Highlights of Aluminum Die Casting Industry Development Forum at AICE 2025

On April 18, the AICE 2025 SMM (20th) Aluminum Industry Conference & Expo, hosted by SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. (SMM), co-organized by Zhongyifeng Jinyi Technology (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. and Lezhi County Qianrun Investment Promotion Service Co., Ltd., and sponsored by Shangli County Keyuan Metallurgical Materials Co., Ltd., Press Metal International Ltd., Delta Metal (Holdings) Limited, Jinqiao Light Alloy Technology (Jiangmen) Co., Ltd., and other entities as forum title sponsors, Sunstone Development Co., Ltd. and Shanghai Jialang Industrial Co., Ltd. as forum co-organizers, and supported by various specially invited supporters, conference supporters, conference acknowledgment units, and media partners, successfully concluded at the Suzhou International Expo Center in Jiangsu!

The summit featured multiple sessions, including the Alumina and Aluminum Raw Materials Forum, Aluminum Melting and Casting Technology Forum, Aluminum Die Casting Industry Development Forum, Supply and Demand Exchange - Domestic and International Aluminum Scrap Supply and Demand Forum, Aluminum Plate/Sheet, Strip and Foil Industry Development Forum, Main Forum, Aluminum Industry Chain Sustainable Development Forum, Global Secondary Aluminum Industry Development Forum, and Industrial Aluminum Extrusion Forum. As the annual pinnacle event for the global aluminum industry, this conference, with the strategic pillars of "Global Vision, Industry Insights, Green Future," brought together over a hundred international authoritative experts, academic giants, leading entrepreneurs, and government representatives to build a platform for intellectual exchange. The conference focused on core topics such as aluminum market trend analysis, price trend forecasting, supply-demand pattern dissection, business opportunity matching, and cutting-edge technology exchanges, conducting in-depth discussions from multiple dimensions to set the direction for industry development. Attendees directly addressed industry pain points, explored paths for industrial innovation, and unlocked new paradigms for clean and sustainable development around key themes such as green and low-carbon transformation and intelligent upgrading. Through innovative drive and cross-industry thinking collisions, the conference fostered consensus, integrated resources, and actively responded to global climate change and environmental governance challenges. This event established a high-end dialogue and resource integration platform, empowering industrial upgrading with wisdom and injecting strong momentum into the high-quality development of the global aluminum industry, jointly drawing a new blueprint for the industry's future.

In addition, SMM meticulously prepared roundtable interview sessions across multiple forums, inviting many renowned industry experts and corporate executives to engage in intense intellectual collisions on various hot topics, including the green transformation of the aluminum industry - the development and outlook of the low-carbon aluminum market, internal and external challenges - exploring new paths for aluminum plate/sheet, strip and foil enterprises in the fog, roundtable interview: discussing new models for integrated die-casting cooperation from a supply chain perspective, China's aluminum industry from a global perspective, analysis of factors influencing aluminum prices in 2025 and market forecasts for the second half of the year, building a global green aluminum ecosystem (ESG aluminum prices, CBAM), and the market business models and overseas investment opportunities of global secondary aluminum.

Speech Topic: Exploration of Integrated Die Casting Technology under Industry-University-Research Collaboration

Guest Speaker: Han Jiantang, Project Director of Shandong Hongcan Material Technology Co., Ltd.

I. Background

1.1 Auto Sales and Export Volumes

Market Trends: The automotive market is experiencing rapid growth; costs are decreasing, leading to cut-throat competition in pricing; Chinese automotive brands are rising quickly, breaking the monopoly of foreign brands.

1.2 Automobile Launch Data

The automotive industry has entered an era of rapid development and updates. The proportion and number of new vehicle powertrain types launched in 2024 are as follows: Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs): 226 models, accounting for 37%; Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles (ICEVs): 204 models, accounting for 34%; Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs): 110 models, accounting for 18%; Extended-Range Electric Vehicles (EREVs): 39 models, accounting for 6%; Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs): 31 models, accounting for 5%.

1.3 Development Trends and Demands for Passenger Vehicles

Functionalization ⇒ Comfort & Lightweighting ⇒ Electrification & Intelligence & Integration ⇒ Personalization & Customization ⇒ Demand for Shortened Development Cycles.

1.3 Demand for Passenger Vehicle Development Cycles

In the past, the iteration speed of new vehicles in joint-venture automakers was slow. For example, BBA typically conducted mid-cycle refreshes every 4 years and major model changes every 8 years, with corresponding R&D cycles of approximately 54 months.

