17 04, 2014

Aluminum Repair Drives Evolving Body Shop Workload

2015-06-18T15:33:05+00:00April 17th, 2014|

More and more auto manufacturers are looking at aluminum as a significant portion of a vehicle’s body. But what happens after the car hits the road and requires repairs? Body shops are discovering that they need to quickly get with the times in order to keep up. From Body Shop Business:

Ever since Ford announced the release of its new F-150, aluminum seems to be the talk of the industry. Due to Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFÉ) standards requiring automakers to produce more fuel-efficient vehicles, the maker of America’s best-selling vehicle turned to military grade aluminum alloy to make it 750 lbs. lighter.

But some shop owners aren’t too enthusiastic about the change. For one, purchasing special equipment to properly repair aluminum is a significant investment – one that some speculate will offer little to no return.

“The biggest challenge facing repairers isn’t becoming capable in aluminum repair; it is the downward pressure being placed on repairs from an expectation that somehow we are able to do more, and invest more, for a lesser return,” said Aaron Schulenburg, executive director of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS).

Dan Risley, president and executive director of the Automotive Service Association (ASA), estimates that less than 20 percent of the industry is ready to perform structural repairs on aluminum vehicles.

“I think a larger portion of the industry is capable of repairing non-structural aluminum parts, but they aren’t equipped to do it. Unfortunately, many of them aren’t properly equipped to do it.”

While the return on investment won’t just magically appear overnight, Risley says that the shops that make the investment in equipment and training will be the ones that survive in the end.

“It probably doesn’t make financial sense for [shops] to pursue it today if they don’t have the capital. However, it will start to even out as more mainstream vehicles, such as the Ford F-150, are manufactured. If you don’t do this at some point, you’re going to be blocked out from repairing those cars.”

And it’s not just the customers who will take their business elsewhere – shops will be facing increased scrutiny from insurance partners, too.

“Insurance companies are going to start identifying which shops are equipped and trained to repair [aluminum] cars,” said Risley. “So if you’re a shop that’s reliant upon direct repair referrals, quite frankly some of those referrals will never make it to your door because you can’t properly repair the vehicle.”

As with any industry, staying ahead of trends is the key to survival. As aluminum becomes more and more of an industry standard, the proper training and equipment for body shops will become a fact of life, not just a luxury.

10 04, 2014

Recycled Aluminum Saves Ford On Manufacturing Costs

2017-01-26T23:37:29+00:00April 10th, 2014|

Recycling is good for the planet. It can also be good for your wallet, at least when you lug in a bunch of cans to the recycling center — or, if you’re in the manufacturing business, when you want to recycle materials. That’s what Ford did when they started putting together the 2015 F-150, and their recycling processes actually shaved about 20% off of the final aluminum materials cost. From Car & Driver:

When Ford announced earlier this year that its new F-150 would employ aluminum for the majority of it’s construction, speculation that insurance, repair, and manufacturing costs would increase began to circulate almost immediately.

We investigated the first two concerns at the time, finding them to be less disconcerting than originally expected, and, judging by the majority of comments from our Backfires members, the enthusiast community agrees with us. But to be fair, it will be at least a year after the aluminum F-150 goes on sale before enough real-world data enters the information stream to completely understand the cost implications. Now, according to an article in Automotive News, Ford has found a way to improve efficiency on the manufacturing side via innovative recycling methods, saving the maker $124 per pickup truck as compared to traditional recycling methods, and cutting the per-truck cost of switching to aluminum to $750.

In short, the scrap from manufacturing gets recycled into usable aluminum for further manufacturing. It’s that type of innovation that is pushing the F-150 to the spotlight for both auto industry watchers and environmental pundits.

