Exterior

Engineered to be more than the sum of its parts

From first sight a vehicle must have presence. Its colour must be consistent and unblemished, its lines fluid and seamless, and its surfaces smooth and dynamic. Achieving this requires a unique set of material properties balanced for peak performance in meeting the needs of each specific application.

Ultimately, reliability in each particular respect is confirmed by the reality of day-to-day and long-term performance. For tough, practical and aesthetically important exterior applications, our polypropylene (PP) and thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO) compounds provide the strength and surface characteristics to replace metals and expensive plastic materials. Our materials do so without any compromises in mechanical performance to give corrosion-free reliability throughout a vehicle's lifespan. Moreover, they enable significant weight savings and greater vehicle fuel economy.

At Borealis and Borouge, we are working in close co-operation with Tier 1 and 2 suppliers and are continuously engaged in extending the possibilities of PP and TPO compounds for automotive exterior applications that meet original equipment manufacturers' (OEMs) global specifications. These developments focus on lower density and lighter weight materials which are uncompromising in their balanced stiffness and impact, maintain very good flowability and narrow-gap performance, and provide for easier and lower cost manufacturing.

Our material contribution to weight loss

• Decreasing filler content lowers material density
• Increasing stiffness of material and therefore the part allows for reduction of wall-thickness, using less material and lowering weight
• Improving flowability allows easy and fast filling of low wall-thickness moulds
• Integrated part design optimises space and lowers the number of additional joining elements and fittings
• Good processability minimises production scrap and brings cost savings

Essential surface aesthetics

To address the problem of flow marks, often referred to as tiger stripes, we introduced a next generation of PP compounds based on our latest Borstar® technology polymers which prevent the appearance of tiger stripes across a very broad processing window, saving costs and delivering a premium surface appearance for unpainted applications.

At Borealis, we are also supporting the growing industry trend towards primerless paint systems for exterior plastic applications which reduce cycle time and system costs. In order to fulfil increasingly stringent criteria in respect of paint adhesion performance, the polymer and paint system have to be well-tailored and adjusted to each other, and production processes need to be reliable and robust. To help OEMs meet this challenge and achieve greater economy, we have undertaken a major R&D initiative to develop primerless two-layer paintable compounds for bumpers and body panels.

Finally, moulded-in colour solutions enable cost reduction through the elimination of painting cycles. Putting our expertise to work on behalf of OEMs, our dedicated colour department cooperates with pigment suppliers to develop narrow colour specifications for our PP compounds. These include the simulation of the quality special effects of other more expensive materials without having to actually use them.

Offering solutions to tomorrow's needs today

Whether you are producing bumpers, body panels, front grilles, rocker panels or exterior trims, we are the right partner. Our comprehensive ranges of PP and TPO polymers and compounds have properties that are balanced and tailored to precisely match your application needs. As such they add value through driving reductions in system costs, while providing excellent aesthetics and reliable performance to the highest global industry standards, as well as enabling faster production cycles. And, no less importantly, they reduce both material and energy inputs for enhanced sustainability. Our close working partnerships with OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers over many years have given us a unique understanding of automotive value chain needs. Of special importance is that our ongoing dialogue with partners helps in the early identification of evolving market trends. This allows us to focus the resources and scientific skill-sets of our Borealis Innovation Centres on ensuring you have the optimal, differentiated and integrated solutions that meet tomorrow's needs, before they become tomorrow's challenges.