Novelis looks to accelerate aluminium part innovation with new roll forming development line

Novelis Inc, a subsidiary of Hindalco Industries and the metals flagship company of the Mumbai-based Aditya Birla Group, has announced the start of its new roll forming development line. The new development line will help Novelis meet industry demand for a process that can produce large volumes of high-strength aluminium auto parts.

Located at the company's Automotive Customer Solution Center in Novi, Michigan, a suburb of Metro Detroit, the new state-of-the-art roll forming development line will provide Novelis with the unique advantage of conducting full scope, year-round research and development on roll forming in-house. The round-the-clock access to the line will facilitate unmatched innovation and expedite the process to ensure complex, high-strength aluminium roll forming is developed, and process robustness is proven more swiftly.

As the automotive industry moves toward electrification, it is demanding faster production of lighter, greener parts. According to Novelis, “With the roll forming process, strips of aluminium are incrementally formed in a continuous fashion to form a desired shape having various degrees of detail and strength. Offering a process that is scalable and customizable, aluminium roll forming provides significant opportunities for production of high strength aluminium at scale. While roll forming is not new to the industry, its ability to produce complex high strength aluminium parts has yet to be fully developed and will require innovation and investment to maximise its potential.

Novelis' introduction of its own roll forming development line is a critical step to moving the technology forward. The shift to the mass production of aluminum-intensive vehicles is a natural next step as the industry prioritizes electrification and sustainability, as well as other benefits of aluminum, such as increased safety, reduced risk of corrosion and improved performance.

"The auto industry understands the benefits of aluminum and is looking to Novelis to develop technology that supports their growth initiatives," said Jamie Zinser, Vice President, Global Automotive, Novelis Inc. "One of these technologies is roll forming. We are introducing this development line to accelerate research and development, not to become a roll forming company. Our goal is to work with our automotive and Tier I partners to innovate and develop aluminum sheet technology that will support the electrification movement."

Novelis, a leading sustainable aluminium solutions provider and the world leader in aluminium rolling and recycling, is the first flat-rolled aluminium company to invest in its own roll forming development line, which demonstrates its commitment to innovation and developing new technologies that will swiftly bring the weight, sustainability and cost benefits of high-strength aluminium to the automotive market on a mass scale.

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