BASF Supports The Ford Motor Company's Greener Vehicle Goal With Tailored Air Intake Manifold Resin

WYANDOTTE, Mich., Aug. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Underscoring its commitment to support The Ford Motor Company's North America greener vehicle goal,  BASF is supplying a PA6 resin for select air intake manifold (AIM) programs that includes the addition of post consumer recycled resin to the traditionally prime base polyamide.  This customized grade exclusive to North America will be adopted on three of Ford's current production engines.  

"BASF is one of the chemical industry's top automotive suppliers and works in close partnership with customers to meet their needs and goals," said Marianne Morgan, Powertrain Sector Leader, Engineering Plastics Business, BASF Corporation.  

"Whenever technically possible, we are introducing recycled materials into our current production components," said Jeff Kosko, Engineering Supervisor for Intake Systems, The Ford Motor Co.  "Ford's 'reduce, reuse and recycle' commitments are part of its broader global sustainability strategy to reduce its environmental footprint.  In 2009, Ford reduced the amount of automotive-related plastics to landfills by nearly 30 million pounds and saved approximately $4.5 million by reusing recycled materials."

The polyamide resin manifolds appear in the 2.5-liter I-4 engine for the Ford Fusion and Ford Escape; the 5.0-liter V-8 engine used in vehicle models including F-Series trucks and Mustang; and the 6.2-liter V-8 engine for the F-Series. Tier 1 Suppliers Montaplast (2.5L), and MAHLE North America (6.2L and 5.0L), are producing the manifolds. "By converting metal components to plastic, Montaplast has been involved in reducing vehicle weight and improving environmental impact since the very beginning.  It's what we do.  We are proud to support Ford's efforts," said Michael Alexander, Montaplast's Program Manager for the project.  "This cooperative effort between Ford, BASF and MAHLE, is yet another example of innovation, this time in the area of sustainability.  Thanks to Ford for their leadership on this project," said John Mammarella, responsible for Air Intake Modules North America for MAHLE.

Engineering investment

Ford, its Tier 1 suppliers, and BASF invested significant engineering resources and processing know-how to ensure that the designs for the manifolds using recycled polyamide material would be robust enough to withstand the harsh heat and chemical environments found underhood.  This is in addition to the traditional plastics advantages of weight reduction of as much as 40 percent and enhanced fuel economy and engine performance compared with cast aluminum air intake manifolds.

Aligned to succeed

As part of Ford's Aligned Business Framework, BASF is in a small circle of preferred strategic suppliers with whom Ford has strengthened collaboration and developed a sustainable business model to drive mutual profitability and technology development. BASF recognizes that the alignment of both companies' strategic interests and mutual success result from rigorous delivery of innovation, quality, best lifecycle costs, sustainability and performance.

About Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 164,000 employees and about 70 plants worldwide, the company's automotive brands include Ford and Lincoln. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford's products, please visit www.fordmotorcompany.com.

The MAHLE Group

The MAHLE Group is one of the 30 largest companies in the automotive supply industry worldwide. As a leading manufacturer of components and systems for the combustion engine and related products, MAHLE ranks among the top 3 systems suppliers for piston systems, cylinder components, valve train systems, air management systems, and liquid management systems. In 2008, MAHLE employed around 45,000 people at over 100 production plants and eight research and development centers and achieved sales of over 5 billion euros.

More information at www.mahle.com

Montaplast

Montaplast is a global plastic injection molding company leading in the conversion of highly engineered automotive components and systems from metal to plastic.  Montaplast is privately held and is headquartered in Morsbach, Germany with locations in Europe, North America, China and Japan.

BASF – The Chemical Company

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has approximately 16,400 employees in North America, and had sales of $17.7 billion in 2010. For more information about BASF's North American operations, visit www.basf.us.

BASF is the world's leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products, and agricultural products to oil and gas. As a reliable partner, BASF creates chemistry to help its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges, such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF posted sales of more than  euro 63.9 billion in 2010 and had approximately 109,000 employees as of the end of the year. Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com or in the Social Media Newsroom at newsroom.basf.com.

Ford, Fusion, Escape, F-150, F-Series Truck and Mustang are registered trademarks of The Ford Motor Company

SOURCE BASF Corporation