 BHP Steel will claim a world first
when it unveils the UltraLight Steel Auto Body at
the Melbourne International Motor Show in
February 1998.The
unveiling of the UltraLight Steel Auto Body
(ULSAB) takes the A$28 million international
project - which involves 35 of the world's
leading steelmakers - from a computer-generated
concept to reality.
Terry McDermott, national
sales and marketing manager - automotive, for BHP
Coated Steel - Australia, said the project
represents one of the great breakthroughs in
automotive design.
"The quest to find
weight reductions in automotive bodies, without
compromising strength and road safety, has been
an on-going challenge for the last two or three
decades," Mr McDermott said.
The ULSAB project was
conceived in 1992 by the American Iron and Steel
Institute, to study the possible weight savings
on an existing steel body of a medium sized car.
The results of the study,
conducted by Porsche Engineering Services in the
US, showed that significant weight savings could
be gained by starting with a "clean sheet of
paper".
Since then, BHP Steel as a
key member of the international consortium has
developed a number of the latest generation high
strength steels that could be immediately adapted
by any car-maker.
"The ULSAB design uses
advanced manufacturing processes and steels not
commonly used in automotive bodies," Mr
McDermott said.
"For example, ULSAB
relies on high strength steels, tailored blanks,
hydroforming and steel sandwich material to
provide lighter weight for maximum performance.
"These innovations
presented unique challenges requiring close
working relationships among design engineers,
steel manufacturers and component
fabricators."
The major aim of the
project was to prove that steel could deliver
significant weight savings in an age where fuel
economy, environmental considerations and safety
are equally prized, but without adding to the
cost of the vehicle body.
"About 70 percent of a
typical passenger car is iron and steel - 100
percent of which is recyclable," said Mr
McDermott.
"There are 123 million
cars on the road in the United States alone, of
which more than eight million are turned over and
scrapped each year.
"The ULSAB project
proves that steel offers new directions in
automobile manufacture and everyone will benefit
from the advances it introduces."
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