SSAB offers hundreds of variations of advanced high strength steel to meet the custom standards of automotive OEMs as well as the regional standards VDA, SAE, JFS and EN.
There are numerous custom specifications that car manufacturers (and in some cases, Tier 1 suppliers) develop for their high strength steel, depending on their design goals. A few key individualized AHSS criteria can include:
When we create a new Docol® steel grade we also create a new SSAB standard for it.
Steel chemical composition: frequently the car OEM’s goal is to achieve specific welding parameters or “weldability” of the AHSS by carefully specifying its chemical composition.
Steel flatness: the tolerances for AHSS flatness are dictated by the auto OEM’s need for shape accuracy in the final automotive component.
Tolerances for strength deviation: these OEM-specified limits for minimum and maximum yield and tensile strengths also help them control the shape deviation of the final part.
When we create a new Docol® steel grade — for example, Docol® PHS CR2000 — we also create a new SSAB standard for it.
As we develop both the new steel and its SSAB standard, our industry experts work hard to anticipate the future AHSS needs of our automotive customers. That also includes anticipating what the regional standards (VDA, SAE, etc.) will require, which reflect — as much as possible — the harmonized needs of the entire automotive industry.
Then we make the new grade available for testing by OEMs. If accepted, they will either use the SSAB standard or, much more likely, adapt the attributes of the grade to meet their own very specific internal requirements.
By then, the standards organizations, like VDA and SAE, will work to harmonize the needs of car OEMs into a regional specification that will further accelerate the grade’s international acceptance and use.
As you begin using a new Docol® AHSS steel grade, we encourage you to reach out to our experts on standards. That way you can better understand the thinking behind our development of the grade and how our SSAB standard grade meets the requirements in different regional and OEM standards.
These key insights could help your company streamline your own standards development and your ultimate success with deploying the new grade.