Automotive

Mass Transit 31 Aug 2015

Some thoughts on the M&A "heat wave"

CompositesWorld's editor-in-chief Jeff Sloan takes some admittedly educated guesses at the significance of the six momentous acquisitions that were announced in the short space from mid-July through early August in the composites industry.

Automotive 26 Aug 2015

Automated preform process boosts properties and cuts cycle time

Fiber Patch Placement (FPP) achieves optimized fiber orientation for up to 150% increase in stiffness and reduced cycle time, weight and material waste.

Compression Molding 3 Aug 2015

Carbon composite spring: Big performance, small package

Disc spring stack is lighter, reduces friction and can be performance-tuned.

Mass Transit 31 Jul 2015

Additive manufacturing: The past, present — and future — of composites

A regular CW columnist and the chief commercialization officer for the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI), Dale Brosius offers this insightful look into why it's unwise to use the terms "3D printing" and "additive manufacturing" interchangeably.

Aerospace 31 Jul 2015

IP vigilance: Good business?

CW editor-in-chief Jeff Sloan observes that in the composites industry, where much of what is considered to be trade secrets and proprietary knowledge really isn't, a better course might be to share that knowledge and, thus, advance the industry as a whole.

Biomaterials 31 Jul 2015

SPE’S ACCE 2015 Preview

Automotive composites remain a hot topic in the Motor City.

Marine 31 Jul 2015

CW Business Index at 50.4 – First growth in two months

Steve Kline, Jr., the director of market intelligence for Gardner Business Media Inc. (Cincinnati, OH, US), the publisher of CompositesWorld magazine, outlines the results of the CompositesWorld Business Index survey for June 2015.

Carbon Fibers 16 Jul 2015

Resins for the Fast Zone

An automotive supplier must have the ability to produce a composite part in a minute, or at least in minutes — not hours or days, the norm for composites in most other industries. Meeting that part-per-minutes goal is a huge hurdle that a few composite fabricators have cleared, and many more are involved in development efforts, with OEM or Tier partners. CompositesWorld reviews how resin suppliers have evolved their products for this critical market.

Automotive 13 Jul 2015

Shelby GT350R features carbon fiber wheels

Ford worked with Australia-based Carbon Revolution to develop the one-piece all-carbon fiber wheels, which save 60 lb in weight but provide better steering response.

Sustainability 9 Jul 2015

New target of carbon emissions standards: Heavy-duty trucks

New proposed emissions standards in the US are designed to cut carbon pollution from heavy-duty trucks and could expand the transportation lightweighting segment of the composites industry.