails its quality testand is sent back to the scrap heap.Thats because of the carethats gone into preparingboth mould and metal.While the foundry casts the Ferraris v-12 heart-in another building, workers fashion its body.Like many high-end sports car makers,Ferraris body shop is part art studio.But while the 599 may be Ferrarislatest artwork.Its also a masterpieceof aerodynamic engineering.Thousands of hours have gone intodesigning a sports car thats not only beautifulbut can cheat the air almost as wellas Ferraris formula one race cars.In essence the 599s body shapeis the opposite of an aircraft wing.At high speed its streamlined bodycreates negative lift,using the airflow over and through itto press the car to the road.The downforce means more secure road handlingand far better traction out of corners.The Ferraris streamlined bodyneeds strong support.If you want to put a formula one race caron the street, you need a chassisthat can take the stresses of high-speedand high performance.Made entirely of aluminum alloy,the 599s chassis must be strong enoughto do three things:Withstand high speed impacts.Anchor the 500 pound v-12 engine,which produces a tremendous amountof torque and power.The chassis also has to provide a strong mountfor the wheel assembly and suspension.At high speeds the wheels of a sportscargo up and down like a jackhammer-so Ferrari equipped the 599s chassiswith super tough suspension mounts.High-strength adhesives and meticuloushand-welding make the joints in this chassisas strong as the original metal.Regular cars chassis are put togetherby machines, but high performance sports carslike the 599 are hand welded.It means the chassis can be more exactly shaped-and the body panels more precisely fitted.With the 599s chassis now weldedand the first of its body panels attached,its time for one of the factorys robotsto take over.Its basically a gigantic stapler.The robot is programmed to preciselydrive one hundred and eighty rivetsat specific points over the entire chassis.The rivets give the car the muscleto hold itself together at 330 plus kilometersan hour.Each time these jaws snap,theyre punching a high-strengthrivet through up to three layersof solid aluminum.But the chassis cant move on down the linebefore it passes a rigorous test.Another robot comes into play,equipped with needle-like probes.The probes test the chassisin 800 hundred different places.At each point they touch the metal.They are measuring the bodyagainst a computer model.Searching for tiny cracks in the metalor any flaw in the chassis overall shape.If a flaws detected,the chassis is sent back.but that only happens to one in every hundred.Theres a reason for this insistenceon perfection: the slightest flawin any component of a high-performance sportscarcan create the ripple effect.The flaw magnifies throughall the other components dependent on it.At high speeds, the stresses on the chassiscould turn cracks into fissures.and severely compromise the carsstructural integrity.After an exhaustive examination,the robot arms raise for the last time.the 599s metal skeleton is now readyto receive the rest of its sculpted body panels.Back in the foundry, the engine castsare complete.Seven minutes later, theyve cooled enoughfor the sand moulds to be removed.Theres nothing too high-techabout this process!The compressed sand is just shaken offthe solidified metal.The high-performance specs of the 599require engine parts that are perfect.Powerful x-rays scan the cast components-looking for microscopic cracks or flawsin the metal.The slightest vibration from a defectin the finished engine will be magnifiedat high speed.Worst case scenario-the engine itself could fail!Components that pass the x-ray testare hand finished.Then theyre checked again.Its no surprise that Ferrari foundry workersfeel theyre making more than just an engine.We create the souland then someone else adds the organsto make it live.In the body shop, metal is becoming artas the 599s sleek outer shellmeets its chassis.When anyone thinks of a Ferrari,you think of two things in particular:one, the motor, immense power,the sound, the growl of it;and second the external beauty of the Ferrari.Like its chassis, the Ferraris body panelsare aluminum.It may be the most powerful production carthe companys ever made-but its fully-aluminum constructionmeans its also one of the lightest.The 599 has more power propelling less car.Workers fix the doors, hood and trunkto their precision hinges and align themto a tenth of a millimeter.From this point on, its all about art.Creating a finished bodythat is as close to flawless as possible.The body shops specialistscheck for trouble spots.Dents or flaws, no matter how small.To Ferrari people, this is no longer a car.its a sculpture.In a sealed plexiglas room-where no speck of dust can interferewith its final inspection-the 599 is given the thumbs upto move out of the body shop.We have to guarantee the perfect shape,the unique finishing, consequentlythe perfect paint-job.At Ferraris Maranello factoryin