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Delphi's Plastic Materials & Processes Expert To Lead SPE Auto Division

24 June 1999

Delphi's Leading Plastic Materials & Processes Expert To Lead Society of Plastics Engineers Automotive Division

    WARREN, Mich., June 24 -- Delphi Automotive Systems
today announced that Suresh Shah, Delphi Advanced Development
senior staff scientist, has been elected chairman for the International
Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) Automotive Division.  Shah's position was
confirmed on May 3, 1999, at the SPE Annual Technical Conference in New York
City.
    "I am honored to be elected by SPE's Automotive Board of Directors to this
position and am excited to serve as chairman of the SPE Automotive Division,"
said Shah.  He will chair the division from June 1, 1999 until June 1, 2000.
"During the next twelve months, I plan to increase the SPE's role in
automotive plastics education and scholarship and give priority to honoring
the individuals and companies that achieve plastic product design, materials,
and process excellence."
    Shah earned a Ph.D. in plastics engineering and polymer science from the
University of Massachusetts in Lowell.  A member of SPE since 1980, Shah has
chaired several technical, seminar and conference committees.
    Over the past 14 years, Shah has developed new plastics processes and
material technologies at Delphi and General Motors Corp. in different
capacities.  For example, Shah introduced gas injection molding technology to
Delphi and General Motors in 1991.  This process set the trend for molding
technology for many automotive applications in the United States.
    Shah holds 14 U.S. patents, including three for the Super Plug(TM) door
module, which has received six prestigious design and product awards.  Delphi
and GE Plastics launched Super Plug in 1995 after four years of co-
development.
    According to Gary Nordberg, Delphi's engineering program manager for
Modular Door Systems, "Super Plug was a pioneering product and process
innovation that brought a paradigm change in how Tier 1 suppliers approach the
door.  It proved that door module integration could be done with plastics,
thus saving weight, improving quality, and reducing assembly time through
reduced part count."
    "The Super Plug is a cornerstone of Delphi's broad door module portfolio
and the basis for the all plastic and combination steel-plastic door modules
that Delphi develops today," said Nordberg.
    On June 8, Shah was honored at the 5th Annual Automotive & Transportation
Interiors Scholarship Awards Banquet.  Delphi's Thermoplastic Polyolefin (TPO)
Instrument Panel, jointly developed with Mercedes-Benz and Mytex Polymers for
the Mercedes M-Class, received first place in the Materials category.  A first
in the industry, the TPO skin, researched by Shah and his team, is a water-
based coating that also uses closed-loop recycling in its manufacture.
    Last fall, Delphi became the first North American manufacturer to use TPO
skin in an instrument panel application.  The product, developed at Delphi's
Vandalia Engineering Center in Vandalia, Ohio, is used on the modular cockpit
Delphi supplies to the Mercedes-Benz M-Class program in Alabama.
    "My vision is to develop low-cost, all-olefinic-based automotive interiors
which will promote value-added recycling," said Shah.
    The use of plastics in automotive applications is increasing at a rapid
rate, according to a report by Market Research Inc.  Ten years ago, usage of
plastics averaged 150 pounds per automobile, while today it is 250 pounds.
Market Research Inc. expects that usage will reach 300 pounds per automobile
by 2009.
    The SPE provides and promotes the knowledge and education of plastics and
polymers worldwide.  The organization is dedicated to helping individuals in
the plastics industry attain higher professional status through increased
scientific, engineering, and technical knowledge.  SPE membership includes
35,000 individual members worldwide.  The Automotive Division is one of the
largest of the SPE's 21 divisions.
    Delphi Automotive Systems , with headquarters in Troy, Mich.,
USA, is a world leader in automotive components and systems technology.
Delphi's three business sectors -- Dynamics & Propulsion; Safety, Thermal &
Electrical Architecture; and Electronics & Mobile Communications -- provide
comprehensive product solutions to complex customer needs.  Delphi has more
than 196,000 employees and operates 168 wholly owned manufacturing sites, 51
customer centers and sales offices, and 27 technical centers in 36 countries.
Regional headquarters are located in Paris, Tokyo, and Sao Paulo.  Delphi can
be found on the Internet at http://www.delphiauto.com.