Table of Contents
Introduction
Automotive Components Ltd. (ACL) is a top German maker of car motor parts. They focus on drive motors and auxiliary motors for new energy vehicles. With the fast growth of the global electric vehicle market, the company faced two main challenges. These were controlling motor costs and ensuring supply chain stability. In early 2024, ACL started looking for cheaper magnetic materials. This was due to price changes and supply issues with rare-earth permanent magnets. They focused on finding alternatives for low-power auxiliary motor applications.
CORT Magnets is a well-known leader in magnetic materials. They have strong skills in ferrite magnets and can scale up production. This makes them a key partner for ACL. Together, they created a high-performance ferrite magnet solution for auxiliary motor applications. Their goal was to lower costs while maintaining performance and improving supply chain resilience.
Challenges Faced by Automotive Components Ltd.
Cost Pressure
Intensifying competition in the new energy vehicle market required a 15% cost reduction for motor components. Traditional neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets made up 35% of motor material costs. Their prices often change due to rare earth market fluctuations. In 2023, these fluctuations reached 28%. This greatly affected product pricing strategies and profit stability.
Cost Structure Analysis:
- NdFeB magnets: 35% of total material cost
- Copper windings: 28%
- Steel laminations: 18%
- Other materials: 19%
This cost structure made NdFeB magnets the primary target for cost optimization initiatives.
Supply Chain Resilience
Rising geopolitical risks in the global rare earth supply chain have caused delivery delays for NdFeB magnets. These delays now last from 8 to 16 weeks. This disruption affects the production schedules of vehicle manufacturers. The company needed to establish diversified magnet supply channels to reduce single-material dependency.
Supply Chain Vulnerability Assessment:
- Single-source dependency for NdFeB magnets (92% from China)
- Volatile lead times (standard deviation of ±4 weeks)
- Inventory holding costs exceeding 25% of material value
- Quality inconsistency across batches (CPK = 1.2)
These factors created significant operational risks for meeting automotive OEM production commitments.
Performance Requirements Balance
Auxiliary motors (including cooling water pump motors and power steering motors) required magnets with:
- Sufficient magnetic performance (remanence Br ≥ 4,000 Gauss)
- Good temperature stability (-40°C to 150°C operating range)
- Excellent corrosion resistance (meeting IP68 protection class)
- Compatibility with existing motor designs to minimize retooling costs
Application-Specific Challenges:
- Cooling pump motors: Continuous operation under varying temperature conditions
- Power steering motors: High vibration environment (15g RMS)
- Both applications: 15-year service life requirement
Environmental Regulations
New EU Battery Regulations require 95% of motor materials to be recycled by 2030. This presents challenges for compliance. Traditional recycling processes for rare earth magnets are complex and expensive. Currently, recycling rates are below 15%.
Regulatory Compliance Timeline:
- 2025: Material traceability documentation requirements
- 2027: Minimum 85% recycling rate
- 2030: 95% recycling rate target with financial penalties for non-compliance
CORT Magnets: Ferrite Magnet Solution
Through in-depth technical exchanges and joint development, CORT Magnets provided Automotive Components Ltd. with a customized ferrite magnet solution, comprehensively optimized for auxiliary motor application characteristics:
1. High-Performance Ferrite Material Selection
CORT Magnets recommended high-performance anisotropic permanent ferrite magnets (Sr-ferrite), specifically model CM-F53, with key performance parameters:
- Remanence (Br): 4,300 Gauss
- Coercivity (HcB): 3,800 Oe
- Intrinsic coercivity (HcJ): 4,500 Oe
- Maximum energy product ((BH)max): 3.8 MGOe
- Operating temperature range: -40°C to 180°C
- Temperature coefficient (Br): -0.2%/°C
Material Composition:
- Fe₂O₃: 68-70%
- SrO: 8-10%
- CoO: 3-5%
- SiO₂: 1-2%
- Other additives: 5-8%
Performance Validation: Under ACL’s standard test conditions, CM-F53 ferrite magnets demonstrated:
- Magnetic flux loss < 3% after 2,000-hour aging test at 150°C
- Salt spray resistance reaching 500 hours (per ASTM B117 standard)
- Mechanical strength meeting 10,000 vibration cycles (10-2000Hz, 10g RMS)
Comparative Material Analysis:
| Property | CM-F53 Ferrite | Conventional NdFeB | Performance Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Remanence (Br) | 4,300 Gauss | 12,800 Gauss | -66.4% |
| Coercivity (HcB) | 3,800 Oe | 11,500 Oe | -66.9% |
| Energy Product | 3.8 MGOe | 38 MGOe | -90.0% |
| Density | 4.9 g/cm³ | 7.5 g/cm³ | -34.7% |
| Cost per kg | $8.5 | $42.3 | -80.0% |
| Temperature Stability | Excellent | Good | +25% |
| Corrosion Resistance | Excellent | Poor | +100% |
