Global Automakers Still Deem Steel Their Material of Choice
5 January 1999
Global Automakers Still Deem Steel Their Material of ChoiceLow-Cost, High-Performance Steel Remains Dominant at Auto Show; The Most Recycled Material is Environmental Leader DETROIT, Jan. 5 -- Journalists and show visitors will see much that is new at the 1999 North American International Auto Show. But, they also will see much that is very familiar -- lots and lots of safe, affordable, lightweight and environmentally friendly steel. Manufacturers will demonstrate many auto applications using the strength that only steel can provide. The vast majority of production cars, sport utility vehicles and light trucks, along with a profusion of concept vehicles, use steel as their primary material for structures, body panels, closures, bumpers and wheels. And with good reason: In spite of aggressive steps by competing materials, steel provides the safety and protection that consumers demand at a cost that's attractive to automobile manufacturers and with a recycling rate that tops other materials. Steel continues to maintain its dominant position as the material of choice for vital structural, performance, crash energy management, and other significant applications. "Steel continues to represent a 55 percent share of average vehicle weight over the past dozen or more years because the steel industry has continually improved the performance of its material, significantly advancing the benefits of steel while severely limiting opportunities for competing materials to gain much at steel's expense," said Darryl Martin, senior director of automotive applications for the American Iron and Steel Institute. "Today, 85 percent of aluminum usage is in cast and other non-sheet applications -- engine blocks, transmissions, heat exchangers and wheels. Very little steel sheet has given way to competing materials." Steel is the world's most recycled metal. It is the chief reason for the nearly 100 percent recycling rate for out-of-service automobiles. Steel is easy and inexpensive to recycle as it uses magnetic separation and requires no sorting by alloy in advance. Furthermore, steel can be recycled into new steel for any applications, including high strength steels for light weight applications. Steel is an unsurpassed material for producing crashworthy vehicles. Steel's inherent properties enable designers to create crumple zones fore and aft of the occupant compartment, itself a steel safety cage that surrounds and protects the driver and passengers in crashes. The steel industry's programs to advance automotive steel design, including ULSAB, ULSAS, ULSAC (UltraLight Steel Auto Body, Suspensions and Closures, respectively) and LTS (Light Truck Study) projects, have shown the significant weight-reduction and performance-improvement potential of automotive sheet steel. For example, ULSAB demonstrated weight reduction of the body structure of up to 36 percent, compared to benchmarked vehicles, with a substantial improvement in performance and at no increase in cost. These low-cost, high-performance solutions enhance steel's competitive position and increase the difficulty for competing materials to displace the incumbent steel. The steel industry's next major project will build on the success of ULSAB by aiming at the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV) target of a 2000-pound curb-weight vehicle that gets up to 80 miles per gallon. The new steel project seeks to demonstrate and communicate the capabilities of the steel industry to meet society's demand for safe, affordable, environmentally responsible vehicles for the 21st Century. More specifically, the new steel project will use breakthrough technologies that employ the innovative use of steel in automotive applications. These innovations will: * reduce energy consumption * enhance safety * foster high volume production * maintain affordability * leverage steel's unmatched repairability and recyclability. The steel industry's continuing work to improve steel-based solutions supports the automakers efforts to produce vehicles that reduce emissions of harmful greenhouse gases. American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) is a non-profit association of North American companies engaged in the iron and steel industry. The Institute comprises 50 member companies, including integrated and electric furnace steelmakers, and 170 associate and affiliate members who are suppliers to or customers of the steel industry. For a broader look at steel and its applications, the Institute has its own web site at http://www.steel.org. The Automotive Applications Committee (AAC) is a subcommittee of the Market Development Committee of AISI and focuses on advancing the use of steel in the highly competitive automotive market. With offices and staff located in Detroit, cooperation between the automobile and steel industries has been significant to its success. This industry cooperation resulted in the formation of the Auto/Steel Partnership, a consortium of DaimlerChrysler, Ford and General Motors and the member companies of the AAC. This release and other steel-related information are available for viewing and downloading at American Iron and Steel Institute/Automotive Applications Committee's website at http://www.autosteel.org. Automotive Applications Committee member companies: AK Steel Corporation Acme Steel Company Bethlehem Steel Corporation Dofasco Inc. Ispat Inland Inc. LTV Steel Company National Steel Corporation Rouge Steel Company Stelco Inc. US Steel Group, a unit of USX Corporation WCI Steel, Inc. Weirton Steel Corporation