Two recent Tesla stories sit at opposite ends of the range. Tesla Model 3 is set to benefit from cost-focused Cybercab inverter technology, announced on November 1 2026. The flying car, Tesla Roadster, uses aluminum in its battery cells and underbody protection, reinforcing power delivery, thermal management and lightweight construction. The two models reveal how aluminum can serve very different engineering priorities, from making electric vehicles (EVs) more affordable to helping them deliver extraordinary performance. Tesla Model 3: the everyday car gets Cybercab hardware Nick Verzini, Tesla’s Head of Drive Unit Engineering, mentioned on a Munro Live factory tour that a new printed circuit board assembly and power stage from the Cybercab’s inverter will enter Model 3 production in...
Aluminum foil is getting a seasonal makeover as Reynolds Wrap introduces its limited-edition Snowflakes Fun Foil, bringing decorative appeal to everyday kitchen tasks ahead of the holiday season. Featuring an embossed snowflake pattern, the product combines the familiar functionality of aluminum foil with a festive appearance suited to food wrapping, holiday entertaining and homemade gifts. The new design allows consumers to use Reynolds Wrap foil for more than routine food storage, adding a decorative touch to meal preparation and presentation. Its winter-inspired pattern makes it suitable for covering dishes, preserving leftovers, packaging baked treats and creating festive crafts. Despite its seasonal appearance, Snowflakes Fun Foil retains the practical functionality of conventional...
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Ford has adopted a “mixed materials” strategy to shed weight on the 2020 Explorer SUV available on sale this summer. “Weight was a factor in every decision we made,” Explorer chief engineer Bill Gubing said. The SUV’s structure includes steel, aluminium, magnesium and plastic to keep the weight low. The new Explorer dropped about 200 pounds in comparison to its old model notwithstanding the added features. It's also 36% stiffer than the old Explorer, which is likely to offer a comfortable and stable ride. That’s less than one third of the 700-pound plus weight loss claimed by the 2015 F-150’s all-aluminium body. However, it is to be noted that the preceding F-150 was much heavier. It’s also such a popular vehicle that it could withstand the higher cost of a wholesale change and Ford...
Sales of passenger vehicles in China stood at 1.73 million in June, a decrease of 7.8 per cent year on year, according to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) released on Wednesday July 10. In May, CAAM data showed that sales of passenger vehicles shrank 17.4 per cent on the year, to some 1.56 million units. Total sales of automobiles came in at 2.06 million units in June, a drop of 9.6 per cent from the same month a year earlier, data from the CAAM showed. The China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) said that retail sales of sedans, sport utility vehicles, multipurpose vehicles and minivans across China stood at 1.8 million units in June, marking the first year-over-year increase in the last 13 months. That was up 4.9 per cent year-on-year. New energy...
SIG, a leading systems and solutions provider for aseptic packaging, has entered into a partnership with B-Better®, a start-up brand from Unilever’s Future Platform, to launch aseptic cartons with ASI-certified aluminium foil. Martin Herrenbrück, SIG’s President & General Manager, Europe said: “SIG was the first in the industry to achieve certification to the ASI standard and we are delighted that the first cartons with ASI-certified aluminium foil will soon be hitting the supermarket shelves. ASI certification adds to the extensive portfolio of solutions we offer to help customers meet growing consumer demand for sustainable packaging.” The first market launch for SIG’s ASI-certified cartons will be in Belgium by the B-Better brand. SIG is promoting responsible sourcing throughout the...
On Saturday, July 6, Italian yard Baglietto launched its 55-metre motor yacht named Severin°s. It is the largest vessel ever built by Baglietto. Also known as hull No. 10225, the vessel reflects the yard’s traditional Italian style, along with the lowered gunwales and side air vents. Francesco Paszkowski Design has designed the interior of the yacht in collaboration with architect Margherita Casprini. Baglietto specialises in the construction of aluminium light alloy yachts ranging between 35 and 50 metres in length and steel and light aluminium alloy displacement yachts above 40 metres. Severin°s main deck is dedicated to family, with a spacious master suite and two guest cabins. On the lower deck, there are two additional guest cabins, cabins, with a crew mess room and six crew cabins...
William Li, the founder and CEO of Nio, the EV startup in China is eying the European market for its EVs; he said this in an interview during the Shanghai auto show. He believes that Chinese automaker can break into the European market with the help of EVs. However, the company is very careful about expanding outside China as the company is new and has limited resources. Neo’s ES8 was launched in China in the premium car segment to give competition to the powerful and well-established German brands. To start with, Neo has a market share of more than 10 per cent in the domestic market and the company hopes to grow faster in the segment. The company has displayed its ET Preview concept sedan at the Shanghai auto show in April as a rival for Tesla Model 3. However, they have not declared...
