Wauconda, IL - The Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC) is encouraged by the Obama Administration’s announcement on May 19, 2009 that sets a new national gas mileage policy increasing fuel economy, ultimately requiring a Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standard of 35.5 mpg in 2016.  Aluminum extrusions are an important part of the equation in helping to reduce vehicle weight in order to achieve better fuel economy.  Auto manufacturers today can make cars lighter while maintaining or even increasing a vehicle’s size, thanks to aluminum.  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Honda, and others have publicly stated that a vehicle’s size, not its weight, is the better determinant of safety, according to the Aluminum Association’s Aluminum & Light Truck Group. 

Aluminum extrusions have been used extensively by the auto industry to lower the overall weight of a vehicle, thereby increasing its fuel efficiency.  Using more aluminum will further improve vehicles’ fuel efficiency performance.  Auto aluminum use is at an all-time high, averaging 8.6 percent of vehicle curb weight in 2009 calendar year vehicles, according to data released by the Aluminum Association.  “However, there is a misconception among the general public that by using aluminum in order to reduce vehicle weight will require vehicle size and safety to be sacrificed or compromised. That’s simply not true,” said AEC Chairman Tom Schabel, CEO of Alexandria Extrusion Company in Alexandria, Minnesota. 

For example, Audi, the first automobile company to use aluminum to manufacture car bodies, has been employing aluminum space frame technology in some of their most popular vehicles.  The company pioneered a new-generation, high-strength aluminum space frame (ASF) that provides high body rigidity and strength to satisfy stringent comfort and safety requirements.  The space frame uses strong aluminum alloys in highly stressed profile components. The ASF structure weighs just 463 pounds, of which 69 percent (319 pounds) is extruded aluminum. Using aluminum extrusions is economical, as well.  New automaker Tesla Motors, Inc. in San Carlos, California has begun producing its high-performance, zero-emission electric sports car that accelerates from 0 to 60 miles-per-hour in 3.7 seconds.  The Tesla Roadster Sport features a chassis structure constructed from 40 aluminum extrusions bonded together using a hot-cure adhesive. According to Tesla Motors Senior Communications Manager Rachel Konrad, “The use of a bonded aluminum structure is particularly appropriate to the Tesla Roadster as it allows the structure to be produced with a relatively low investment cost.”  Using aluminum extrusions makes the structure light weight and provides torsional rigidity to withstand crash test loads; the rear portion of the structure helps support the battery pack, which is a solid and unmoving part that actually enhances the overall stiffness of the vehicle.  The chassis, which weighs a mere 158 pounds, is produced with 6060 aluminum alloy and the extruded sills feature internal webs, which enhance sectional properties without being detrimental to vehicle performance. “More aluminum is finding its way into fuel-efficient vehicles each year as, increasingly, designers and automakers are discovering that aluminum—and aluminum extrusions—are very effective at reducing weight without compromising safety” said AEC Board member Rob Swartz, General Manager for Kaiser Aluminum in Sherman, Texas.  

Using aluminum components to reduce weight offers important environmental benefits that extend beyond the vehicle’s life, because components may be completely recycled.  Recycled aluminum content use is on the rise.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency notes that nearly 90 percent of automotive aluminum is now recovered and recycled. The aluminum extrusion industry is poised to lead the way in developing the forward-thinking solutions automakers need to produce the next generation of ultra-fuel-efficient, safe, and appealing vehicles in the coming years. To learn more about aluminum extrusions visit www.aec.org.  

The Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC), established in 1950, is an international association dedicated to helping designers, manufacturers, engineers, architects, and others to discover why aluminum extrusion is the better material process for better products.  Specialized conferences, seminars, workshops, and meetings throughout the year provide an outlet where AEC members can confront and solve today’s challenges.  More than 150 member companies represent primary aluminum producers and other industry suppliers in addition to aluminum extruders operating hundreds of extrusion presses in hundreds of plants worldwide; these are the world’s leading manufacturers of extruded aluminum profiles—The Shapemakers.  For more information, contact AEC at 1000 N. Rand Road, Suite 214, Wauconda, IL 60084.  Telephone: 847/526-2010; fax: 847/526-3993; e-mail: mail@aec.org.  Visit the Council’s website at www.aec.org.

For more information, contact AEC at 1000 N. Rand Road, Suite 214, Wauconda, IL 60084. Telephone: 847/526-2010; fax: 847/526-3993; e-mail: mail@aec.org. Visit the Council’s website at www.aec.org.

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