Aluminum producer Alcoa has stated that it expects to more than triple its sales of aluminium sheet to automakers by 2015. A drive to reduce vehicle weight is largely responsible for the shift away from steel.
Revenue from auto sheet is expected to surge to $580 million by 2015 from $160 million last year, Randall Scheps, global automotive marketing director, said in a telephone interview with Reuters.
"It is moving from the very expensive, luxury vehicles into the mass market vehicles. That's what so exciting about what's going to happen in the next two or three years," Scheps said.
The OEM is being forced to cut weight to meet upcoming emission standards. Some car companies are instead pursuing high-strength steel instead of aluminum, due to its lower cost.
Aluminum is used extensively in engine blocks, heat exchangers, transmissions and wheels, but its use in body panels has generally been limited to high-end vehicles. Alcoa has reason to believe that is about to change.
A statement from the company says the use of aluminum in car bodies in North America is expected to quadruple by 2015. Alcoa also expects the use of aluminum elsewhere in the vehicle to grow in the same period.
"Out to 2015, those programmes and vehicles are already designed ... those decisions are already made. It's as close to reality as a projection can be," Scheps said.
Part of aluminum’s high cost is due to labour-intensive mechanical fasteners and welds used in parts production. Alcoa has also announced its 951 bonding technology, a pre-treatment that the company says will allow parts manufacturers to use adhesives instead.
豫公网安备41010502003434号