ABSTRACT
Manufacturers and engineers are always on the lookout for new materials and improved processes to use in manufacturing better products and thus maintain their competitive edge and increase their profit margin. For example, in the automotive industry, the effort to reduce weight to improve fuel economy and to comply with tighter governmental regulations on safety and emission has led to the introduction of increasing amounts of plastics and composite materials in place of the traditionally used steels. However, suppliers of the traditional materials are trying to regain some of the lost ground by introducing higher-strength steels and prefinished sheets. This competition among materials makes it necessary to periodically perform a materials audit to determine whether the material used in making a given component should be substituted.
