French automotive association warns of PA 6.6 shortages, urges carmakers to seek alternatives

The GPA, the association that represents French manufacturers of automotive plastic parts, has urged car manufacturers to find alternative materials because of shortages of PA 6.6.

The association says it is “raising the alarm” owing to disruption in production causing shortages of the material, quotas imposed on the amount purchased and prices increasing by over 40 per cent since 2017.

GPA President, Luc Messien, says that the problem is a structural one; with only five sites worldwide producing adiponitrile, one of the components required to produce PA 6.6.

PA 6.6 is highly resistant to high temperatures, which is the reason why it is used in parts inside the engine compartment, such as air supply systems, filtration and cooling systems, and in other interior parts, from pedal units to door handles.

“This material has been registered by carmakers for its technical properties, and the processes to approve new materials make it very difficult to find alternative solutions in the short term,” explainedMessien.

Armelle Dumont, Managing Director of the GPA, added: “Breakdowns in the supply of PA 6.6 are due mainly to the fragility of the supply chain. Today, only 55 per cent of Europe’s PA 6.6 production capacity is available. At the same time, current demand requires an increase in the production capacity. Hasn’t the time come to speed up investments in Europe and renovate the existing lines?”

The GPA is now urging plastics part manufacturers to secure their supply of PA 6.6, as well as asking carmakers to help ease any potential crisis arising from materials shortages by seeking alternatives.

“We are asking the carmakers to help us, in particular by shortening their approval processes. These shortages of materials mean that supplies to certain members of the GPA will dry up at the start of 2019, a situation that could put the complete production chain in peril. We regret this situation, but we do not have a solution for the time being,” Dumont continued.

The GPA says Tier One and Two automotive plastic suppliers are the “victims of an unsustainable scissors effect” brought on by “the rise in the price of PA 6.6, the quotas imposed and their customers’ refusal to pay for a part of these price hikes.”