Mass Reduction Cultural Commitment, GM Exec Says

TRAVERSE CITY, MI – General Motors weight-loss guru Charlie Klein says if an automaker wants to shed vehicle mass the commitment must become part of the company culture.

And it must be prepared to spend capital, he warns.

“One key is culture,” says Klein, executive director-Global CO2 Strategy, Mass and Aerodynamics at GM. “Every engineer, every part and every gram matters.”

It is not cheap, either. GM invested heavily in advanced computer-modeling software to reshape parts and target specific locations for lightweight materials such as aluminum and magnesium. The automaker also hired engineers to perform the analysis, including a team of 140 individuals eyeing structural optimization alone.

An advanced-materials approach also demands advanced R&D investment, which at GM led to development of aluminum-to-steel spot-welding technology. Employed initially on the ’17 Cadillac CT6 at the automaker’s Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant, it makes GM the first automaker to deploy such technology in regular production.

“It is a real step forward,” Klein tells the 2016 CAR Management Briefing Seminars here.

And it’s a bit of a gamble, he admits, because billions of dollars could be lost if a lightweighting approach does not work out. He says GM struck it rich, as the last seven all-new products it launched accounted for a combined mass reduction of 2,400 lbs. (1,089 kg), which is equivalent to saving 50 million gallons (1,136 L) of fuel and 150,700 tons of carbon-dioxide emissions.

“But you tell your neighbors that and they look at you like, ‘Oh, yeah, he’s an engineer,’” Klein says with a laugh.

In layman’s terms, the weight loss is equal to 30,000 cars driven for one year, or 326,000 miles (525,000 km) traveled, he adds.

But fuel-economy improvements and emissions reductions are not the only payoff, Klein adds. GM also considers its lighter-weight models safer, more spacious and more fun to drive.

“Lightweighting has become an exciting area of advancement,” he says.

[email protected]