TMCnet News
= Auto Indus Upping Use Of Aluminum To Meet Fuel Standards(Comtex Business Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)Apr 17, 2006 (Dow Jones Commodities News via Comtex) --By Allen Sykora Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES Aluminum has become the second most heavily used component in automobiles and light trucks, with use of the metal quadrupling in the last three decades as manufacturers increasingly rely on it to make vehicles lighter and thus more fuel efficient, industry officials report. Furthermore, they add, expectations are that demand for the metal from the auto industry will continue to grow. A recent report, commissioned by the Aluminum Association and conducted by Ducker Worldwide, found that passenger vehicles - including cars, light trucks, sport-utility vehicles and mini-vans - in North America now contain an average of 319 pounds of aluminum, a 16% increase from 2002. Back in 1973, the figure was 81 pounds. Misha Riveros-Jacobson, chair of the Auto & Light Truck Group for the Aluminum Association and president of Alcoa Auto and Truck Structures, said "2006 has the distinction of being the year in which the aluminum content of a vehicle will have increased to the point where it will surpass iron as the second-most-prevalent content in light vehicles." Aluminum has experienced "uninterrupted growth" within the auto industry for the three decades, she said. "By no means is aluminum a brand-new material in the auto industry," said David Cole, chairman for the Center of Automotive Research. "But it has really been increasing its penetration, driven heavily by the importance of trying to make cars lighter and therefore more fuel efficient." Globally, the evolution of aluminum in autos has varied in different parts of the world. North Americans have traditionally preferred larger vehicles, despite high fuel costs. Thus, explained Riveros-Jacobson, manufacturers have been turning to aluminum from iron and steel for engine components, power trains, drivelines, suspensions and steering mechanisms. Cast aluminum in transmission cases and engine cylinder heads "has become almost standard across the industry," said Cole. "There is significant movement toward aluminum in engine blocks." In Europe, where cars have tended to be smaller, aluminum has increased more in other areas, such as the body panels, frames, wheels, bumper beams and crash-management systems, said Riveros-Jacobson. The average amount of aluminum used in a European vehicle is around 260 pounds and the average in Japan is around 250. But while this is less poundage than the 319 for North America, the difference is mainly due to smaller cars in Japan and Europe, explained Riveros-Jacobson. "So in the places where we have replaced steel and iron with aluminum, we've still netted out - regardless of which poll you're talking about - at about a 7% content per vehicle," she said. Furthermore, she pointed out, there are 42 different vehicle models in Japan, North America and Europe that are defined as "aluminum intensive" for using 500 pounds or more of aluminum. Cole pointed out that in some cases, the use of aluminum can lead to the use of still more aluminum. "There is so-called secondary weight savings," he said. "If I can save 200 pounds in the engine now the suspension doesn't have to be as strong or large. You can take advantage of the lower weight in other places of the vehicle." Advantages Of Aluminum Offset Higher Cost Officials say the industry views the advantages of aluminum as important enough to offset the higher cost of the metal. "In just about every application, it's not a material where you would say it's home free," said Cole. "There is continuing competition between plastics, steel and aluminum that will continue to go on." But so far, aluminum is in demand not only to increase fuel efficiency but also to meet rules reducing emissions that contribute to the "greenhouse" effect. "A basic rule of thumb is that for every 10% in weight that you can take out of a car, you're going to get 8% better miles per gallon," said Riveros-Jacobson. Aluminum can also contribute to improved performance and safety for vehicles, she said. "A lighter vehicle will sell better in terms of having better acceleration and shorter stopping distances," she said. "All of those things make vehicles appealing to the consumer." As for crashes, "aluminum, pound for pound, will absorb two times more energy than steel can," said Riveros-Jacobson. "And it's stiffer than steel." In some cases, aluminum ultimately may be just as cheap as other materials in the overall manufacturing process despite the higher upfront cost of the metal, explained Cole. For instance, the industry has developed cast aluminum engine cradles. "If you have to assemble all of the steel parts, the cost of that assembly may offset the cost of using a more expensive material, which you can cast into the final shape very easily without having to assemble a bunch of parts," he explained. Yet another positive for aluminum is its recycling value, added Cole. Auto Use Of Aluminum Expected To Keep Growing Some industry projections suggest the use of aluminum in autos will continue to grow by 3% to 4% a year, or eight to 10 pounds for an average vehicle, reported Riveros-Jacobson. These estimates are based on the historical trends, extrapolations tied to fuel prices and expectations for future vehicle regulations. Riveros-Jacobson added that a recent determination by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also could lead to more use of aluminum in autos. Future fuel economy standards will be based on size of a vehicle, rather than weight. This, explained Riveros-Jacobson, is because a size of a vehicle is now viewed as a more reliable indicator of passenger safety in an accident than the weight of a vehicle. This could mean more demand for larger vehicles, if consumers perceive them as safer. And that could mean still more innovations using aluminum and other lightweight materials, in order to keep larger-sized vehicles light enough to meet fuel-efficiency standards, she said. -By Allen Sykora, Dow Jones Newswires; 541-318-8765; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires 04-17-06 1244ET |