The changes in the automotive industry landscape, in combination with regulatory requirements and insurance ratings (such as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety [IIHS] side impact and enhanced roof crush), have challenged original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to develop innovative mass-efficient body structure designs that not only meet more stringent safety requirements, but also provide the design flexibility to assemble multiple vehicle designs on one vehicle platform.
Enhancements in structural bonding technologies have also enabled OEMs to successfully integrate dissimilar materials, such as magnesium, aluminum, carbon fiber laminates and different grades of steel, to obtain optimal structural efficiency and strength-to-weight ratio. In addition, as OEMs begin to take full advantage of structural adhesive technology, they are able to develop vehicles that meet or exceed all performance requirements at lower system costs. Vehicle costs can be lowered by using structural adhesives to reduce the number of spot welds and down-gauge steel. Investment cost can also be reduced by minimizing the number of weld stations by replacing them with highly efficient adhesive stations.