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Tech Briefs
Driving business
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Table A - Historic use of underhood composites.
Table B - ACA forecasted total annual production of reinforced thermoset composites for the automotive and heavy-truck industries.
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Information about anything new is valuable, especially when business is concerned. "Having knowledge about future engine programs is useful to engine component suppliers because it gives us direction as to which cover programs - valve and cam, front timing chain, rear retainer covers - we should go after. Information helps you tailor your sales efforts," said Wil Conner, Automotive Development Manager for Bulk Molding Compounds, Inc., based in West Chicago, IL. Earlier this year, The Automotive Composite Alliance (ACA) hosted an inaugural conference devoted to under-hood automotive applications. "Our mission is to increase the use of thermoset plastic composites in the automotive and truck industries," said Mike Dorney, Chairman of the alliance, a group comprised of molders, material suppliers, tool shops, and service companies.
Underhood composite applications have realized an 80% jump in usage. "In 1996, underhood applications used 8 million kg (18 million lb) of composites, and that's gone to 14 million kg (30 million lb) in five years," Dorney said, adding that the majority of underhood composite zones represent cam covers, fuel tank heat shields, valve covers, oil pans, and engine covers.
According to Conner, "Thermosets offer the most cost-effective performance at elevated temperatures under load and pressure in automotive fluids (when) compared to metal and engineered thermoplastics."
Lifecycle analysis for quantifying environmental consequences also factors into material choice decisions. "There is a growing interest in the environmental impact of industrial products and processes," said Candace Wheeler, Staff Research Scientist, Chemical and Environmental Science Lab, General Motors Corp. Wheeler cited a valve cover analysis comparing composites, magnesium, and aluminum in which the composite valve cover "used less energy and produced fewer emissions." Environmental considerations should look at various metrics and be judged on a case-by-case basis, noted Wheeler.
In the U.S., Ford Motor Co., General Motors, and DaimlerChrysler are emphasizing overhead-cam engines for volume production vehicles. "If it's an overhead-cam engine, it has legs to go into the future. But if it's an overhead valve (pushrod) engine, then at the very least, I'd be asking the OEM what is the future of the program," said Jim Nader, Business Development Manager with CSM Worldwide, an automotive market research firm in Northville, MI.
Modular engines, base engines offered with multiple displacements, are forecast to gain vehicle installation quantities in North American vehicles. "For suppliers, modular engines are a volume gainer, so you want to target engine families," Nader said.
The driver of business may just be the engine of tomorrow.
Kami Buchholz
AEI September 2000
For more information, circle 205 & 206
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