Asahi Kasei received the Altair Enlighten Award 2018 in the Enabling Technology category for a Glass Fiber Reinforced Polyamide 66 Pedal Bracket developed jointly with Mazda Motor Corporation. The award ceremony was held in Michigan, the US, on July 30, 2018.

The Altair Enlighten Award is presented by Altair Engineering Inc. in collaboration with the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), media partners SAE International, and media sponsor Automobil Industrie. The award in the three categories of Full Vehicle, Module, and Enabling Technology is given to automotive manufacturers and suppliers to honor innovative achievements in vehicle lightweighting. Asahi Kasei's Leona™ polyamide 66 with glass fiber reinforcement was used to develop a substitute for metal brackets installed in an existing model of Mazda vehicle. Asahi Kasei's topology optimization technology, a kind of computer aided engineering (CAE), was used to achieve innovative design of the part, enabling an 83% weight reduction. Asahi Kasei received the Award in recognition of this remarkable development.

Asahi Kasei promotes the use of plastic as a substitute for metal parts to reduce vehicle weight for improved fuel economy. Leveraging its unique plastic CAE technology and know-how to predict processability and service life of the applied polymer, Asahi Kasei makes proposals on the optimum part shape and mold design, in addition to selecting the best resin and developing materials. Asahi Kasei Plastics Vietnam Co., Ltd. was established In March 2016 to reinforce those functions and swiftly respond to growing global demand for plastic part design. Asahi Kasei will continue to enhance its plastic CAE technology for greater precision and speed to provide new solutions that serve various needs of society in the automotive industry and beyond.

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