The Future of Car Safety Starts Here
And it's better for all of us
Did you know that in a car accident, the steel in the bodywork largely determines how well you are protected as an occupant? That’s why we joined forces with car manufacturers, universities and other academic partners to develop a new generation of steels that is both extremely strong and highly formable.
We are developing a new type of warm-press formed steels that can also be formed at much lower temperatures. This adds new benefits to the range of solutions we already offer. Our clients use less energy in production, which is better for the climate.
Absorb impacts up to 2 times higher
During the R&D phase we’re also already seeing less tool wear and fewer microcracks during manufacturing of components. The steel is good protected against corrosion thanks to a specific zinc coating. After forming the elongation remains high – meaning it can absorb impacts up to 2 times higher. This corresponds to an increase of roughly 40% in speed. Radhakanta Rana (R&D): “In everyday terms: cars made with these steels will keep you safer in a crash.”
Collaboration makes the difference
This project is funded by the European Research Executive Agency and coordinated by Radhakanta Rana from our R&D department. We collaborate with RWTH Aachen University (Germany), Volkswagen (Germany), RISE (Sweden), CENIM‑CSIC (Spain) and the Institut de la Corrosion (France). Thanks to this unique partnership, we know exactly which crash‑test requirements we need to meet and we work with real designs from automotive production.
Of course, we also bring our own extensive experience in metallurgy, coatings and warm press forming to the table, and our top scientists are closely involved in the project. As a result, we not only have a clear picture of what the steel of the future must deliver – we can already apply it directly in critical safety components such as door pillars, side‑impact beams and roof members. These are exactly the parts designed to protect you if something goes wrong on the road.
Safer and more efficient
Marketing Manager Hans Brouwer: “It’s still early days, but thanks to our partners we take big steps toward getting it on the road.” Radhakanta Rana adds: “If everything goes well, this new steel could gradually replace older materials and help make both regular and electric cars safer and more efficient.”
Dr. Christina Sunderkötter, Project Manager Sustainability Solutions from Volkswagen Group adds: “In addition to reducing environmental impact, we want to offer a steel solution that meets the requirements of future vehicle production: better safety performance, simpler manufacturing processes, and lower part-making costs. Together through WarP‑AHSS, we are working on the next evolution in AHSS technology.”
In the photos, you can see the project partners during their visit to Volkswagen and CENIM-CSIC. Together, Tata Steel, RWTH Aachen University, Volkswagen, RISE, CENIM‑CSIC and the Institut de la Corrosion are working on developing new, more sustainable steel grades for future‑proof automotive components.
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