2 04, 2014

Tesla’s Aluminum Shield

2015-06-18T15:33:05+00:00April 2nd, 2014|

The only blip on Tesla’s radar over the past year or so has been that pesky battery fire problem. While these incidents have made for some spectacular videos, the truth is that they  occur in statistically minimal amounts. However, Tesla’s known for their innovation and attention to detail, and considering the coverage this issue has gotten, it’s no surprise that they’ve responded quickly – and aluminum is part of the solution. From CleanTechnica:

In response to two road debris-induced road fires that were front page news, Elon Musk announced the Tesla Model S will get a titanium-reinforced underbody shield. That should silence the haters and doubters who thought the Tesla was a firetrap.

All new Tesla Model S sedans built after March 6th have been equipped with the new battery shield, and existing Model S customers can get the upgrade, free of charge. The battery shield consists of three separate layers of aluminum and titanium designed to deflect and absorb energy from road debris before it ever reaches the battery pack.

Head over to CleanTechnica for videos of this new shield in action. If this issue was causing you to hesitate on purchasing a Tesla, the new shield might just change your mind.

5 03, 2014

Mobile Accessories Strike Gold With Aluminum

2015-06-18T15:33:05+00:00March 5th, 2014|

Aluminum is now the metal of choice for the car industry, but on a much smaller scale, it’s driving start-up Kickstarter campaigns to great levels of success. In Chicago, start-up companies are turning to our favorite metal to innovate new ideas for mobile device accessories. Thanks to a balance of design feasibility and sturdy manufacturing, it’s no wonder why aluminum has helped start-ups successfully pass the finish line on their Kickstarters. From the Chicago Tribune:

Apple, the maker of the iPhone, introduced machined aluminum designs in 2002 with the Power Mac G5, kicking off a love affair with the material that sends product designers into a frenzy.

“Machining allows a level of precision that is completely unheard of in this industry,” Jonathan Ive, Apple’s senior vice president of design, said in 2008.

We share details on three Chicago-area Kickstarter campaigns that recently passed their funding goals for iPhone and other mobile accessories made with aluminum.

They’re among thousands of companies that have benefited from the crowdfunding platform: Kickstarter announced on its site Monday that it had surpassed $1 billion in overall pledges. Those pledges involved more than 5.7 million backers and 57,000 successfully funded projects, according to the site.

To read more about these start-ups and their successful Kickstarters, visit the original article at the Chicago Tribune’s Blue Sky Innovation hub.

19 02, 2014

GM Looks To Aluminum For Manufacturing Overhaul

2015-06-18T15:33:05+00:00February 19th, 2014|

Tesla was just the start. Ford was the next domino to fall. Now, America’s other big auto manufacturer is ready to follow suit. General Motors must think aluminum is a good idea, because a report from the Wall Street Journal states that the company wants most of their truck fleet to have aluminum bodies by 2018.

 

General Motors Co. GM +0.66%  is accelerating efforts to field a largely aluminum-bodied pickup truck by late 2018, under pressure from federal fuel efficiency standards and archrival Ford Motor Co. F +0.17%  , according to people familiar with the matter.

 

The No. 1 U.S. auto maker recently locked-in supply contracts with Alcoa Inc. AA +4.56% and Novelis Inc., which are now working to increase their aluminum sheet production to supply the next-generation GM pickup, the people said. Aluminum sheet for automotive bodies is in such high demand that companies need to order it years in advance.

 

The push to develop what the industry calls an “aluminum intensive” large pickup marks an apparent change of direction for GM, which has pursued smaller and lighter weight steel-bodied trucks.

 

The article goes on to state that Chrysler, the other member of Detroit’s Big Three, is looking to increase fuel efficiency by looking at other options: transmission mechanics, axle efficiency, and gasoline options. From our perspective, though, we’re inviting them to come take a look at the aluminum revolution — we think they’ll be pleased with what they find.

28 01, 2014

Bloomberg TV On The New F-150

2017-01-26T23:37:29+00:00January 28th, 2014|

The Detroit Auto Show has come and gone, and now that the curtain has been lifted on Ford’s aluminum-based 2015 F-150 trucks, mainstream pundits are looking at the impact of aluminum on the auto industry. Bloomberg TV dedicated an entire segment to this topic, and you can see the whole video here.