The new vehicle R&D process is divided into three main stages: concept, design/validation, and production launch, leveraging platformization. The concept stage takes 9.5 months, design/validation takes 14 months, and production launch takes 10.5 months. Adding a 2-month market launch phase, the total duration is 36 months.

Agile R&D philosophy has brought the vehicle development process into a modular and digital era, further shortening the development cycle.

II. Technological Innovation under New Models

2.1 Industrial Thinking under New Models

Speech Topic: Complementary Applications of Integrated Aluminum Alloy Die Casting and Magnesium Semi-Solid Die Casting

Guest Speaker: Zhou Lianjun, Senior Application Expert of Ningbo Free Trade Zone Haitian Zhisheng Metal Forming Equipment Co., Ltd.

Panel Discussion: Exploring New Collaboration Models for Integrated Die Casting from a Supply Chain Perspective

Moderator: Zhang Shangen, Executive President of Suzhou Die Casting Association

Panelist: Liu Huachu, Metal Materials Expert of NIO

Zhang Yuebo, Technical Vice President of CSMET Group

Xue Pengji, Product and Project Director of Beijing Shichuang Technology Co., Ltd.

Speech Topic: Development Trends and Aluminum Usage in China's New Energy Vehicles and Traditional ICEVs over the Next Decade

Guest Speaker: Cui Dongshu, Secretary General of the China Automobile Dealers Association Automotive Market Research Branch

Speech Topic: Challenges and Solutions in Die Casting Processes for Electric Drive Housings in New Energy Vehicles

Guest Speaker: Peng Liang, Lightweighting Process Manager/Senior Engineer of Schaeffler (Shanghai) Trading Co., Ltd.

Panel Discussion: The Path to Substituting Magnesium Die Casting for Aluminum Die Casting

Moderator: Han Zhiyong, Chief Engineer of Guoqi Lightweighting (Jiangsu) Automotive Technology Co., Ltd.

Panelist: Zhang Shangen, Executive President of Suzhou Die Casting Association

Zhu Xiangzhen, Ph.D. and Principal Researcher of Baowu Magnesium Technology Co., Ltd.

Zhang Xiaoyan, Chairman of Ningbo Tianzheng Mould Co., Ltd.

Speech Topic: Comparison and Advantages/Disadvantages of Low-Pressure Casting and High-Pressure Die Casting Processes

Guest Speaker: Zhu Wenping, Eaton Global Aluminum Alloy Casting Expert, Special Expert/Director, and Senior Die Casting Engineer Certification Training Instructor of Eaton (China) Investment Co., Ltd.

Process Principle Differences

Low-Pressure Casting

Pressure Range: 0.01~0.1 MPa (relatively low pressure).

Principle: Compressed air is used to slowly press molten metal from a sealed holding furnace into the mold through a riser tube. The metal fills the cavity from top to bottom under low pressure and crystallizes and solidifies under pressure.

Characteristics: Smooth filling, good metal liquidity, few porosities and inclusions.

High-Pressure Die Casting (Die Casting)

Pressure Range: 10~200 MPa (extremely high pressure).

Principle: Molten metal is injected at high speed (provided by the injection cylinder) into a steel mold, rapidly filling the cavity and solidifying under high pressure.

Characteristics: Fast filling speed (millisecond level), suitable for complex thin-walled parts, but prone to gas entrapment.

Low-pressure casting and high-pressure die casting are two common metal casting processes, primarily applied to the forming of non-ferrous metals such as aluminum alloys and magnesium alloys. They differ significantly in principles, application scenarios, and product characteristics.

Low-Pressure Casting

Advantages: Good casting density, high mechanical properties, few porosity defects, capable of producing larger parts.

Disadvantages: Long cycle time, high mold cost, unsuitable for ultra-thin-walled parts. High production cost, wall thickness must be >3.5mm, optimally 4mm or more.

High-Pressure Die Casting

Advantages: High production efficiency (multiple parts per minute), suitable for complex thin-walled parts, high surface precision. High dimensional accuracy, small machining allowance.

Disadvantages: Castings are prone to porosity internally, typically not heat-treatable (porosity may expand), extremely high mold cost. Wall thickness can be as thin as >2mm.

Low-pressure casting allows for the design of closed beams with arbitrary diameters.