Auto industry strengthens its bond with structural adhesives

Cars have never been built solely from a single material, but the trend towards multi-material use has become increasingly popular in recent years, and has led manufacturers to investigate new assembly processes.

The multi-material ideology revolves around applying the right material in the right place, which in many cases results in the use of less traditional materials such as plastics, fibre-reinforced composites and magnesium. Despite the benefits this strategy presents in terms of gross weight reduction, it is not a simple process when it comes to joining these assemblies together. Traditional riveting or welding does not work when a metal part aligns with a composite part, for example, and has led to the development of advanced adhesives as a substitute.