Some highlights include:

  • The fact that the aluminum body makes the F-150 700 lbs less.
  • Audi has been using aluminum for more than 20 years.
  • The F-150 is “the most important” unveiling of the year.

Now that the public has seen the F-150, dealerships are considering the logistics of this new model, particularly the repair. More on that in the coming weeks.

22 01, 2014

Ford Finally Unveils Aluminum-Based F-150

2015-06-18T15:33:06+00:00January 22nd, 2014|

It’s finally here — the largest shift in the American auto industry in years. Just a few days ago, Ford unveiled the 2015 version of the long-running F-150 truck. With the unveiling came plenty of questions and reaction, and there’s going to be much more of that as we get closer to the vehicle’s official public on-sale. For now, though, let’s see what some of the critics say.

 

From The Car Connection:

 

At the top of that list of changes is an aluminum body. Far from the flimsiness of a beer can, the high-strength aluminum alloy in the F-150’s body is, Ford claims, tougher than ever. The material also allowed Ford to execute an exterior design that’s more aerodynamic while retaining the “signature Built Ford Tough appearance” derived from the “machined cubic-style shapes,” according to the F-150’s chief designer, Gordon Platto. Inside the 2015 Ford F-150, the look isn’t such a great departure from previous versions of the pickup, though there’s a new level of upscale look and feel on premium trims. Blocky shapes and sturdy structures are the visual theme to back the F-150’s chosen mission.

 

From CNET:

 

Aluminum bodies are nothing new, but putting an aluminum body on a machine destined for as much punishment as your average truck seems like a recipe for disaster. The rust-free nature of aluminum is an obvious advantage, but the durability of aluminum is lower than steel. To ensure that the aluminum bed could cope, Ford started by making prototype bodies that were visually identical to the current truck. Without telling anyone, the company deployed them in the real world.

 

The company went through four separate generations of previous-gen aluminum bodies, making subtle revisions each time to get the right thickness where needed for durability, the right thinness where possible to save weight and cost. These were mounted on the previous truck’s frame, and Ford engineers were even so bold as to give these prototypes out to privileged customers for testing — unbeknownst to them. One aluminum-bodied prototype F-150 was sent to a Utah gold mine, its drivers told to treat it like any other truck. They did, and the 1.4mm-thick aluminum used in the bed proved even more durable than the steel in the current model.

 

This is just the beginning, though the early reports are positive. Of course, traditional thinking can sometimes be hard to break, but in the end, performance usually wins out — and given the potential of the aluminum-based F-150, that’s a good thing.

8 01, 2014

Aluminum’s “Tough” Side On Display At Detroit Auto Show

2015-06-18T15:33:06+00:00January 8th, 2014|

For years, Ford’s slogan has been “Ford Tough!” Now, with the North American International Auto Show less than a week away and the new aluminum-bodied Ford F-150 ready for its big coming out party, Ford is looking at how to reinforce that familiar statement. Despite aluminum being a significant part of the manufacturing process for many successful vehicles, including Tesla’s award-winning Model S, the notion of being “tough” is still a sticking point with the core buyers of F-150 trucks. Enter Ford’s marketing gurus (courtesy Clean Technica):

Ford has asked suppliers at Alcoa to provide a sample of “military grade aluminum” for display alongside the new 2015 Ford F-150 set to be unveiled at January’s Detroit Auto Show. It’s believed that the move is meant to put a tough “spin” on Ford’s extensive use of aluminum, rather than steel, in the construction of the new pickup, and keep the marketing message away from any comparisons to pop cans.

Ford’s switch to aluminum in the new 2015 Ford F-150 is part of a recent Ford trend to tech-ify its trucks, improve the fuel economy of its truck fleet, and is a logical next step in the modernization of Ford’s truck line-up, along with better suspension, more isolated cabins, and the addition of the Ecoboost 6-cylinder turbo engines which supplanted the old-tech “Modular” V8 engines in Ford’s half-ton trucks a few years ago.

