MicromillTM to Unlock the Future of Automotive
Aluminum Products
- Micromill produces automotive alloy
that is 40 percent more formable and 30 percent stronger than
incumbent aluminum, while meeting stringent automotive surface
quality requirements
- Automotive parts made with Alcoa
Micromill® material will be twice as formable and 30 percent
lighter than parts made from high strength steel
- Alcoa Micromill reduces the time to
transform molten metal into aluminum coil from 20 days to 20
minutes
- Micromill technology has the
flexibility to transition seamlessly between producing rolled
products for automotive, industrial and packaging markets
- Alcoa has completed successful customer
product trials and is qualifying Micromill material for
next-generation automotive platforms
Lightweight metals leader Alcoa (NYSE:AA) today unveiled
breakthrough manufacturing technology, the Alcoa MicromillTM, that
will manufacture the most advanced aluminum sheet on the market.
The Micromill will enable the next generation of automotive
aluminum products, and equip Alcoa to capture growing demand.
The Alcoa-patented Micromill process dramatically changes the
microstructure of the metal, allowing the production of an aluminum
alloy for automotive applications that has 40 percent greater
formability and 30 percent greater strength than the incumbent
aluminum used today while meeting stringent automotive surface
quality requirements.
Additionally, automotive parts made with Micromill material will
be twice as formable and at least 30 percent lighter than parts
made from high strength steel. The Micromill alloy has formability
characteristics comparable to mild steels.
“Alcoa Micromill represents a major breakthrough in aluminum
materials,” said Alcoa Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Klaus
Kleinfeld. “This technology will unlock the next generation of
automotive products with strength, formability and surface quality
combinations never before possible. It will allow our customers to
redefine the boundaries of vehicle design, supporting the creation
of lighter, more fuel efficient, safer and more stylish vehicles
for the future.”
Micromill aluminum sheet that is 40 percent more formable is
easier to shape into intricate forms, such as the inside panels of
automobile doors and external fenders, which today are generally
made of steel. The 30 percent increase in material strength will
improve dent resistance, enabling the production of automotive
sheet that is thinner and even lighter than previous generations.
Automakers will also benefit from reduced system cost by
streamlining the number of aluminum alloys used in their
manufacturing process.
It will also be the fastest, most productive aluminum casting
and rolling system in the world. A traditional rolling mill takes
around 20 days to turn molten metal into coil, Micromill does it in
just 20 minutes.
The Micromill also has a significantly smaller footprint than a
traditional rolling mill, at just one quarter the size, and lowers
energy use by 50 percent. The Alcoa Micromill technology and the
differentiated metal it will produce are covered by more than 130
patents around the world.
According to Ducker Worldwide, North American aluminum
automotive sheet content per vehicle is expected to increase
elevenfold between 2012 and 2025 as consumers demand cars that are
lighter and more fuel efficient. The Micromill continuous casting
technology is designed to meet that growing demand for automotive
sheet, with the flexibility to serve the industrial and packaging
markets as well. The mill can easily shift product mix, and
transition to different alloys without ever stopping a cast.
Alcoa has secured a strategic development customer, and from its
pilot Micromill facility in San Antonio, TX, has also conducted
successful customer trials. Those trials have validated the
Micromill material’s unique characteristics, surface quality for
exterior panels and overall performance. Alcoa is qualifying the
material for use in next-generation automotive platforms.
Editor’s Note: Photos and videos available here or upon
request.
About Alcoa
A global leader in lightweight metals technology, engineering
and manufacturing, Alcoa innovates multi-material solutions that
advance our world. Our technologies enhance transportation, from
automotive and commercial transport to air and space travel, and
improve industrial and consumer electronics products. We enable
smart buildings, sustainable food and beverage packaging,
high-performance defense vehicles across air, land and sea, deeper
oil and gas drilling and more efficient power generation. We
pioneered the aluminum industry over 125 years ago, and today, our
approximately 62,000 people in 30 countries deliver value-add
products made of titanium, nickel and aluminum, and produce
best-in-class bauxite, alumina and primary aluminum products. For
more information, visit www.alcoa.com, follow @Alcoa on Twitter at
www.twitter.com/Alcoa and follow us on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/Alcoa.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains statements that relate to future events
and expectations and as such constitute forward-looking statements
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. Forward-looking statements include those containing such
words as “anticipates,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,”
“intends,” “may,” “outlook,” “plans,” “projects,” “should,”
“targets,” “will,” or other words of similar meaning. All
statements that reflect Alcoa’s expectations, assumptions or
projections about the future other than statements of historical
fact are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation,
statements regarding growth opportunities for aluminum in
automotive, commercial transportation, and other applications;
forecasts regarding the potential for new or breakthrough
manufacturing technologies, equipment, or processes; and statements
about Alcoa’s strategies, outlook, and business and financial
prospects. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of
known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors and are
not guarantees of future performance. Important factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those in the
forward-looking statements include: (a) material adverse changes in
aluminum industry conditions; (b) unfavorable changes in the
markets served by Alcoa, including automotive, commercial
transportation, and other markets; (c) failure to advance or
successfully implement, to achieve commercialization of, or to
realize expected benefits from, new or innovative technologies,
equipment, processes, or products, including, without limitation,
the MicromillTM continuous casting process, whether due to changes
in the regulatory environment, competitive developments, unexpected
events, such as failure of equipment or processes to meet
specifications, or other factors; (d) the business or financial
condition of key customers, suppliers, and business partners; and
(e) the other risk factors discussed in Alcoa’s Form 10-K for the
year ended December 31, 2013 and other reports filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Alcoa disclaims any intention
or obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements,
whether in response to new information, future events or otherwise,
except as required by applicable law.
AlcoaInvestor ContactKelly Pasterick, + 1
212-836-2674Kelly.Pasterick@alcoa.comorMedia ContactLori Lecker, +
1 412-553-3186Lori.lecker@alcoa.com
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