Lightweight sedan sets new standards in mid-size vehicle segment
Novelis, the world leader in aluminium rolling and recycling, announced today that it is the supplier of aluminium sheet for the recently launched Jaguar XE. This brand-new addition to the Jaguar lineup, launched in Europe this fall and arriving in North America in 2016, is the first vehicle in the mid-size segment to feature an aluminium-intensive body structure.
Novelis engineers worked closely with Jaguar to deliver innovative, high-quality aluminium sheet for the vehicle’s structure, enabling the lightest, stiffest and most aerodynamic Jaguar sedan ever. The car’s advanced design features Novelis Advanz™6000-series alloys developed specifically for automotive skin sheet and structural applications. The XE’s state-of-the-art construction makes it exceptionally strong and light, contributing to fuel efficiency gains and emissions of less than 100g/km, while delivering superior driving dynamics and safety.
“Novelis is proud to be the supplier of aluminium sheet to Jaguar Land Rover, enabling novel, lightweight construction platforms, such as the XE,” said Pierre Labat, Vice President and General Manager Automotive, Novelis Europe. “The XE once again reflects the leadership of Jaguar Land Rover and Novelis in the design and production of high-volume aluminium vehicles and is another important milestone in body engineering, redefining the standard in its class.”
The new XE is the first all new car in the world to use a new, high recycled content aluminium alloy designed jointly by Novelis and Jaguar Land Rover for the automotive industry. The companies will extend their positions as leaders in sustainability by using high recycled-content alloys on all future Jaguar Land Rover platforms, reducing the overall carbon footprint in their products. Since 2013, the Novelis recycling plant in Latchford, UK has provided Jaguar Land Rover with a closed-loop recycling solution by converting the car manufacturer’s aluminium scrap metal into new material for automotive sheet.
As the world’s leading supplier of aluminium sheet to the automotive industry, Novelis’ research and technology capabilities have helped pioneer the adoption of aluminium in the auto industry. Today, Novelis aluminium products are featured in more than 180 models of vehicles produced by leading automakers around the globe. Novelis forecasts the global demand for aluminium automotive sheet will grow by approximately 30 percent each year through the end of the decade.
Since 2011, Novelis has invested more than $550 million globally to triple its automotive sheet capacity to 900,000 metric tons by 2015. Demand for aluminium is rapidly increasing as automakers strive to design a new generation of lighter, more fuel-efficient vehicles with reduced life-cycle emissions. Each 10 percent weight reduction can result in a five to seven percent fuel savings.
