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Mass and cost savings remain strong drivers underlying material and process selection. Plastics have long been the materials of choice in many automotive applications based on the mass, cost, and other attributes that they offer relative to their metal counterparts. As structural demands increase, however, there comes a point at which plastics are no longer viable unless they are reinforced. Composites Products Incorporated has developed a proprietary in-line compounding thermoplastic compression molding process for forming glass reinforced thermoplastic parts. This process has been used to fabricate applications as diverse as skid plates, seat bases, and front-end module housings. As an example, Volvo is a licensee of the technology and molds the front ends of its S-70 and S-80 models using in-line compounding. The advantages of CPI's technology over competing processes are many.

The Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV), a collaborative government-industry R&D program, has laid out and initiated a plan for a “Supercar” with the following specifications: a fuel economy of 80 miles per gallon (2.9 liters/100 km), size comparable to a midsize, four door sedan, equivalent function in other performance areas, and cost commensurate with that of today's automobile. Together, the performance and cost goals are formidable to say the least. The PNGV projects that a 50% mass savings in the “body-in-white” (BIW) is a necessary contribution to meet the 80 mpg goal. The two most likely materials systems to meet the mass reduction goal are aluminum and carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites, neither of which are inexpensive relative to today's steel unibody.