ROLES OF LIGHTWEIGHT MATERIALS AND ADVANCED HIGH-STRENGTH STEELS IN THE THAI AUTO-PARTS INDUSTRY

Chatkaew Hart-rawung

ABSTRACT:

To contribute to the environmentally friendly concept; trends and directions of vehicle manufacturing in the world automotive industry have focused on energy-saving vehicles and carbon-monoxide emission reduction. These affect Thai manufacturers to produce light and safe automobiles (the next generation) using lightweight materials and advanced high-strength steels (AHSS). The objectives of this study were 1) to study the readiness of enterprises in the Thai automotive-parts industry in producing automotive parts by using lightweight materials and advanced high-strength steels, 2) to gather their limitations in producing lightweight automotive parts, and 3) to seek recommendations from specialists in Thai Automobile industry to deal with the limitations. This study employed a qualitative methodology. The research instrument was an in-depth interview. The participants were 17 administrators of car-assembling companies, executives from Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 automotive parts companies/suppliers, and specialists from the automotive industry. The data gained were analyzed through content analysis. The results from this study indicated that small-sized companies in the automotive industry still lacked the knowledge and experience to produce their parts using lightweight materials, requiring external specialists to support them. On the other hand, big-sized companies and joint-venture companies are able to produce their parts with lightweight materials by themselves. In addition, the specialists recommended guidelines for the die design and production from the start to the end stage. The lightweight materials would be more widely used in the Thai automotive industry if their costs were approximately the same as the current materials.

KEYWORDS: Lightweight Materials, Advanced High-Strength Steels (AHSS), Thai Auto-Parts Industry

DOI: 10.62788/K7u3F1x8Lz

PUBLISHED IN: ICMIESS 2023 Conference Proceedings

DATE OF CONFERENCE: 1st - 2nd MAY 2023

CONFERENCE LOCATION: OKINAWA, JAPAN

PUBLISHER: EDUCATION STUDIO (THAILAND) CO., LTD.

ELECTRONIC ISBN: 978-616-7901-68-8

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