Cost Toppled as Top Auto Industry Challenge, Optimism for Collaboration Soars, According to 2008 DuPont Automotive/SAE Survey
Chart 1Environmental issues – “Fuel Economy/CAFE” and “Emissions/Clean Air Regulations” – top the list of challenges facing the automotive industry, according to the 14th annual DuPont Automotive/SAE Survey of automotive designers and engineers who plan to attend the SAE World Congress next week in Detroit (see attached chart).
Increasing collaboration across the value chain will strengthen the industry, according to 53 percent of the respondents; and while the success rate today is sporadic, the effectiveness of collaboration significantly will improve during the next five years.
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“While 32 percent say cost reduction is the industry’s top challenge, that’s flat year over year,” said Chris Murphy, automotive director – Americas, for DuPont Automotive Performance Materials. “What’s really new this year is the emphasis on the environment. We not only see significant increases in the number of respondents who say environmental challenges are paramount, we see environmental challenges driving fuel, powertrain and vehicle design and development and as a differentiator in the consumer marketplace.
“Put it all together with insights into how best to strengthen the industry, and the mantra for automotive designers and engineers this year is: ‘work together to design and develop cost effective, fuel efficient, environmentally friendly vehicles’,” Murphy said.
To support that drive, DuPont Automotive has launched several new material families and technology solutions, including:
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- MetaFuse™ nano-metal/plastic hybrids with the strength and stiffness of metal combined with the design flexibility and lightweight benefits of high-performance thermoplastics to help take the weight out of structural automotive components.
- DuPont™ Renewably Sourced™ Materials – high-performance, bio-based materials and biofuels that are made, in whole or in part, from renewable agricultural feedstocks such as corn, soybeans, sugar cane and wheat, rather than petroleum. Today, nine product families have been launched, including DuPont™ Sorona® polymer, DuPont™ Sorona® EP thermoplastic polymer, DuPont™ Hytrel® RS thermoplastic elastomer and DuPont™ Zytel® long chain polyamides.
The annual DuPont Automotive/SAE survey of OEM and supplier designers and engineers planning to attend the 2008 SAE World Congress was conducted by Consumer Insights, Inc. DuPont Automotive has posted results in a White Paper titled “Environment Leads SAE Survey Results” available at automotive.dupont.com. Some highlighted findings follow:
- Fuel efficient/environmentally friendly vehicles (Chart 3) are very important to consumers, say 54 percent of respondents. Forty one percent say enhanced safety and 37 percent say improved comfort and convenience are very important to consumers.
- For the fifth consecutive year, alternatively powered vehicles are predicted to have the greatest impact on the industry. Sixty percent selected alternatively powered vehicles in 2008, while 15 percent selected safety features and 16 percent selected electrical/electronic advances.
Future is Bright for Diesel
- Fifty percent of respondents see diesel engine technology (Chart 4) as a key focus to help achieve 2020 efficiency regulations (35-mpg in U.S. and sub-120g/km CO2 in Europe), while 46 percent say hybrid-electric powertrains and 42 percent say extensive use of lightweight materials.
- Optimizing diesel and hybrid-electric engines will dominate engineers’ work (Chart 5) for the next 10 years; say 25 percent and 24 percent of respondents, respectively.
- In 10 years, vehicles will run on bio-based diesel fuel (27 percent); petroleum-based diesel (20 percent) and E85 (20 percent). Only 18 percent predict gasoline will dominate.
Material Matters
- Cost reduction is still one of the top material selection criteria, say 91 percent (Chart 6), but weight reduction jumps to the top of the criteria list for 82 percent, up from 66 percent last year.
- Poised to grow the most over the next 10 years are advanced composites, say 62 percent of respondents. Bio-based, renewable materials will grow the most, say 26 percent; the same number who predicts aluminum will grow the most.
DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.
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04/10/2008
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