Volkswagen brought back its iconic Microbus in the form of a new electric, self-driving ID Buzz concept car. (Engadget)

The headlines from the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) were all about self-driving, electric, and connected cars. As these topics continued to be highlighted at NAIAS (see the new Volkswagen ID Buzz pictured above), there was also a focus on the importance of structural design.

Innovations in high-strength steel have allowed car makers to reduce the weight of vehicles without compromising safety. From large sedans to electric vehicles, advances in steel were spotted all throughout this year’s NAIAS with BMW’s new 5 Series and Ford’s new 2018 F-150 both showing off their lightweight aluminum and high-strength steel compounds that helped shed more than 100 kg from the BMW model.

The push to make vehicles lighter raises safety concerns. Lighter cars require lighter steel, and to make lighter steel there are typically other compromises that have to be made. POSCO, however, with its advanced high-strength automotive steel, has found the solution for automakers to make cars that are both safe and lightweight.

The new BMW 5 Series (left) and Ford F150 (right) made their debut at the North American International Auto Show. Both models used advanced high-strength steel to reduce weight and maintain safety. (NAIAS Image Archive)

POSCO’s Lightweight Auto Solutions Increase Safety

In 2016, POSCO became the first steelmaker to participate at NAIAS, displaying its advanced high-strength steel for automobiles, including its the PosM Steel and hot press forming steel (HPF). PosM Steel is five times stronger than other types of steel making it great for impact absorption and increased safety.

Providing a rapid solution upgrade for strengthened crash requirements, the safety of POSCO’s advanced materials has been certified by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). In addition, the strength and crashworthiness of POSCO’s advanced steel solution received a score of 5 stars from USNCAP and ‘good’ safety ratings on the IIHS Moderate Overlap Front and Small Overlap Front tests. By reducing possible safety concerns with high strength body solutions, POSCO is able to contribute to the advancement of global auto manufacturers.

With steel being more important than ever in the auto industry, POSCO’s commitment to improving the strength and safety in its automotive steel has helped it maintain its position as a global industry leader. As Gregory Warden of GM said, “there is a whole new generation of steel coming” – and POSCO is helping to lead the way by creating new solutions that guarantee safety and fit the unique needs of its partners.

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Advancements in electric cars, autonomous driving, car connectivity, and AI were on full display. Nissan and BMW unveiled plans to use Microsoft’s personal assistant technology, Cortana, with their cars. Honda became the first major manufacturer to develop an electric concept car specifically designed for ride-sharing. And as for self-driving cars – Nissan announced it would bring autonomous driving support to its Leaf electric car, Hyundai introduced one that would be affordable enough for the masses, and Audi announced a partnership with Nvidia to bring self-driving cars to market by 2020.

With all of the focus on electric cars and autonomous driving, it is easy to forget the basic building blocks that are needed to make these cars a reality. As Toyota Research Institute CEO Gill Pratt noted at CES, “Historically humans have zero tolerance of death by machine,” and for further adoption by the public, safety must be reinforced in autonomous vehicles. Increased safety in cars often goes hand-in-hand with heavier materials that can withstand more pressure. However, the push for more fuel efficient electric cars is pushing the industry to build with more lightweight components.

Car manufacturers are working to find the right balance between strength, weight, and price. The EPA has estimated that reducing a vehicle’s weight by 45kg (100lbs) will improve fuel efficiency by 1%, and while more lightweight materials do exist in aluminum and magnesium, they are often too cost-prohibitive for general use.

POSCO Body Concept Electric Vehicle

POSCO’s PBC-EV is both safe and lightweight

On this front, POSCO has been working to develop solutions for car manufacturers. The PBC-EV, or POSCO Body Concept Electric Vehicle, is one product of that research as POSCO sought to create a lighter car with the same strength and safety that is expected in today’s modern car market. POSCO focused on two main points when developing this lightweight car body. The first was the application of a combination of POSCO’s most advanced steels including TRIP, PosMCT950E, and PosMCT980B. Secondly, POSCO optimized existing construction methods and worked to introduce new techniques in order to both lighten and strengthen the body of the automobile. With its PBC-EV, POSCO was able to reduce weight by 26% while still maintaining the highest levels of body strength.

Magnesium technology

POSCO materials were used in the design of Renault’s EOLAB concept car

Many in the auto industry are setting their sights on magnesium as the future of car manufacturing. Magnesium can be easily molded and it is both lightweight and strong. Due to its high price, car makers have not fully embraced the move to magnesium yet, but POSCO is already preparing for this probability. Last month, POSCO’s World Premium Materials (WPM) – Magnesium Business Division organized a seminar with industry experts and automotive engineering students to discuss the future of magnesium in car manufacturing. Experts in magnesium, molding, bonding, and surface treatment were invited to speak about the application of magnesium technology in automobiles and students gave presentations on their own experience developing race cars.

Even though cars have been around since the late 19^th century, new ideas continue to force the industry to adapt and change. And whether it is optimizing existing manufacturing processes or working to utilize technologies for the future, POSCO remains committed to finding innovations in the auto industry.

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POSCO will exhibit its technology for the first time as a steelmaker at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit on Jan. 11 to 24.

TWIP is the “dream material” that has improved its intensity and machinability, and has been produced by POSCO for the first time as a steelmaker, representing the unique power of POSCO’s technology.

This steel’s intensity is five times stronger than other steel in terms of machinability, while withstanding up to 100 kg per mm². Therefore, it proves excellent in impact absorption and increased safety. This technology can be applied to bumper beams of automobiles. Many competitors have tried to develop TWIP, but failed to deploy it on a commercial scale.

HPF steel is hard to process when the intensity level exceeds 1.5 GP. To counteract disadvantage, HPF has increased its machinability through heat treatment. This product can be applied to center pillars to protect passengers from external accidents. POSCO has become the world’s first steelmaker to successfully produce a product in level of 2GPa. This product was first introduced as Renault’s 1 L concept car at the Paris Motor Show in 2014, and it earned favorable reviews.

POSCO will also showcase the 1GPa-TRIP, a recently developed steel with high intensity and ductility, and the PosM_XF (extra formability), the next generation TRIP with improved machinability.
For the NAIAS, POSCO aims to attract global automakers’ purchasing needs by revealing the most idealistic steel plates for automobiles.

About 30 high-strengthened and light weight products including POSCO’s original products are being exhibited at this year’s motor show. POSCO plans to get attention from global automobile companies by presenting the auto body made with most ideal and the world’s best car sheets.

The weight of the steel itself is about 26.4 percent lighter compared to mid-sized vehicles and has been verified in terms of safety. It received a five-star safety rating, as well a “good level.” which is the highest level possible, for internal performance evaluation conducted by Europe and North America’s automobile collision evaluation Institute, Euro NCAP and IIHS.

In addition, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), which measures the amount of CO2 discharged throughout the entire life cycle from material production to recycling, showed that the internal combustion engine body was 50 percent lower, and average electric car emission was about 9 percent less. It also gives off fewer emissions of CO2 compared to electric vehicles made with one-third the gravity of aluminum in comparison to iron.

POSCO currently supplies automobile steel sheet to the automobile manufacturers and component manufacturers, including the global top 15 companies such as Toyota, Volkswagen, and GM through 10 automobile production plants and 24 machining center. POSCO has proven its quality excellence by receiving “This Year’s Supplier” from the world’s leading automotive companies such as Toyota and GM.

POSCO is planning to expand 70 percent or more of World Premium (WP) steel sheet sales ratio by not only supplying products but also providing use of technologies such as molding and welding for customer’s best utilization of certain products through the development of solutions marketing activities.

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