China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) data shows that China’s new energy vehicle (NEV) sales in June recorded month-on-month growth by 38.7 per cent and year-on-year by 98.7 per cent to stand at 134,000 units. In the previous month as well, China’s new energy vehicle (NEV) sales had registered a year-on-year rise by 5.4 per cent to come in at 97,000 units. This had brought the total sales of new energy vehicles during January-May stood at 442,000 units, up 58 per cent from the same period last year. With the sales in June, China’s total sales of new energy vehicles during the first half of 2019 (January to June) stood at 577,000 units, with a year-on-year increase of 65.9 per cent. Data from CPCA also shows that China’s retail sales of passenger cars in June stood at 1.8 million units,...
Cafeahaus AG has launched Goldbrew, the ready-to-drink (RTD), cold brew coffee range in the German market. The products are packaged in Ardagh’s 250ml slim cans and are a first in the German market. Goldbrew is available in ‘Goldbrew ginger & lemon’ and ‘Goldbrew grapefruit & lemon’ flavours. Goldbrew cold brew coffee is made from 100 percent sustainable Arabica coffee beans. Cafeahaus AG is a wholly-owned subsidiary of DEK Berlin which produces liquid coffee extracts and cold brew coffee concentrate for industrial customers. Cafeahaus has also launched a nitro original cold brew coffee in Ardagh’s unique Nitro Can. Nitro coffee is a cold brewed beverage that's steeped for longer than its hot water counterpart to give it a richer taste. Adriana Escobar, Product Manager at Ardagh Group’s...
Dutch shipbuilding company Heesen Yachts has recently unveiled 49.8-metre long luxury yacht Boreas at its own shipyard in Oss. The vessel, based on the Nova Plus platform, is comprised of an aluminium fast displacement hull developed by Van Oossanen Naval Architects and an aluminium superstructure. Boreas has an accommodation capacity for 12 guests split between six staterooms, including a main deck owner’s suite and five further guest cabins below decks, and has crew quarters for up to 9 staffs. Boreas will remain at the yard for commissioning before departing to Hellevoetsluis for sea trials. She will be delivered to her owner next month. According to the report, the owner worked closely with Mark Whiteley Design to create a contemporary and inviting interior. RH400 and Aquarius by...
Philipsburg Brewing Co. has ventured into a new packaging market after bottling its Montana Silver Springs mountain fresh spring water into re-sealable aluminium bottles last year. Now they have won a contract to sell this bottled water in Xanterra Parks & Resorts’ Yellowstone National Park. "We just got a contract with them this year," said Nolan Smith, co-owner of the brewery and Granite Mountain Water Works. "We're distributing in the Greater Yellowstone Area right now and being very well accepted." A portion of the Park sales goes to the Yellowstone Forever, a non-profit organization raising money to fund various park projects. Xanterra stopped selling plastic bottled water in its parks since 2016 and Philipsburg’s aluminium bottles fit in with Xanterra's eco-friendly drive in...
Jaguar Land Rover is planning to invest significantly in building Electric vehicles in its home market to compensate for the loss due to slump in diesel sales and Brexit uncertainty. The automaker is planning to offer an electrified option to all its upcoming models from next year as it tries to do away with diesel vehicles. JLR will make electrified vehicles at its Castle Bromwich plant in central England. The first electrified vehicle to be rolled out of the plant will be a full-electric version of Jaguar's flagship luxury sedan, the XJ. "The future of mobility is electric and, as a visionary British company, we are committed to making our next generation of zero-emission vehicles in the UK," CEO Ralf Speth said in a statement on Friday. JLR has signed a deal with the workers at the...
Hydro announced that the Økern Portal has selected Hydro’s Circal 75R aluminium as facade material in its new, innovative office building. Circal 75R is a certified alloy with a minimum content of 75 percent post-consumer recycled aluminium. Egil Hogna, EVP responsible for Hydro Extruded Solutions said: “Our customers in the building and construction sector are really focusing on sustainability. They want material and solutions that can help them meet their sustainability targets. With Circal 75R, we provide aluminium with a carbon footprint that fits well with the most demanding sustainability requirements.” The Økern Portal, one of the largest development projects in Norway, is owned by Oslo Pensjonsforsikring, with Stema responsible for project management and Vedal Entreprenør as...
