A pioneer in automotive aluminium joins Hydro’s 50 year anniversary in Tønder
Celebrating Hydro’s 50 year anniversary in Tønder, Denmark is easy for Edvin List Clausen. He has been there the whole time, and he continues to drive to work to help Hydro develop lightweight aluminium components and systems for the automotive industry.
Clausen was a 25 year old electrician when he was hired at Hydro’s new aluminium extrusion plant in Tønder. That was in May 1975. Today, more than 50 years later, he is still on the payroll.
Since that time, he has worked for each of the various aluminium related operations that Hydro has had in Tønder, with most of his work directed toward automotive customers. In this regard, he has his name on around 50 patents, many together with carmakers, including BMW.
Yet they represent only part of the impact Clausen has had on the industry, specifically related to the growth of lightweight aluminium components and systems, and on Hydro as an automotive supplier.
You were 25 years old when you began working for Hydro in Tønder. What do you remember?
On May 5, 1975, I came to Tønder. I went into this gray building. The only thing on the floor was an induction heater. The press wasn’t there yet, it came the next week, the 12th and last press that Lindemann supplied to the Hydro system. I remember when I saw the panel and opened it, I had never seen so many relays in my whole life. And when we pushed the first billet, then see it going to the press, being pushed through. And when it came out, and people got burns on their hands, because, at that time, that was how it was. These are the pictures that are stuck in my mind.
Why did you try for a job in this company that you'd never heard of?
I thought it would be better than going to a building and putting electric cables in a wall and so on. I thought this would be really interesting. So, I applied for a job, I got the job and I got stuck with it.
Hydro in Tønder pioneered automotive heat transfer solutions in aluminium. What are your recollections of the start of the operation, today’s Precision Tubing?
I remember when we implemented the press in June 1975 and started production, the next month, we were told to clean the whole plant because important Hydro visitors were coming. There was a guy who wanted to see the plant. His name was Dick Knoll. Dick was told to go and pick the one plant he would like to have to implement his aluminium drawing technology. He went to Tønder. He went to Nenzing. He went to France. Dick said, I want to be in Tønder. That was really our start. That's really when automotive came to Tønder. It was so interesting. We had the possibility to start from scratch with this tubular equipment. That was really good.
How did you begin working with structural automotive parts?
I was in periods working for Hydro in Belgium and in the U.S. in the early 1980s, and that period in the U.S. was really something. We really got close to automotive. When I went back to Europe, there was an automotive show in Frankfurt and Walter Treser was there with his car, which couldn't close its roof in the proper way, and it was probably then that we decided we would start on structural parts. That was in 1986. Our first structural parts were for the Treser 1, the spaceframe. Then in 1989, we were asked by BMW to make a presentation of the Treser frame. They were not impressed. But they looked at all the crooked things we had in the front and asked how we formed the parts, and that triggered them. They asked if we would go into their E1 project – the first electric car from BMW. So, BMW and Hydro built the first aluminium frame for electric cars in the early 1990s – more than 30 years ago. It was supposed to go into production. But then one of them burned – the battery burned – and BMW’s management immediately said, no, it's too dangerous. But at that time, BMW had a full aluminium frame. BMW could have been Tesla, they could have been. They were that far ahead at the time. And then they stopped it. They restarted in 2005 when they were looking into the i3.
Which ideas that turned into innovations stand out most in your mind?
I started work on spaceframes in the mid-1980s and into the 2010s. What you saw in the automotive industry was only evolution, bits and pieces. Here is a story: In the early 2000s, we had a project from Ford, to make a design for a new frame – a chassis, a spaceframe. We made a concept and we went to the US to present this work, and 20-30 people were in there listening. We started putting the slides up, and it got quiet in the room. And when we finished, the guy who gave us the order came up and said, Ford is for evolution, but what you showed is revolution – we will have to put a bit of this to the side.
How has your work in designing aluminium automotive components changed over the years?
At the beginning, we had been told that aluminium is not the cheapest material, but that carmakers needed to get weight out. There was legislation about reducing CO2 emissions, so they needed to reduce weight, and this was an easy issue that helped us. We could bring in parts and say we are cutting 40% of the weight if you replace it from steel. But today, nobody cares about weight. The governments don't care as long as the car is electric. So I really hope that somebody someday will wake up and say we need also to get a view on the weight of the electric car – on how many kilowatts it is using per kilometer. Right now, they just put in a bigger battery and the problem is solved. And that change is making it really, really tough for aluminium right now when it comes to bodies and structural parts. But I think in 5-10 years, light weight is again going to be an issue.
Where do your ideas come from?
I think if you feel motivated by your work and it's your main interest, then the ideas come. They happen when you're fishing, when you sleep, when you are doing anything. I have been jumping up out of bed making sketches and then going back to sleep again. Just so I don’t forget.
Are you using artificial intelligence in your development work?
No. I don't think you get more creative when you get older, but what I know is that you have a backpack that you can pick from. That’s what I see. A lot of the new stuff we are doing today, we ask how do we achieve the targets? So we go into the backpack and see that OK, we had this, how did it work?
What people stand out in your mind from your years here?
Dick Knoll. Dag Flaa. Ivar Hafsett. Per Bohn. These people kept saying keep on, keep on. They gave us the opportunity to move forward and succeed. But I think the organization in Tønder, all the people – you are never alone when you work in Tønder. There are always people who will support you. People stick together. If you are stuck with something, we are going to find solutions for it. What one can’t, the other can. The teamwork is very fruitful. And the management supports this way of working. Hydro is also known here as a solid and good working location. Even when there have been bumps in the road, Hydro has a good reputation. It’s good here. I’ve enjoyed it. It’s been quite a part of my life.
How much longer do you want to work for Hydro in Tønder?
When Hydro sold the Automotive Structures company to Benteler in 2010, I didn’t know how long it was going to last. At the time, I was 60. But the work there was interesting. If you are in good health, and have new opportunities, then I like it. I’m having a wonderful time now. A couple of days a week, when it’s needed, because this is also a question about what the company needs. It is not just a question about me.
What are the things that make you happy when you reflect on your career?
When you look back, you know, it is always nice to be part of a success. And I think aluminium in Tønder has been a success. Being part of it. Seeing things grow, people working, getting what they need. That’s good.