2. Magnetic Circuit Design Optimization
To compensate for ferrite magnets’ lower energy product, CORT Magnets’ engineering team collaborated with the customer to develop an optimized magnetic circuit design:
- Multi-pole magnetization technology, increasing pole count from 8 to 12 poles
- Optimized magnet shape with curved tile structure to improve flux utilization by 18%
- Custom magnetic yoke design reduces flux leakage by 22%
- Air gap adjustment optimizing flux density distribution
Design Innovation Details:
- Asymmetric pole arrangement to improve torque ripple (reduced from 8% to 3.5%)
- Skewed magnetization pattern minimizing cogging torque
- Integrated flux concentration ring increases air gap flux density by 25%
Simulation Results: Validated through finite element analysis (FEA), the optimized magnetic circuit design achieved:
- Motor efficiency of 92.5% (compared to 93.2% with the original NdFeB solution)
- Torque density of 2.1 Nm/kg (only 7% lower than NdFeB despite 66% lower Br)
- Operating temperature rise limited to 45°C above ambient
- 15-year predicted service life with <5% performance degradation
3. Cost Optimization Program
CORT Magnets implemented multiple measures to achieve significant cost reduction:
Raw Material Cost Control:
- Ferrite magnet raw material cost is only 1/5 that of NdFeB
- Localized procurement of ferrite raw materials reduces logistics costs by 12%
- Long-term supply agreements with price stability clauses
Production Process Optimization:
- Dry pressing technology is replacing traditional wet pressing, increasing material utilization from 75% to 92%
- Scale production, reducing unit manufacturing cost, with batch production increased to 50,000 pieces
- Automated inspection systems are reducing labor costs by 40%
Total Cost Savings:
- Magnetic material cost reduced by 62%
- Overall, the motor material cost reduced by 28%
- Supply chain management costs reduced by 15% (eliminating rare earth price fluctuation hedging costs)
Cost Breakdown Comparison:
| Cost Component | Ferrite Solution | NdFeB Solution | Cost Reduction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magnet Material | $18.5 | $48.2 | $29.7 (61.6%) |
| Magnet Processing | $4.2 | $7.8 | $3.6 (46.2%) |
| Assembly | $12.3 | $12.3 | $0.0 (0%) |
| Testing | $3.8 | $4.5 | $0.7 (15.6%) |
| Logistics | $2.1 | $3.2 | $1.1 (34.4%) |
| Total | $40.9 | $76.0 | $35.1 (46.2%) |
4. Environmental and Sustainability Solutions
CORT Magnets’ ferrite magnet solution fully complies with EU environmental regulations:
- Rare earth-free composition, with 98% of material consisting of iron oxide and strontium oxide
- Dedicated recycling process developed with a 95% magnet recovery rate
- 65% lower carbon emissions in production (life cycle assessment data)
Environmental Performance Metrics:
- Carbon footprint: 4.2 kg CO₂e per motor (vs. 12 kg CO₂e with NdFeB)
- Water consumption: 18 L per kg of magnet (vs. 45 L for NdFeB)
- Waste generation: 0.3 kg per 100 kg production (vs. 2.8 kg for NdFeB)
Certification Achievements: The solution was successfully obtained:
- RoHS 2.0 certification (EN 50581:2012)
- REACH compliance statement (all substances below SVHC thresholds)
- ISO 14001 environmental management system certification
- EU Battery Regulation compliance pre-certification
Project Results
Performance Indicator Achievement
After six months of working together, the ferrite magnet solution met or exceeded all performance goals
| Performance Indicator | Ferrite Solution | Original NdFeB Solution | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Motor Efficiency | 92.5% | 93.2% | -0.7% |
| Rated Torque | 1.8 Nm | 1.9 Nm | -5.3% |
| Weight | 320g | 280g | +14.3% |
| Cost ($/unit) | $18.5 | $48.2 | -61.6% |
| Delivery Cycle | 4 weeks | 8 weeks | -50% |
| Temperature Stability | Meets requirements | Meets requirements | Equivalent |
| Service Life Expectancy | 15 years | 15 years | Equivalent |
Field Test Results: In 100,000 km road tests with prototype vehicles, auxiliary motors using ferrite magnets demonstrated:
- Stable operation of the water pump motor with no performance degradation
- Average power consumption increased by 3.2% (accounting for <0.5% of total vehicle energy consumption)
- Noise level reduced by 2 dB(A) (benefiting from multi-pole magnetization design)
- Vibration resistance exceeding requirements (no failures after 10,000 km on rough terrain)
Business Value Realization
Cost Savings:
- Per-motor magnet cost reduced from $48.2 to $18.5, a 61.6% savings
- Annual material cost savings of $14.85 million based on a 500,000 unit capacity
- 40% reduction in inventory costs (due to lower material costs and supply stability)
Supply Chain Improvements:
- 50% reduction in delivery cycle (from 8 weeks to 4 weeks)
- Reduced minimum order quantity (from 10,000 pieces to 2,000 pieces)
- Quality pass rate improved to 99.8% (vs. 99.2% with NdFeB solution)
- Lead time reliability increased to 98% on-time delivery (vs. 82% previously)
Market Competitiveness Enhancement:
