From Metal to Market

Vanguard big block V-twin engines – DBS plant in Kyoto

In an exclusive opportunity to view Briggs & Stratton manufacturing operations in Japan, Commercial Dealer and Lawn & Landscape observed the production process and quality control testing required to move a commercial engine from metal to the market.

Diahatsu and Briggs & Stratton (DBS) share a partnership by which the two entities pool technical, research and development, and manufacturing resources. The Kyoto, Japan-based plant is the production site for the new Vanguard big block V-twin engines and has the ability to manufacture up to 70 different models.

An operations manager reviews the plant layout at the new Kagami plant.

The new Diahatsu Kagami plant opened in June 2003 and is where the D070 Vanguard three-cylinder liquid-cooled heavy-duty engines are manufactured. The compact operation has a production line designed to produce several different engine models and to meet the industry’s just-in-time production needs, allowing the company to focus on efficiency and quality.

Join us on a virtual tour, as we visit the Diahatsu Briggs & Stratton and Diahatsu-Kagami plants.

Versatile production lines allow the Kagami plant to produce up to 70 different engine models.

The module assembly line at the DBS plant is a versatile manufacturing method that allows DBS to vary the products on the line. This model is contrary to a fixed production model, which is ideal for operations that produce mass amounts of a specific product. The plant’s module assembly line allows the facility to produce any one of 70 engine models.

To make the production process even more flexible, engines that go through the line can be tilted so workers can access hard-to-reach spots.

An employee assembles a Vanguard big-block engine at the DBS plant.

Set up in “restaurant style,” parts supplies are set up so workers can easily access what they need to construct the engine on the line. Since the plant produces 70 different engines, this parts supply system plays an important role in ensuring workers have the parts necessary for different products.

This “human oriented” production approach allows workers to finish one engine every seven minutes.

Technology and advanced tooling promote efficiency at the Kagami plant.

Compared to the company’s consumer production lines, which produce an engine every eight seconds, the Vanguard commercial engine production line isn’t as swift. But more complex, commercial engines require this time and special attention to detail, points out Bill Reitman, vice president, marketing, Briggs & Stratton, Milwaukee, Wis.

This particular line produces 60 to 70 units per day – 1,400 every month, with the capability to produce 2,000 engines per month.

Crankshafts move down the line at the DBS plant.

The 30-meter-long assembly line starts with the production of the cylinder block, and then moves to gears and pistons, the oil pan, flywheel, cylinder head, valve parts, cooling parts, electronics and exhaust. After engines come off the line, they are moved into testing chambers, where employees conduct leaking, sound, vibration and emissions tests.

 Quality control is key. Testing is a crucial component of the production process, especially with today’s stringent emissions standards, which continue to tighten with pending legislation. A four-step process puts engines through rigorous testing, and quality is checked further with an endurance test.

Vibration testing at the DBS plant is just one of many performance and endurance tests.

The author is Editor of Commercial Dealer magazine and a Contributing Editor to Lawn & Landscape and can be reached at khampshire@commercialdealer.com.