Alumobility Project Reveals Converting Steel Intensive Mixed Material Production BIW to Aluminum Intensive BIW Reduces Complexity, Delivers 40% Weight Savings

News provided by

Apr 18, 2023, 11:51 ET

Project findings to be presented at Automotive Circle's Car Body Xperience Conference on April 26

ZURICH, April 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Alumobility, the global association committed to advancing the adoption of aluminum by automakers, will present findings of a recent study at the Automotive Circle Car Body Xperience in Rochester, Michigan on April 26. The project focused on converting all the steel parts on a mixed material production body-in-white (BIW) to a full aluminum BIW, which resulted in a 40% weight savings for the sum of the converted parts while also maintaining or improving the specified BIW attributes for safety, noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH).

The project further revealed that, when compared to steel intensive mixed material BIW, aluminum intensive BIW offered complexity reduction opportunities and reduced the total number of parts and joints while also lowering the gauge and grade combinations.

The project was done in conjunction with a leading global automaker, using one of its latest mixed material production battery electric vehicles (BEV) BIW structures. The BIW is the car body's main structure at a stage in manufacturing in which it has been joined together before painting and before the motor, chassis sub-assemblies, or interior & exterior trim, have been integrated into the structure.

"This conference is an ideal venue to present our latest project's findings. This is the audience we need to understand that shifting from steel to aluminum-intensive BIW delivers 40% weight savings for the same attribute performance, while reducing the total number of parts and joints. Our goal is to inform the automotive industry on the benefits of aluminum, and this conference helps us engage with OEMs, which is key to achieving our mission," said Professor Mark White, Technical Director of Alumobility, who will present the project findings to an audience of automotive engineers, designers and manufacturers at Car Body Xperience.

The overall topics planned by the Automotive Circle Car Body Xperience include:

How are different OEMs and their suppliers addressing these challenges individually?
Which solutions have been developed and implemented so far?
What are the best strategies and concepts for cost, time and resource efficiency?
In other words, how can car body engineering provide the best solutions for the challenges ahead?

To register for the event, click HERE.

About Alumobility

Alumobility is a global ecosystem of leading aluminum and downstream technology partners that supports automotive manufacturers in creating lighter, safer, smarter and more sustainable vehicles. The non-profit association was founded to focus on technical studies to advance the adoption of aluminum automotive body sheet (ABS). Working with global automakers, Alumobility is helping to fulfill the promise of a lighter, more efficient, more sustainable mobility future.

SOURCE Alumobility