This third article in a series about Germany’s Lightweight Forging Initiative (begun April 2016) focuses on potential weight savings through innovative material selection and forging part and process design. In this segment, potential weight savings on a hybrid vehicle and heavy-duty truck are considered.

Meritor Inc. entered into an agreement with an affiliate of The Carlyle Group, a global investment firm, under which Meritor will acquire AxleTech for approximately $175 million. Troy, Mich.-based AxleTech designs, engineers, manufactures, sells and services drivetrain systems and components, axles and braking solutions. These capabilities will enable Meritor to offer global customers a wider array of differentiated products and solutions while further diversifying its portfolio.

Hydro will upgrade casting operations at its Husnes (Norway) facility with new technology to produce more advanced products for the growing automotive aluminum forging market. Newly developed in-house casting technology, low-pressure casting (LPC), will enable Hydro to provide materials with enhanced properties for various extrusion markets in which it is already a major material supplier. After the upgrade, Hydro Husnes will also be able to offer materials for forging. The Hydro-developed technology enables a shift from traditional extruded forge stock to cast forge stock, eliminating costly steps in the production process while improving quality. The as-cast surface is ready for forging, and homogenizing is not required. The upgraded facility will commence operations in 2020.

Are we starting to see the signs of an “extinction-level event” as future vehicle innovation accelerates?

Bharat Forge Ltd. (India) made a strategic investment of approximately $12.9 million in Tevva Motors Ltd. (Chelmsford, U.K.), a supplier of electric powertrain solutions for commercial vehicles and buses. These vehicles actively and autonomously manage the use of the range extender by utilizing Tevva’s patented software, Predictive Range Extender Management System (PREMS), to ensure only electric drive is used in low carbon zones and other city centers. By virtue of this investment, Bharat Forge has also acquired a license for commercialization of the Tevva technology within India and for strengthening its R&D activities in the e-mobility market.

American Axle & Manufacturing (AAM) will supply power transfer units (PTUs) for Ford Motor Co. crossover vehicles with all-wheel drive (AWD) starting with the 2019 Ford Edge and Lincoln Nautilus. The new contract expands AAM and Ford’s relationship while supporting global growth in the crossover segment. The PTU is part of AAM’s family of EcoTrac Disconnecting AWD solutions, which include disconnecting PTUs, multi-piece driveshafts, rear drive modules with electronic control units and torque transfer devices. AAM will manufacture EcoTrac in several facilities, including Three Rivers, Mich.; Guanajuato, Mexico; Changshu, China; and Świdnica, Poland. 

American Axle & Manufacturing (AAM) and Liuzhou Wuling Automobile Industry Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of Guangxi Automobile Group Co. Ltd., entered into a joint venture to manufacture driveline systems. The new venture, Liuzhou AAM Automotive Driveline System Co. Ltd., will begin production later this year in a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility located in East Liuzhou in China’s Guangxi Province. Once production begins, the company will manufacture independent rear axles and driveheads to meet the needs of the fast-growing segments of multi-purpose vehicles and crossovers, including vans, minivans and SUVs.

Nikola Motor Company selected Buckeye, Ariz., for its hydrogen-electric semi-truck manufacturing facility. The $1 billion investment is expected to create 2,000 new jobs. The 1,000,000-square-foot zero-emission facility will be developed on a 500-acre parcel of land on the west side of Phoenix. Construction is projected to begin by the end of 2019.