Rethinking the Economics of Vehicle Lightweighting 

Novelis, in collaboration with Sourced Economics, published a working paper via the Social Science Research Network (SSRN) on lightweighting vehicles with aluminum. Novelis’ Mario Greco, Global Technology Director, Automotive, and Kashif Solaija, Senior Manager, Sustainability and Commercial Excellence, Global Automotive, teamed up with Sourced Economics CEO John Frechette, and Head of Research Yifei Xu, to rigorously investigate and ultimately contribute to key academic and scientific literature on the economics of vehicle lightweighting. 

The working paper describes the characteristics of prevailing life cycle assessments (LCAs), which mainly forecast select life cycle costs associated with a change in a vehicle’s materials or design, and reviews notable examples. The goal of the paper is to introduce a richer framework for analyzing these decisions that emphasizes quantifying not only cost-based but also value-based considerations, such as improvements in vehicle performance. 

In its conclusion, the paper calls for a paradigm shift in automotive product planning focused on better analyzing and improving customer experiences – enabled by new and rapidly emerging data on customer preferences and demand. 

Read the full paper here: Link 

Please reach out to Kashif Solaija with any questions.