495 hp, 6.2 l displacement, V8 engine - these are just some of the key data for the Corvette Stingray, which General Motors will be launching at the beginning of 2020. The new sports car is powered by a mid-engine in the rear. The engine accelerates the 1.5 t speedster to 100 km/h in 3 s and is ventilated via two large grilles in the rear hood. The components are positioned on both sides of the hood window, which provides a clear view of the engine block. In addition to function, great attention is therefore also paid to aesthetics.

This makes the supposedly banal perforated sheets a real challenge for the supplier. "Top quality cannot be achieved with simple punching," emphasizes Mark Zumdohme, head of Graepel's US plant. He points out the crux of the design: the grilles need to be light, but rigid in every bar. They also have to be made from one piece, cleanly shaped and gracefully designed. "And the air flow rate, the main technical feature, had to be maximized," adds Zumdohme. Graepel achieved over 80 percent free cross-section: a top value.

Graepel achieves this through complex forming work, precise high-speed presses and program-controlled perforation. The holes are not circular, but hexagonal: a bionic shape that distributes forces better. The aluminum sheets are only 1.2 mm thick. Another grille is supplied for the center section of the rear bumper.

The sheet metal specialist has been in the industry since the early days of industrial automotive production. As an automotive supplier, the company specializes in cold-formed sheet metal components and also develops its own tools. The US plant in Omaha, Nebraska, has been in operation since 2006. Incidentally, the Corvette order is not the first of its kind: Graepel also supplies components for the Honda NSX super sports car.

And you can also see grape grids in Transformers.