IMPACT Report Validates Steel's Long-Term Future

    DETROIT, March 21 A report on Phase I of the IMPACT
program, a collaborative effort among industry, government and academia to
develop robust, lightweight, dual-use trucks, confirms that substantial weight
reductions are possible with higher-strength, low cost steels and optimized
design, announces the American Iron and Steel Institute.  The report concludes
"there is no reason to believe that 25 percent weight reduction represents an
upper bound on the long-term weight reductions possible in a steel-based
vehicle."

    Conversely, the report stated that "there is no reason to believe that
aluminum has unique weight reducing properties when used in automobiles and
trucks ... (and that) the substantially lower variable cost of steel vs.
aluminum makes steel the superior choice for high volume production
applications."

    "Advanced Material Technologies for 21st Century Trucks" (SAE paper #2000-
01-3124), authored by representatives of Ford Motor Co., the U.S. Army,
Mississippi State University, University of Louisville and a consulting firm,
and delivered to the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) International Truck
& Bus Meeting and Exposition in December 2000, reports on the initial phase of
IMPACT (Improved Materials & Powertrain Architectures for 21st Century
Trucks).

    Phase 1 of the three-phase program validated that cost-effective weight
reductions of up to 25 percent are possible using steel "because steel offers
the most structural benefit per unit cost," according to the paper.  The paper
cited "breakthrough material technologies and improved manufacturing processes
for steel (that have) demonstrated and validated that strategically removing
unneeded mass results in lighter steel components."

    Additionally, the paper stated that it is possible to further enhance
"desired steel properties needed for vehicle stiffness, strength, impact
resistance and crashworthiness."

    Phase I, which began in September 1999, comprised defining underlying
structural theory for selecting proper materials to reduce vehicle weight in
the most efficient, cost effective manner.

    Already well underway, Phase 2 consists of designing and building
optimized, proprietary full vehicle platform prototypes that achieve up to a
25 percent weight reduction without compromising any customer-driven vehicle
attributes.  The program is using a current generation Ford F-150 truck as the
benchmark vehicle.  Phase 3 will extend the work to Ford's larger F-250 and F-
350 versions.

    The IMPACT Phase 1 methodology focused on determining the most affordable
mix or portfolio of materials to achieve 25 percent weight reduction.  It
explored "widespread but arguable paradigms" that weight reduction always adds
cost to a vehicle and automotive weight reductions of more than 25 percent
require use of expensive, non-ferrous materials.

    The paper contains substantial discussion comparing inherent properties of
steel and aluminum.  Aluminum holds an advantage over steel when resistance to
buckling is important, such as in aircraft structures.  However, automotive
structural design is stiffness and strength driven.  "It is a complicated
design and manufacturing issue, in which the manufacturing problems often
dictate the design.  There (is not) anything intrinsic in the properties of
aluminum (that) automatically give it a weight advantage over steel in ground
vehicles.

    "Due to the higher variable costs (of aluminum), aluminum intensive
vehicles are only feasible in higher price market segments, and aluminum
extrusion based structures theoretically may weigh more than optimized steel
structures."

    Phase 2 of the program will conclude later this year and Phase 3 already
has begun.

    The U.S. Army TACOM, Ford Motor Co. and American Iron and Steel Institute
fund IMPACT.  Other partners include Oak Ridge National Laboratory,
Mississippi State University and the University of Louisville.

    As it has in its UltraLight Steel Auto Body series, the steel industry is
contributing cutting edge materials, such as high- and ultra high-strength
steels, and advanced process technologies such as tailor welded blanks, laser
welding and hydroforming.  The steel companies committed to advancing steel's
position include: Bethlehem Steel Corporation, Dofasco Inc., Ispat Inland
Inc., LTV Steel Company, National Steel Corporation, Rouge Steel Company,
Stelco Inc., U.S. Steel Group, a unit of USX Corporation, WCI Steel, Inc., and
Weirton Steel Corporation.