New process for creating complex panels

Jon Lawson

UK firm Impression Technologies has announced the award of funding through the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK Ltd (APC) to further develop and validate its HFQ technology for use in the global automotive industry. 

The total project value is £9.5 million, with £4.8 million in funding through the APC, awarded as part of its seventh round of funding. Impression Technologies will lead the RACEForm project with a world class consortium including Gestamp, Innoval Technology Limited, Imperial College London and Brunel University London. 

The 30-month project starts in November and will focus on validating the technology for the mass production of complex, deep drawn, high strength aluminium structures for body in white and chassis applications and help establish the technology as a global standard for aluminium light-weighting worldwide. 

The HFQ technology, for which Impression Technologies holds the exclusive global rights, offers OEMs significant savings in weight, cost and system complexity through its ability to produce deep drawn high strength aluminium alloys with low cycle times and no spring back. Impression Technologies is pleased to be working with Gestamp, a global leader in the design, development and manufacture of metal components for the automotive sector, to achieve safer, lighter and more efficient vehicles using HFQ technology. The consortium will also work in partnership with a major UK-based passenger car OEM and a producer of aluminium. 

Jonathan Watkins, Impression Technologies’ Chief Executive Officer said: “We are delighted that APC has chosen to back our HFQ technology. We look forward to working together with Gestamp and the other consortium members in collaboration with our OEM and aluminium partners to further develop it for mass production and to establish a global industry standard.”     

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