Allison Transmission, a world leader in the production of fully automatic transmissions for commercial vehicles, has developed technologies to optimise the entire production chain while also benefiting customers with cost efficiency and little downtime.

One of the technologies proven to add value is the Allison Production System (APS), a robotic process designed to improve production methods. This technology aims to facilitate the modular concept created by Allison for building, assembly and testing of its transmissions.

"Our transmissions are modular, meaning they are not designed as a single component. They are constituted of modules, such as the converter module, the main housing module or the rear module (with or without retarder), all designed to fit each other," explains Celso A Joao, Allison’s South America Engineering Manager. "This form of production, via assembling different modules, provides flexibility to the production line to make transmissions according to the application needs, be it a bus, a truck or even a special vehicle.

Another advantage of Allison's automatic modularity over competitors' models is that customers only pay for what they actually need. The modular construction, for example, allows the fleet which does not need a retarder or a power take-off for its application, buy a transmission without these items, which is impossible with other brands. This modularity not only allows for high production but also allows the manufacturer to offer specific customised product according to customer needs and businesses.

“As important as the ability to offer the most appropriate transmission for the precise application of our customers is the maintenance convenience provided by our production system. Our transmissions have fewer spare parts than other models on the market, so the end-user will also have simpler, faster, and therefore, much cheaper maintenance,” concludes Celso A Joao.

Another area in which the company says it has made advancements is in the area of electronic controls. Allison engineers are using transmission control software to achieve significant improvements in vehicle performance and fuel consumption, with the ability to be tailor-based on the specific application. This is so for hybrid systems which have been part of Allison's portfolio for many years and used in more than 8,000 units for buses worldwide.

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