Author: Paul Ploumis19 Jan 2015 Last updated at 00:35:09 GMT

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The Steel Market Development Institute (SMDI), a business unit of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) expressed confidence that that their continuing flow of new and stronger steels will maintain the material’s 60% share of materials used in cars for many years to come. Lawrence W. Kavanagh, President, SMDI, predicts that steels currently being designed into vehicles due in 2018-2020 will reassert the superiority of such materials in terms of value and performance.

Fuel economy standards are forcing carmakers to evaluate all materials that can help them reduce vehicle weight, and that includes steel. Today’s steels are three to five times stronger than aluminum and also stronger than steels available a decade ago. The auto industry’s push for fuel efficiency demands lighter, stronger and more formable materials. The steel industry can deliver all three at higher value than alternatives.

The auto industry’s level of adoption of advanced high-strength steels is at only 40%-50% today, meaning that much of a vehicle’s structure and body panels are still made with more conventional steels. There’s significantly more lightweighting to be gained simply by expanding the use of currently available steels.

According to SMDI, it’s going to take time for the full power of new steels to be deployed because of the nature of the auto industry’s product development cycle. It’s going to take another few years to play out, due to that timing. Steel products will get the job done at superior value. Hence steel is set to win the battle at the end of the day.