2009-2010. However, Borick notes the industry has growth problems. “We have shut down three U.S.
plants, laid a lot of people off and shut down capacity that will never come back,” he said. “T ere are signifi cant price concerns. It is diffi cult in the U.S. to create any margin. [Custom- ers are] demanding a piece of jewelry for a commodity price. We are happy with the rebound, but what we are not happy with is the margins.” According to Dick Lilley, Lilley Associates Inc., Birmingham, Mich., a company that publishes a comprehen- sive overview of the North American wheel market biannually, the total consumption of wheels in 2007, prior to the market crash, was 61.2 million. Two years later, the market had fallen to approximately 39 million wheels. “When the crash hit and the mar- ket tanked, 20 million wheels evapo- rated,” Lilley said.
In 2011, Lilley estimates the market
will bounce back to more than 49 million wheels. After the closure of the casting assets of three major wheel providers, only about a half dozen cast wheel sup- pliers remain in North America to meet that demand. T is means high capacity utilization for the remaining cast wheel providers, but it also means an increase in foreign competition is possible. “Imports have been the biggest
change in our market the last couple of years,” Crick said. “China is the largest exporter of wheels into North America, and it has grown tremen- dously due to low cost supply.”
To Cast or Forge Lilley said that in 1987, instal-
lation rates of aluminum wheels on North American automobiles was 19%. In 1992, it was 35%. In ’97: 49%. T is year, the number is 73.3%. Aluminum wheels have gone from
holding less than one-fi fth of the marketplace to nearly three quarters. T e market penetration of alu- minum varies across diff erent types of automotive applications in North America. For passenger cars, which is expected to account for 21.4 million of the total market in 2011, steel main- tains an approximately 35% hold. On trucks, steel’s grip falls—fewer than 20% are forged and styled steel. “Aluminum took over in the early
2000s, when you could really see the pro- gression in trucks and SUVs,” Lilley said. “T e OEMs were just putting out alumi- num, and you were hard pressed to fi nd a steel wheel. T e minivans and crossovers in a variety of sizes have maintained [aluminum’s place] or pushed it up.” Light-weighting initiatives account
for much of that growth: just as blocks and heads have gone to the lighter material in the face of environmen- tal regulations, rising fuel costs and
The most important factor in the shift to cast aluminum from forged steel wheels was aes- thetics, according to several industry insiders.
34 | METAL CASTING DESIGN & PURCHASING | Nov/Dec 2011
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