FLEXCRASH

Flexible and hybrid manufacturing of green aluminium to produce tailored vehicle adaptive crash-tolerant structures.

The Flexcrash project, coordinated by Eurecat, is developing a flexible and hybrid manufacturing technology using aluminium alloys and based on applying surface patterns by additive manufacturing onto preformed parts.

In the last years, the automotive industry has made important efforts focused on lightweight construction to meet the stringent Greenhouse Gas Emission limits and increase passenger safety. However, both aspects are counteracting because we need heavier structures to improve passenger protection, but heavier vehicles also produce more severe crashes.

In this sense, the Flexcrash project has the ambition to break this vicious circle of weight and crash resistance, producing safer, lighter, and circular crash structures with the objective to increase vehicle lightweighting and passenger’s safety. Additionally, the project’s solutions contribute to a more efficient use of resources (raw materials and energy), as well as optimize the materials supply chains, which turns ultimately in a significant cost saving.

The main pillars of the Flexcrash project are:

• Flexible and hybrid manufacturing technologies
• New crash tolerant structures
• Advanced testing on crash, toughness, fracture, and fatigue
• Crash simulation: from advanced material models to virtual testing
• Identification of safety needs for current and future mobility

The consortium of the project, coordinated by Eurecat through its Metallic and Ceramic Materials Unit, is formed by 10 partners from 5 different European countries.