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AEC to expand composites application to auto industry

13 Feb '15

2 min read

Aerospace composite supplier, Albany Engineered Composites (AEC) and automotive engineering and consulting company, Ricardo entered into a partnership to provide composite body, chassis and other structural components to the automotive industry.

Albany Engineered Composites has demonstrated expertise in the state-of-the-art design and manufacturing of composite parts noted for their impact and damage tolerance in the aerospace market.

As a world leader in passenger car and commercial vehicle design with car manufacturers and their suppliers, Ricardo will collaborate with Albany Engineered Composites to grow the use of proven advanced aerospace composites within the global automotive industry.

“The ability to lightweight with durability has been a technology enabler for our aerospace customers, and we believe our partnership with Ricardo can deliver the same technology advances to automotive customers,” says Brian Coffenberry from AEC.

Under the terms the agreement, Ricardo and Albany Engineered Composites will jointly explore the use of AEC technologies like 3D composites for providing the stiffness, strength, durability and energy absorption necessary to lightweight applications such as crash structures.

The synergies available from the AEC-Ricardo collaboration will be particularly attractive to automotive manufacturers and Tier 1 suppliers that want to reduce body and chassis mass, while also maintaining vehicle structural and safety performance.

“The agreement is excellent news for our global automotive customers as we work to find further weight reductions in vehicles to meet future CO2 reductions,” says Ricardo chief operating officer, Mark Garrett.

“As industry experts forecast significant reductions in the cost of carbon composites, along with continuous improvements in related manufacturing cycle times, this becomes an attractive solution for the structural components of future global car platforms,” Ricardo informs.

It adds, “The combination of Ricardo’s automotive engineering capabilities and Albany Engineered Composites technology, design and manufacturing capabilities should provide a unique opportunity to speed the implementation of advanced light-weighting solutions for our customers.” (AR)

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