Whether or not the public will “buy” the idea of tough aluminum, though, remains to be seen. “This is already the most significant debut at the auto show,” explained Joe Langley, a production analyst for industry research firm IHS Automotive in a telephone interview with Bloomberg a few days ago. “Everybody’s going to be dissecting (the 2015 Ford F-150) for a long time, especially since Ford will be taking such a big gamble.”

The NAIAS opens its doors on January 13. Chances are, you’ll see plenty of aluminum-related chatter across the motor industry in the coming weeks due to this, so stay tuned.

7 01, 2014

Aluminum, The Instigator For African Crime Enterprises

2015-06-18T15:33:06+00:00January 7th, 2014|

2013 saw plenty of big news for the aluminum industry. As we gear up for significant debuts at the Detroit Auto Show in a few weeks, let’s usher in the turn of the calendar with something more along the lines of the absurd. That’s right, it’s time to beware of aluminum — foil, no less — as a low-tech means of stealing candy and cigarettes from gas stations.

 

How does that work? The FBI wants you to know, via Businessweek:

 

Here’s how the theft goes down. First, someone climbs onto the roof of a store and uses aluminum foil to block the satellite antenna that the store uses to receive data from credit card companies to authorize sales—a gadget called a feed horn that looks like this.

 

With the signal blocked, stores can’t validate credit and debit card transactions. That opens the door, so to speak, for bandits to enter the store, load up their carts with electronics or cigarettes, and pay with stolen credit cards. Retailers often permit sales even if the link with the credit card company is down, figuring the transactions will go through once the connection is back up.

 

When contacted on Friday, FBI spokeswoman Whitney Malkin said no one was available to answer questions about the scheme.

 

The agency has blamed “African criminal enterprises” for the crimes. The stolen loot is “taken to New York, where it may be sold at pawn shops or exported to Africa,” the FBI’s Mollie Halpern explains in this podcast (yes, podcast) about the scam.

 

The effectiveness of this technique sounds a bit dodgy, but who knows? While we don’t recommend scaling buildings to their satellite antennas with rolls of aluminum foil, we have to admit that part of us is curious to see if it actually works!

12 12, 2013

When Aluminum Met Grapefruit

2015-06-18T15:33:06+00:00December 12th, 2013|

You don’t usually think about fruit when discussing metals or manufacturing. However, German scientists have found a way to bring the two together in conversation. Their new innovation has produced possibly the most advanced aluminum-based alloy we’ve ever seen, and the inspiration comes from the peel of a simple piece of fruit — specifically, the pomelo, which is an Asian grapefruit. From Popular Mechanics:

Materials scientists in Germany figured out how to build the same type of structure of aluminum. They say their new fruit-inspired composite has the best attributes of pure aluminum and an aluminum-silicon alloy, yielding a hybrid that resists deformation and is tough to break. Their work appears this week in the Journal of Materials Science.

Many man-made composite materials sacrifice one mechanical property for the sake of another. Either they’re tough, absorbing plenty of energy without rupturing, or they’re strong, withstanding greater force without yielding. Ceramic, for example, is strong but not very tough—it doesn’t bend, but it breaks. Some natural structures, however, such as bone, wood, and sea sponge needles, nicely combine both attributes.

Pomelos do this, too, but their peels are not as well understood. So researchers from the RWTH Aachen University and the University of Freiburg sliced open some store-bought fruit, sputtered their peels with gold and studied them under a scanning electron microscope. They saw that the cells were laid out in a hierarchical structure, comprising a foamy matrix of struts that shields the juicy fruit within. With their fluid-filled interiors and sturdy walls, the cells essentially act as pneumatic structures, with a ductile center surrounded by a strong outer shell.

Fruit-inspired metals may be the wave of the future when it comes to manufacturing. However, there’s still one trick that remains to be seen. This new alloy may be inspired by fruit, but is it also edible? We’re guessing this one’s a long, long way off.

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