Aluminum Makers Could Be Big Winners As Automakers Increase Use

Aluminum is a big metal component used to make everything from the space shuttle to military tanks, but beyond those specialized uses, aluminum is now going mainstream. The all-new Ford F-150 is the first time the lightweight metal will be used on such a large scale. Ford started testing aluminum five years ago. Ford's F-150 Chief Engineer Pete Reyes said, 'we ran crash tests, durability tests and we gave some of these vehicles out to real customers, they didn't know it, to test the durability of the box and that was one of the proof points.' The use of aluminum made the truck 700 pounds lighter, making it more fuel efficient. U.S. regulations will require automakers to build cars that use about half as much fuel as they do currently by 2025. Ford's Americas President Joe Hinrichs said, 'we've said that we expect to continue to reduce the weight in all the new generations of our vehicles going forward.' Aluminum prices are up roughly 10% since the beginning of 2014 but analysts don't expect automakers to rush back to using steel.