Sika, a leading manufacturer of speciality chemicals for construction and industry, has won two awards in the 2015 Automotive News PACE (Premier Automotive Suppliers’ Contribution to Excellence) Award that took place in Detroit, MI, last month.

The renowned award competition for automotive suppliers honour game-changing innovations in product, manufacturing process and information technology.

Sika was a product innovation award winner for its Sikaflex Ultra-High Modulus Adhesive (UHM) and also took home an Innovation Partnership Award through its collaboration with BMW.

Long term partnership

The panel reviewed the collaborative efforts of all 36 PACE Finalists with their respective OEMs and it recognized BMW for its unique high level of collaborative behaviour with Sika in the development of BMW i3.

“We are grateful for our long term partner BMW, as they had the foresight to bring truly innovative cars to the market. The mainstream use of mixed materials in automobiles has changed our industry forever,” explained Dave Jones, Head Global Automotive of Sika.

“Today’s cars require innovative products enabling OEMs to meet their manufacturing needs and performance goals. I am proud that Sika can provide the full range of technology to support our customers’ lightweighting needs.”

BMW lightweight construction

Sikaflex UHM is a high modulus, fast cure adhesive material currently used to bond the CFRP (Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic) Life Module to the aluminium chassis Drive Module on the BMW i3 and i8. According to the manufacturer, the innovative adhesive meets the growing demand in mixed material bonding and is ideally suited for structural bonding performance.

Based on Sika’s patented i-Cure technology, Sikaflex UHM also reduces the carbon footprint in vehicle manufacturing. The innovation is said to allow BMW to radically change the way the i3 is manufactured, away from conventional technique, and eliminates the complexity of traditional body shop welding.

www.sika.com