Over the past 12 months, and following significant investments in time and resources, Glavista has
made remarkable progress in addressing one of aftermarket’s key challenges: calibration.
Calibration is becoming increasingly critical as windscreen replacement is becoming increasingly more complex. In
addition to fitting the screen securely, the fitter has to make sure that it is calibrated correctly.
Original workshops usually have a one brand-specific calibration system but in the aftermarket there are some
brands that have multiple-brand calibration systems such as Bosch and Hella Gutmann Solutions GmbH. So in
effect, virtually all players in the Aftermarket experience issues with calibration.
A key issue is that most of the front cameras in the industry must be calibrated after a replacement; whilst only
a few auto-calibratable (for instance those on Ford cars). So before replacement, it is important to test the
old windshield in order to check that it can actually be calibrated and that there are no diagnosis-failures in
the camera.
About a year ago, Glavista’s team started gathering information and analyzing calibration issues from
across the customer base. To further support their studies and gain a better understanding of the real root
causes, the team visited Hella Gutmann Solutions GmbH as well as several customer facilities.
During this research phase it became clear that some of the calibration issues are caused by the windshield
itself, but it’s also important to consider the glass replacement procedures – and even the facility’s own
calibration system. These causes were analyzed based on experiments and with the SIX SIGMA Methodology, a very
useful quality tool that helps to improve the output of a process by identifying and removing the causes of
defects and minimizing variability in manufacturing and business processes.
Following its research, the Glavista team started to implement several corrective actions to solve
some root causes before carrying out a range of tests in a number of customer facilities, including one at an
official Audi workshop.
Describing the outcome, Sergio Múgica, Quality Manager at Glavista, said: “After some process
implementations we have solved more than 10 different cases of calibration issues in various current models,
which has enabled us to make most models available again. An additional benefit is that we will be able to avoid
similar problems in future models as well. Moreover, we will be able to provide advice to fitters, to help them
avoid some common mistakes that can lead to non-calibrated windscreens.”
For further information or questions, please contact our quality team at quality@glavista.com
The calibration process in 7 steps:
- Check the camera diagnosis of the windshield to discard any failure
- Calibrate the old windshield to verify that the model is calibratable
- After fitting the new glass, place the car in front of the calibration board on a flat floor with correct
light
- Connect the system to the car verifying that this specific model can be calibrated by the system
- Align the car perfectly in relation to the board, using the elements provided and following the system’s
indications
- Put the board at the correct height and distance to the car, following the system’s indications
- Start the calibration and receive the final result from the system
Major causes that can lead to a calibration issue:
- Angle in the camera area
- Fixation of the camera into the bracket
- Gap between the camera and the glass
- Accuracy in the placement of the Calibration System
- Camera bracket position (in vertical)
- Glass fitting procedure
- No correction of the car height by the Calibration System