Toaste Ale, an award-winning craft brewery based in London, is reportedly raising £35,000, in a bid to make a move from glass bottles to 330-millilitre aluminium cans. The decision to switch to aluminium cans followed research conducted by Advance London, part of the London Waste and Recycling Board. The research concluded that cans are a more efficient means of packaging beer over glass bottles. The Advance London study also found that aluminium cans are more readily recycled than glass bottles. In the United Kingdom, approximately 72 per cent of aluminium cans is recycled compared to 67.7 per cent of glass bottles. Moreover, a large number of consumers are inclining towards cans when it comes to craft beer. In 2018, 25 per cent of all UK craft beer sales were in cans. Toast Ale claims...
Renault is reportedly remodelling one of its strong-selling SUV cars Captur crossover assuring bigger size but the same weight because of the use of aluminium bonnet and plastic tailgate. Around 100mm will be added to its length, with a 33mm longer wheelbase, and 19mm to its width. The French automaker claims to have adopted an evolutionary approach to the exterior design of the car which they describe as “more modern, more muscular and more expressive, with more SUV design cues.” The interior of the new model also gets a significant makeover with extensive use of higher-grade materials and newly designed seats that lend a new dimension of quality and comfort to the vehicle. There’s now a class-leading rear seat space, aided by a sliding bench that can be adjusted by up to 16cm. There’s...
When a leading French luxury fashion house and a Danish high-end consumer electronics brand come together, you can expect nothing less than a unique presentation. Bang & Olufsen together with Saint Laurent has reportedly launched two limited edition, all black speakers – Beoplay A1 and Beloplay A9. With unique design and craftsmanship, these two speakers seem to have taken the music buffs a step ahead. The multi-room wireless speaker Beoplay A9 is built up on iconic design with black, anodised, mirror-black aluminium legs. It is sleek and offers smooth controls with just a gentle glide of your hand. The speaker can be connected to any music streaming service of your choice, and for a more immersive experience, it can be paired with more speakers. The device supports Chromecast, Bluetooth...
Electric vehicle maker National Electric Vehicle Sweden has rolled out a full-electric sedan based on the old Saab 9-3 platform from its plant in the north China port city of Tianjin on Saturday, June 29. According to its parent company, China Evergrande Group, the launch will accelerate NEVS’ timeline to start production in other Chinese cities. The Tianjin factory can initially produce 50,000 EVs a year. NEVS was purchased from bankrupt Swedish automaker Saab Automobile in 2012 by a Chinese-born, Swedish businessman Kai Johan Jiang. Later on, Evergrande Group, China’s largest real estate developer, purchased a 51 per cent stake in NEVS. Evergrande Group also acquired Shanghai-based EV battery supplier CENAT New Energy Co. and two foreign electric motor makers -- U.K.-based Protean...
Ardagh Group will reportedly introduce a new slimline 187ml wine can in the first quarter of 2020. Made of fully-recyclable aluminium, the airtight, lightproof, and shatterproof can is specially designed to present and protect wine and wine-based drinks. In what the company describes as a Europe first for beverage packaging, this can is the latest addition to Ardagh’s pioneering Wine Can range. Since the capacity is 187ml, which is quarter of a standard 75cl bottle, this can makes the perfect size for those who want to enjoy a single drink with a meal or while on the go. Ardagh claims that single-served European wines are either available in bottles, boxes or multipack cans in the US but now they will be available in cans in the US in single packs, which will be available at airports,...
According to Niti Aayog, the think-tank of the government, the ministry of heavy industry may soon announce incentives for electric vehicle infrastructure to encourage electromobility. The Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), which was set up under the NITI Aayog to keep a check on the Centre’s flagship programmes announced this recently. Speaking during ETAuto Tech Summit, on Friday, June 28, Anil Srivastava, director general - DMEO & principal adviser, said that electric vehicles remain the focus area of the government and it may soon announce incentives to support the infrastructure. “When we look into the battery storage and transformation which is going to take place, India’s electric vehicle market will be worth US$300 billion in 2030, as per the projections by...
Heesen Yachts’ eighth vessel in 5000 Aluminium Class Masa has been reportedly delivered, followed by two-days of sea trials in May. The yacht, which was previously known as Project Aster, had hit the water for the first time in April and was christened Masa , meaning “my diamond”. As Heesen revealed, the vessel exceeded the contractual top speed of 23 knots. The design courtesy of Masa’s exterior, which features key details including a "pelican beak bow" and "sporty mast", goes to Frank Laupman's Omega Architects. Her all-aluminium, semi displacement hull, meanwhile, has been designed and engineered by Heesen's in-house team, while the sub-500GT interior by Cristiano Gatto. The decor of the yacht takes inspiration from the interiors of other yachts in the 5000 Aluminium Class, with key...
