OGIHARA CHOOSES CORUS FOR PEUGEOT'S FIRST UK BODY PANEL CONTRACT

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OGIHARA CHOOSES CORUS FOR PEUGEOT'S FIRST UK BODY PANEL CONTRACT
09 July 2002 - Corus Automotive

Corus, the international metals company, has been awarded the contract to supply the skin panel blanks to Ogihara, one of Europe's largest press stamping companies, for pressing into body panels for Peugeot's new 206SW model, which was launched at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year.

Ogihara's expertise in skin panel production and close location to Peugeot's Ryton plant in Coventry, which is making the 206SW, combined with the ability of Corus to meet the exacting surface quality standards required for a visible panel through its 'advanced full-finish material processing capabilities' helped to secure the contract, which represents the first ever awarded by Peugeot in the UK to an external supplier of pressed body panels. The carmaker traditionally uses internal pressing facilities at its plants or sources from French-based companies.

The Corus specialist Automotive Service Centre in Wednesfield will supply Ogihara with up to one million precision skin panel blanks this year for pressing into 15 body panels. This includes the main bodyside panel as well as tailgate and door inner and outer panels.

Importantly, continued investment at the Steelpark site meant that a comprehensive line-up of dedicated automotive processing facilities, including a 600-tonne large bed pressing blanking line and multi-strand press blanking line were already in place, saving valuable development time and costs for Ogihara and Peugeot. Corus is the only company with the ability to produce the large blank, measuring 1.475-metres by 3.110-metres, required for the 206 body sides as well as some of the fully finished processed material needed to meet Peugeot's stringent quality specifications.

In addition, the ability for Corus to get involved at an early stage of the contract helped Ogihara meet Peugeot's specific design requirements. Corus, worked closely with Ogihara to jointly develop a unique radial tool, allowing for the production of radial blanks, which not only help to reduce yield loss and costs for Ogihara but also allow Peugeot to meet the design requirements of the 206SW.

Commenting on the advantage of working in partnership with Corus, Alwyn Jones, general manager for engineering & quality at Ogihara Europe Limited (OEL) said: 'We have been working together for several years on behalf of a number of different vehicle manufacturers. Corus supply blanks for major external body pressings produced by OEL for the Jaguar XK8 and S-Type. Technical support in the past has been very good and we were confident that Corus would be able to offer both the material and manufacturing solutions needed to help us meet Peugeot's specific requirements for the body sides, door and tailgate assemblies produced by OEL for the 206.'

Ogihara stamps the body blanks, which are supplied by Corus on a 'just-in-time' basis, at a dedicated pressing facility in Telford, which has recently benefited from an investment of over £8 million on a new stamping line. Corus is expected to supply one million blanks in 2002 with this figure increasing to over 1.5 million blanks as production of the 206SW estate is increased from 63,000 to 90,000 units in 2003.

About: Corus Automotive
Corus is one of the leading suppliers of steel products, services and technology to the automotive industry. A broad range of Corus steel from strip, engineering steels, special strip and tubes are used to make products that go into automotive applications including body-in-white, closures, chassis and suspension systems, powertrain, seats, safety systems and other components. Corus is committed to the global automotive industry, and, uniquely, combines its materials and vehicle engineering knowledge to respond cost-effectively to key drivers of importance to the sector, such as safety, fuel-efficiency, innovation and the environment. The Company actively supports supply chain initiatives that improve efficiency and enhance the value of steel used in automotive applications.

Corus Group Plc is one of the world's largest metal producers with an annual turnover of £8 billion and major operating facilities in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Norway and Belgium. Corus' four divisions comprising Strip Products, Long Products, Distribution & Building Systems and Aluminium provide innovative solutions to the construction, automotive, packaging, mechanical engineering and other markets worldwide. Corus has 48,500 employees in over 40 countries and sales offices and service centres worldwide. Combining international expertise with local customer service, the Corus brand represents quality and strength.

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