- 22% overall cost reduction for auxiliary motor modules, creatinga price advantage in OEM bidding
- Secured 150,000 unit auxiliary motor order from major European automaker in 2024 (€28 million value)
- Material substitution solution incorporated into the customer’s next-generation motor platform design specifications
- New business opportunities in cost-sensitive markets (emerging market EV manufacturers)
Environmental Benefits
- 98% reduction in rare earth element usage per motor (from 28g to 0.5g)
- 65% reduction in production carbon emissions (from 12kg CO₂e to 4.2kg CO₂e)
- 70% reduction in product recycling costs, preparing for 2030 environmental regulations
- Compliance with EU Circular Economy Action Plan requirements
Environmental ROI Analysis:
- Initial investment in new tooling: €450,000
- Annual environmental cost savings: €820,000
- Payback period: 6.7 months
- 5-year net environmental benefit: €3.75 million
Customer Testimonial
“Our partnership with CORT Magnets represents a crucial step in our motor material strategy transformation,” said Thomas Mueller, Purchasing Director at Automotive Components Ltd. “The ferrite magnet solution has not only delivered significant cost savings but, more importantly, has established a stable and reliable supply chain that frees us from over-dependence on rare earth materials.
We were very impressed by CORT Magnets’ engineering team. They not only provided high-quality magnet products but also worked closely with us. Together, we optimized the magnetic circuit design to meet our performance needs. Real-world testing results have shown that the ferrite solution can completely replace neodymium-iron-boron in auxiliary motor applications at approximately 40% of the cost.
This partnership has brought economic benefits. It has also improved our strong position in environmental compliance. We are now ready for the new European battery regulations. We plan to expand this solution across more of our auxiliary motor product lines and have designated CORT Magnets as a strategic partner.”
Why Choose Cort Magnet's Ferrite Magnets
CORT Magnets’ expertise in ferrite magnet technology and system solution capabilities were crucial to the project’s success:
Materials Science Expertise
- 15 years of ferrite magnet research and development experience with 23 related patents
- Advanced material formulation optimization capabilities, customizing magnetic properties to customer requirements
- Comprehensive material testing and characterization methods ensuring performance consistency (CPK > 1.67)
Custom Engineering Capabilities
- Strong magnetic circuit design and a simulation team using professional software, including JMAG and Maxwell
- Rapid prototyping capability with just a 2-week turnaround from design to sample
- Extensive motor application experience, understanding real-world customer operating conditions
Scaled Production Capabilities
- Annual production capacity exceeding 100 million ferrite magnets
- Automated production lines ensure product consistency
- Multi-location production footprint (China, Vietnam, Germany) enabling regional supply
Manufacturing Excellence:
- Statistical Process Control on all critical parameters
- Automated optical inspection with 0.01mm defect detection capability
- Traceability system covering the entire production process
- Lean manufacturing implementation reduces waste to <2%
Full Lifecycle Support
- End-to-end technical support from material selection to magnetic circuit design
- Comprehensive quality traceability system from raw material to finished product
- Professional failure analysis and application optimization services
- Dedicated technical account manager for key customers
Contact us for solutions
Conclusion
By working together with CORT Magnets, Automotive Components Ltd. changed the materials for auxiliary motor magnets. They used high-performance ferrite magnets instead of traditional neodymium-iron-boron magnets. This change ensures that performance meets the needs of the application
- 28% reduction in motor material costs
- 50% reduction in supply chain delivery cycles
- Significant reduction in rare earth material dependency risk
- Enhanced product environmental compliance and sustainability
This case shows that optimized design can make ferrite magnets a cost-effective choice. They can replace rare-earth magnets in medium and low power motors. This is especially true in situations where costs matter and magnetic performance needs are not very high. As ferrite material technology improves and magnetic circuit design changes, new applications are emerging. This gives motor manufacturers in the automotive, home appliance, and industrial sectors more material choices and ways to save costs.
CORT Magnets is dedicated to the research and development of ferrite magnets. We aim to create more value for our customers. We do this by advancing materials science and engineering technology. Our efforts help drive sustainable development in the motor industry.
