New 'Auto Aluminum Alliance' Gears Up to Accelerate Aluminum's Use in Autos
3 June 1999
New 'Auto Aluminum Alliance' Gears Up to Accelerate Aluminum's Use in Autos
DEARBORN, Mich., June 2 -- Leaders of the automotive and
aluminum industries today unveiled plans to create an inter-industry alliance
to promote collaboration on research to further accelerate the use of new and
improved aluminum technologies for motor vehicles. This initiative, called the
"Auto Aluminum Alliance," includes members of The Aluminum Association's Auto
and Light Truck Group(a) and the U.S. Automotive Materials Partnership
(USAMP), a research consortium of the U.S. Council for Automotive Research
(USCAR).
Through coordinated technical research, the Auto Aluminum Alliance will
strive to improve the efficiency of how aluminum is used in new cars and light
trucks. As part of their push to create lower-emission, safe and high
performance vehicles, DaimlerChrysler, Ford and GM -- working together under
USAMP -- are striving to reduce the mass of today's typical midsize family
sedan by forty percent. This drive for vehicle lightweighting is one reason
why the new auto aluminum strategic partnership is so important,
Speaking at the Automotive Hall of Fame, John Fillion, Chairman of USAMP
and Senior Manager, Body Materials Engineering, DaimlerChrysler, noted, "This
Alliance will create new opportunities for the automotive and aluminum
industries to identify and address core technical issues to further aluminum's
ability to help automakers provide consumers with safe, affordable and
environmentally enhanced cars and light trucks."
"Because of its safety, performance and environmental advantages, the use
of high-strength, lightweight automotive aluminum has doubled in the last
decade. Through the Alliance, the aluminum industry will come together and
work more collaboratively with the auto industry to help them meet their
future materials and customer needs," added Rick Milner of The Aluminum
Association's Automotive Executive Council and President, Alcoa Automotive.
"The Auto Aluminum Alliance will take on the technical and economic
challenges currently affecting the increased application of automotive
aluminum. Our industry is ready to roll up its sleeves to work with car makers
as the next generation of vehicles move from the drawing board to the
showroom," Milner added.
At the outset, the Alliance will take on several projects, including:
* Tailor Welded Blanks -- reduce manufacturing costs and improve the mass
reduction potential, dimensional quality and structural integrity of
this promising technology.
* Scrap Sorting -- provide a total solution for the cost-effective
recovery of aluminum from scrapped automobiles.
* Aluminum Sheet Test Standardization -- develop standardized test methods
for evaluating aluminum sheet properties and performance data for
product design, modeling and quality assurance.
* Cost Reduction -- identify opportunities to reduce the cost of using
aluminum sheet in automobiles.
* Repair -- establish an automotive aluminum repair advisory body to guide
the dissemination, collection and development of aluminum automotive
repair information.
The Alliance is also exploring the potential for additional technology
projects such as hydroforming, electromagnetic forming and others.
J. Stephen Larkin, President of The Aluminum Association, observed, "With
an eye towards the 21st Century, the auto industry is reinventing the
automobile. Joint ventures like USCAR, formed on the assumption that we must
pool our collective knowledge and resources to solve the complex problems we
all face, go a long way in assuring the car makers' ability to meet rapidly
changing customer demands. The aluminum industry is also intent on working
together at the pre-competitive research level to find new and creative ways
to better serve the auto industry. The results will be even safer and more
environmentally advanced cars and trucks that will be affordable and exciting
to drive."
USCAR is the umbrella organization of DaimlerChrysler, Ford and General
Motors, which was formed in 1992 to further strengthen the technology base of
the domestic auto industry through cooperative, pre-competitive research.
The Aluminum Association, based in Washington, DC, represents U.S.
producers of primary and secondary aluminum, as well as semi-fabricated
products. Member companies operate approximately 200 plants in 35 states.
(a) Alcan Aluminum Corp., Alcoa, Inc., Aluminum Precision Products, ARCO
Aluminum, Inc., Hydro Raufoss Automotive Holland, MI, Kaiser Aluminum and
Chemical Corp., Nichols Aluminum, Reynolds Metals Company, V.A.W. of America,
Inc., and Wabash Alloys