Transport solutions in aluminium
Transport solutions in aluminium: The lightweight road to optimisation
Did you known that aluminium is a lightweight metal with high strength and good corrosion resistance? Moreover, thanks to the metal’s ductility, it is possible to develop individual aluminium designs that are tailored to each individual task. These properties make aluminium particularly well-suited to use in the transport industry.
Below is an overview of the many advantages that can be achieved if you choose to optimise your structures with aluminium solutions.
A strong and hardy structure with a low weight
Steel is largely used as a traditional material in the transport industry. You can achieve a number of advantages if you substitute aluminium for steel. This will substantially reduce the weight of the vehicle, while the right design will allow you to maintain excellent strength and rigidity. At the same time, as a result of the material’s high corrosion resistance, the aluminium parts of the structure only need a modicum of maintenance.
Lightweight structures provide long-term profitability
The density of aluminium is about 1/3 that of steel. According to the European Aluminium Association, aluminium parts currently stand for so much of the structure of an average lorry that the lorry would be around 800 kg heavier if these aluminium parts were replaced by steel. Likewise, the use of more aluminium parts can reduce the total weight of certain vehicles by around 2,000 kg.
The reduced weight of the vehicle makes it possible to transport more goods without exceeding the respective weight regulations. And if you continue to transport the usual amount of goods, this will reduce your fuel consumption. The use of aluminium as a substitute of heavier materials creates an opportunity to optimise the overall benefit, thereby creating financial advantages.
Meet the future with a more eco-friendly material
There is a wide range of possibilities for shaping aluminium, which guarantees a substantial freedom of design when it comes to the structure of each individual vehicle. Aluminium can be used in practically all vehicle parts but is a particularly popular material for designing floors, sides, doors, etc. in lorries. One of the major advantages of using aluminium is that you can design aluminium items exactly based on your respective need – with a focus on detail and dimensional as well as functional customisation.
The use of aluminium in transport solutions does not just offer financial and practical advantages. Aluminium also contributes to a cleaner environment and is easily recyclable. For example, weight minimisation by substituting aluminium for steel means that an average vehicle will emit approx. 28 kg CO2 less per kg of aluminium used if compared with a corresponding vehicle that does not use aluminium.
“In the future, the need for transportation can only grow, and when we therefore develop and customise a solution in aluminium in cooperation with the customer, this gives us a certain degree of satisfaction that we can contribute, by substituting materials or developing designs, to a reduction in CO2 emissions,” says Christian Pilgaard, Product Manager at Alumeco.
When aluminium is recycled, nearly 100% of it can be recycled, with only very minor material losses during the recycling process. The process itself requires approx. 5 % of the total amount of energy that is originally required to produce aluminium in new production. Moreover, the recycling process can be repeated an unlimited number of times, since the aluminium’s original properties are recreated on remelting.
Our transport solutions
As an aluminium specialist, Alumeco offers a large number of transport solutions in aluminium for specific designs of delivery vans, lorries, trailers and semi-trailer lorries. We offer a wide range of transport sections, including, among other things, floor sections, side member sections, support sections and edge sections. If you require other solutions than the ones presented above, do not hesitate to contact us so that we can develop, in partnership with you, an aluminium solution that is 100% adapted to your specific need.
We have just launched an entirely new product range that includes even more transport sections.
Sources: