Dow Automotive is the only supplier to offer both plastic material and bonding solutions to the transportation industry, enabling engineers to design lightweight solutions that help reduce fuel consumption, supporting emissions, climate and fuel economy targets required by the global automotive industry.

There are several types of bonding technologies currently available from Dow Automotive to join: glass to metal, including polycarbonate; metal to metal, including aluminium; metal to plastic and plastic to plastic. For each material combination, Dow Automotive offers a broad range of either one- or two-component polyurethane, acrylic or epoxy based adhesives that support stiffness, torsion and the overall crashworthiness and durability of the vehicle.

Bonding of interior, exterior and windscreen for rear hatchback

But even more importantly, Dow Automotive bonding technologies help designers to reduce vehicle weight by enabling the hybrid construction of materials. Dow Automotive pioneered the hybrid bonding technology for under the hood application with the bonded front-end carrier (FEC) concept for the Volkswagen Polo.

Recent examples of Dow Automotive bonding advancements include the new smart fortwo where the application of a polycarbonate panoramic roof was made possible with Dow Automotive’s BETASEAL™ PU adhesive, which bonds the polycarbonate part and the glass windshield to the body-in-white. Other applications include complete tailgate solutions for which Dow Automotive offers different plastics for carrier, interior and exterior trim, as well as polyurethane adhesives systems to join the complete tailgate, including the rear window whether it is made of glass or polycarbonate. BETAMATE™ PU Bonding solutions for tailgates are currently used e.g by Daimler for the C-Class sports coupe.

About Dow Automotive
Dow Automotive is a leading global provider of technology-driven solutions that meet consumer demand for vehicles that are safer, stronger, quieter, lighter, cleaner, comfortable and stylish. The organization provides plastics, adhesives, glass bonding systems, sealants, emissions control technology, films, fluids and structural enhancement and acoustical management solutions to OEM, tier and aftermarket customers around the world. For additional information about Dow Automotive products, services, and application development centres, visit www.dowautomotive.com.