Brose expands test center for electronics

Brose doubles the capacity of its center for measuring electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) in Würzburg. With the investment of 1.5 million euros, the supplier is responding to the growing importance of electronics for the automotive industry. Brose's comfort and safety solutions are made intelligent by sensors and software. The tests ensure their reliable operation.

The growing electrification and digitalization of mobility is also increasing the number of electronic components in vehicles. The automotive supplier Brose uses sensors and software to link its mechatronic components into intelligent systems. This enables greater comfort through new functions such as self-opening side doors and variable interiors. Our motors, sensors and electronics must not disturb other components in the vehicle with their electromagnetic radiation and have to be robust against external interference themselves. This ensures reliable operation at all times, explains Rainer Deboy, Head of Testing Technology Electronics at Brose. New products are therefore tested for electromagnetic compatibility at an early stage.

For eight years, Brose has been operating an officially accredited EMC test center in Würzburg for these measurements. Following an expansion in 2018, the supplier has now doubled its capacity again and increased the number of employees by two to ten. The highly qualified specialists can now perform up to six measurements in parallel. The investment increases our independence from external EMC laboratories. This makes us more cost-efficient and allows us to respond more quickly and flexibly to customer requests, says Deboy.

The expansion brings the size of the Brose EMC center to 450 square meters. Two additional anechoic chambers equipped with metal shielding have been added, in which tests are being conducted with extremely high field levels of up to 200 voltmeters and a transmitting power of 1000 watts on a high-performance antenna. A cell phone, in comparison, has a maximum transmitting power of two watts and must not exceed 60 volts per meter. The company also installed another measuring station for electrostatic discharges and two new rooms in which the influence of interference pulses on electronics is tested. Thanks to the state-of-the-art facilities, Brose can also perform the necessary tests for products that require operating fluids or are run on high voltage in electric vehicles, for example refrigerant compressors.