Hemming of Thin Gauge AHSS Achieves Weight Savings

July 5, 2016

Jennifer Shuttleworth

The Auto/Steel Partnership, a consortium of North American automotive companies and the Steel Market Development Institute's Automotive Applications Council, announced its Hemming of Thin Gauge Advanced High-Strength Steel (AHSS) project achieved a 30% weight savings using thinner gauge AHSS for automotive closure panels. Conducted in an effort to assist automakers in meeting stringent fuel economy requirements, the project demonstrated thin gauge AHSS can be successfully hemmed into automotive closure assemblies; computer-aided engineering tools can be developed accurately, predicting results of hemming operations involving thin gauge AHSS; and post-hemming baking operations do not adversely affect hemmed thin gauge AHSS assemblies. "We took hemming to new limits and proved it with results. Thinner gage AHSS, real-world closure shapes, extremely tight breakline radii, and weight reduction in outer closures make this a winning project," said Giovanni Costa, project lead for the A/SP Hemming of Thin Gauge AHSS team and corporate hemming specialist at FCA US LLC. For more information, visit www.a-sp.org .