northern Italy,the unfinished Fiorano 599takes its next step toward the finish line.This is Ferraris twenty-first centurypaint shop. one of the most advancedof its kind in any car factory.The environment is a high priorityfor this paintshop. Most materialsare water-based,and nearly all waste is captured and recycled.Formula one racers dont have toworry about rust, but the 599is built for the streets.Before they can be painted,every 599 car body receivesan anti-corrosion treatment.Ferrari claims its the most advancedrust-proofing in the world-a claim thats hard to testbecause the chemical process going on hereis a trade secret.The one-ton bodies are plunged.tipped. and shaken.Every one of these giant bathschemically alters the metal of the cars body-creating a super-thin armouragainst the elements.These anti corrosion bathsalso give the 599s bodya positive electrical charge.Thats vital for the next stageof the painting process.At the end of this tunnellies the real work of the paint shop-a glass-walled, hermetically-sealed placepopulated by graceful robotsand their human controllers.The chambers are sealed to avoidany air drafts that might causethe tiny particles of primer and paintto drift and create an uneven finish.This first coat is primer-a special compound that bindsthe actual paint to the body.the primer is a fine dust-as fine as talcum powder.It sticks to the body because ofthe electrical charge the metalwas given earlier.The robots are programmed to spreadthe particles of primer into a layerabout as thick as a human hair.The body glides into a giant oven,which bakes the primer.fusing it onto the metal.and providing the foundation layerfor the Ferraris final paint finish.Every stage of a Ferraris constructionis about beauty and power.The 599s v-12 engine is that power.Its created here, in Ferraris engine works.The engine blocks and cylinder headscast in the foundry are now fine tunedto an almost microscopic degree.Other workers turn out the restof the engines eight hundred parts.Ferraris engine worksis a architectural triumph.Natural light floods in through a glass roof.Its environmentally efficientand provides better light for workers.And in the center of the engine works,a small forest of trees grows indoors!These trees help maintain the ideal humidityand air quality levels for engine construction.Theyre also here to ensurethe workers comfort.This factory is rated as one of the best placesto work in Italy.Ferrari workers dont see themselvesas part of a production linebut as craftspeoplebuilding a handmade product.My passion is to make Ferraris.I think Ive made a part of the motorof every single vehicle that you seeon the road, and every time I see a FerrariI feel pride in my heart,inside that motor theres a part of my heart.And at every step of a Ferraris creation,they sign off on their work.I am and we all are absolutely responsiblefor what we build. We certify what we doso that it can be traced back to us.All through the engine worksFerraris metal workers are machiningthe most detailed componentsof the v 12 engine.Italians have a reputation of beingsome of the most skilled metal workersin the world.This tiny valve is only one of the 599 engineseight hundred components.it alone takes nearly an hour to make.But while the emphasis is on hand crafting,there are two very special robotsin the engine works.The first is a robot they callRomeo and Juliet.These two arms are Romeo.Giving Juliet a ring.But this is no ordinary ring.The ring is actually the valve seatin the engines cylinder.It forms a seal through which the valve movesand allows air into the chamberwhere it mixes with the fuel and explodes.With the valve moving in and outthousands of times a second,the valve seat must be tight.immovable in fact. If it came loose,it could enter the engineand cause complete failure.Romeo dips each valve ringinto a bath of liquid nitrogen-freezing it to minus 180 degreesand shrinking it by a tiny amount.Juliet holds the cylinder headwhile Romeo sets the valve ring in place.The first is a practice run-to check the exact positionof the two components.Laser sensors make minute adjustments.Then Romeo sets the valve ring in place.In the following few seconds,the frozen ring warms and expands.Its now locked in place.The second of the engine works two robotshas to fine-tune another critical component-the crankshaft.The power generated by the 599s engineis transferred through the crankshaft.to the transmission.to the drive shaft.to the wheels.and then to the open road.At the 599s top speedits crankshaft is spinning overa hundred times a second.if it fails the pistons attached to itwould shoot through the engine block.destroying the engine.The crankshaft is the heart of the motor,therefore every tiny operationneeds to as precise as possibleand as perfect as possible.When its spinning at over 8,000 rpm,any imperfections will cause the crankshaftto become unbalanced. and createpotentially destructive vibrationsthrough the entire engine.The robot drills, shavesand grinds the crankshaft.m