Faurecia wins Automotive News’ 2016 PACE Award for two innovations

Both technologies, recognized for their contributions to lightweighting and optimizing in-vehicle experiences, were among the 30 finalists selected for consideration in the annual PACE Awards program.

Faurecia’s Emissions Control Technologies division, the leading manufacturer in the market, won with its Adaptive Valve. The technology, which is self-adjusting and activated by the flow of exhaust gas, works in tandem with the muffler to control sound emitted from the exhaust pipe. The Adaptive Valve plays a critical role in weight reduction, allowing the mufflers to be as much as 30 percent smaller and the exhaust system to be up to 20 percent lighter. In vehicles with cylinder deactivation, the Adaptive Valve cancels low-frequency sounds, which ensures the driver hears no difference when the car switches from eight cylinders to four.

Faurecia Automotive Seating won with its Cover Carving Technology, a proprietary process that reinvents the production of seat covers and enables 3D animation with an unmatched level of repeatable quality. CCT offers new design options with greater durability and overall quality, while reducing development and production time for covers. The light back panel, associated with Faurecia’s sculpted cover, allows for inclusion of concave and convex embossing shapes, and significantly reduces production time. Additionally, CCT cuts tooling costs by 80 percent and is 50 percent lighter when compared to a plastic back panel.

“Faurecia is honored to have been recognized for two of its innovations. The Adaptive Valve and Cover Carving Technology have helped reinvent the way automakers look at traditional processes and products in the areas of emissions control and seating,” said Faurecia North America President Mark Stidham. “Receiving the PACE Award is a direct recognition of Faurecia’s commitment to not only lightweighting and sustainable mobility, but also to improving the life on-board experience of drivers. We thank the PACE committee for this honor.”

Sponsored by Ernst & Young, Automotive News and the Transportation Research Center, the annual PACE Awards—known globally as the “Oscars of Innovation”—recognize superior innovation, technological advancement and business performance among automotive suppliers. A panel of independent judges selected the PACE Award winners, who were honored at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit, Michigan, on April 11, 2016.

These are the first PACE Awards for Faurecia.