116
Improving Global Quality of Life
Through Optimum Use and Innovation of Welding and Joining Technologies
Globalisation: PEI is operating in a global market with fierce competition. Deregulation, unification
of technical criteria, and, hopefully, a globalisation in codes and standards, are the necessary goals.
The incredible advances in computing power and in the user-friendliness of numerical software,
enable the increased usage of more refined calculation methods and an increase in the usage
of Design by Analysis (DBA) in design checks of PE. This, in turn, may lead to a consolidated,
consistent, and, possibly, internationally unified basis for Design by Formulae (DBF) sections, for the
determination of required wall thicknesses. Usage of DBA will lead to an increase of understanding
of the structures’ behaviour, and it may increase the awareness of the effects of design details and
of geometric defects, like out-of-roundness, peaking, misalignment, bulges and dents.
Advances in welding technology, especially with regard to higher product quality, improvement of
performance, homogeneity of weld joints and higher weld speeds, create pressure for a re-think
of NDT requirements and defect acceptance limits. Present limits are mostly based on what can be
detected and readily measured by RT, and what can be achieved by reasonably good manufacturing
practices of long ago. Present requirements with regard to the amount of spot testing hardly reflect
achievements in welding technology and design methods, nor do they take into account modern
NDT methods, nor present in-service inspection requirements.
9.6
Automotive sector
The automotive industry is forecast to grow annually with 13.7% to be compared with >20% for China.
BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) stands for 40% of the growth. North America is expected to increase
their car fleet with 9.5% per year (
Figure 9.12
).
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Russia 5.1%
Brazil 7.6%
Brazil 7.6%
AP
NA
EU
SA
EE
MEA
China 41.0% India 13.1%
Global Update -
Assembly outlook
After 2011 emerging market production dominates
For the first time in history, the number of vehicles produced in developing and emerging markets in 2011
was greater than the number of vehicles produced in mature markets. Sustainable demand for light vehicles
in emerging markets will underpin organic growth for the foreseeable future.
Global: light vehicle assembly by market type
2000 - 2018 (
millions)
Mature Emerging
Global: contribution to growth by region
2011 - 2018
Source: Autofacts 2012 Q1
Data Release
PwC
Figure 9.12
–
The car industry is the main driver for development of joining technologies
for sheet materials (Reproduced courtesy: Autofacts BRIC Outlook)
