SPE's Auto Division names 2010 Hall of Fame winner.
Press Release Summary:
Automotive Division of SPE® selected 1985MY Chevrolet® Cavalier® sedan from General Motors Corporation as 2010 Hall of Fame winner of 40th annual Automotive Innovation Awards Competition. This vehicle was first to use front and rear thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO) bumper fascias, and that application proliferated throughout North American vehicle production in addition to being adopted in Europe and Asia. Today, estimated 65-70 million vehicles are equipped with TPO fascias each year.
Original Press Release:
''85My Chevrolet® Cavalier® Named 2010 Hall of Fame Winner in SPE® Auto Innovation Awards Competition
TROY, (DETROIT) MICH. - The 1985MY Chevrolet® Cavalier® sedan from then General Motors Corp. (GM) - the first vehicle to use front and rear thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO) bumper fascias - was selected by the Automotive Division of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE®) as the 2010 Hall of Fame winner of the group's 40th-annual Automotive Innovation Awards Competition.
Automotive plastic parts considered for the Hall of Fame award must have been in continuous service in some form for at least 15 years and preferably have been widely adapted within the automotive or ground-transportation industries.
"This application has been so successful," said Nippani Rao, president, Rao Associates and co-chair of the 2010 SPE Automotive Innovation Awards Hall of Fame search committee, "that even after 25 years, 90% of all the cars I see when I'm driving have TPO fascias." The application not only proliferated throughout North American vehicle production, but also was heavily adopted in Europe and Asia. In fact, today an estimated 65-70-million vehicles each year are equipped with TPO fascias. Assuming a typical set of these parts on front and rear bumpers weigh a total of 14-pounds / 6.4 kilograms, this single application still consumes close to 1-billion pounds / 453,592 metric tons of TPO polymers annually worldwide.
Hifax® ETA3041 TPO reactor resin supplied by LyondellBasell predecessor company, Himont was used in the first injection-molded TPO fascias to replace reaction-injection-molded (RIM) polyurethane. The switch from urethane to olefin materials brought a number of significant benefits, including faster processing cycles, lower processing costs, 10-15% lower part weight, better weatherability, and improved low-temperature impact strength / ductility. Environmental benefits of the application were weight reduction and the ability to reprocess (recycle) in-plant scrap as well as post-consumer parts at end of vehicle life. Additionally, the injection-molding process and its ability to use a lot of tooling action led to greater design flexibility, facilitating the use of deep draws and undercuts in part designs, allowing more sculpted vehicle styling lines, and providing the opportunity to consolidate parts and mold-in attachment and structural features.
Initially, the TPO fascias were painted to match body panels, but later featured contrasting molded-in-color - typically black or gray. Buckeye Plastics-Worthington was the original systems supplier / molder for this application.
Betsy Jackson, director-Bumper, Fascias, & Lighting at GM will accept the award on behalf of the original GM team that worked on the program on November 9 at SPE's annual Automotive Innovation Awards Gala at Burton Manor (www.Burtonmanor.net) in Livonia, Mich. At 5:30 p.m. the main exhibit area will open for general admission and guests can review this year's Automotive Innovation Awards part nominations, as well as enjoy the specialty and antique vehicles that are always a highlight of the show. Dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the program itself runs from 7:00-9:00 p.m. For those who wish to extend merrymaking and networking, the ever-popular Afterglow - sponsored by Ticona Engineering Polymers - will run from 9:00-11:00 p.m.
SPE's Automotive Innovation Awards Program is the oldest and largest competition in the automotive and plastics industries. Dozens of teams made up of OEMs, tier suppliers, and polymer producers submit nominations describing their part, system, or complete vehicle module and why it merits the claim as the Year's Most Innovative Use of Plastics. This annual event typically draws 600 to 800 OEM engineers, automotive and plastics industry executives, and media. As is customary, funds raised from the event are used to support SPE educational efforts and technical seminars, which help educate and secure the role of plastics in the advancement of the automobile.
The mission of SPE is to promote scientific and engineering knowledge relating to plastics worldwide and to educate industry, academia, and the public about these advances. SPE's Automotive Division is active in educating, promoting, recognizing, and communicating technical accomplishments for all phases of plastics and plastic based-composite developments in the global transportation industry. Topic areas include applications, materials, processing, equipment, tooling, design, and development.
For more information about the Automotive Innovation Awards Competition and Gala, please visit the SPE Automotive Division's website at speautomotive.com/inno and speautomotive.com/awa, or contact the group at +1.248.244.8993, or write SPE Automotive Division, 1800 Crooks Road, Suite A, Troy, MI 48084, USA.
For more information on the Society of Plastics Engineers International or other SPE events, visit the SPE website at www.4spe.org, or call +1.203.775.0471.
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