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Crash cans hydroformed in European first

Steel maker Corus is claiming that it has achieved a European first with what it says is the first hydroformed crash can to go into production in the European automotive market.

The Hyfo Tubular Blank team at Ijmuiden in the Netherlands has worked with the Spanish company Gestamp Automocion to specify material and develop the component, which will be used by a European vehicle maker for a 2006 launch.

Unlike traditional crash cans, which are made from up to eight components, the new designs consists of a single hydroformed tubular blank that is then cut in half to produce a vehicle pair.

This approach reduces both the assembly complexity and the weight of the component.

The crash can is critical to vehicle safety and manages the deceleration pulse on impact, limiting damage at low speed and managing energy absorption so that passengers are held as safely as possible in a more serious impact.

Maurice van Giezen, general manager of Corus Hyfo, said: “Hydroforming is an enabling technology that has the capacity to deliver cost-effective mass-reduced solutions and is increasingly being used in specific and demanding applications by vehicle manufacturers.”

Corus supplies the tubular blank to Gestamp company Metalbages in Pamplona in northern Spain, where the crash can is made. Volume production is scheduled for early this year.