Page 14 - Australasian Paint & Panel Magazine

NEWS
FIX AUTO
UNVEILS NEW
PARTNERSHIP
IN SHOALHAVEN
Fix Auto has added a partner by joining forces with owner-operator Ron McGuire to open Fix Auto Shoalhaven.
McGuire said the move gives his business the opportunity to maintain its independence while gaining access to support and influence.
“Fix Auto gives me help in making the right decisions. Having a seat
at the table was my main reason
for joining.”
Fix Auto head of business Terry Feehan said that Fix Auto was delighted to add to move into a location with a history of community involvement and growing the business’ footprint in Australia.
Ron McGuire and his Fix Auto Shoalhaven team outside their store.
HONDA REVEALS TAKATA HOTSPOTS
HONDA HAS REVEALED the postcodes with the largest number of outstanding owners that need their Takata airbag inflators replaced. Many of these customers would have received at least one recall notification and as many as five.
The postcodes with the largest number of outstanding repairs are all in NSW, with the 2166 postcode having the most number of repairs outstanding. More than 850 Honda owners are affected in these suburbs. In Melbourne, 551 Hondas in the postcode area of 3021 are in need of Takata airbag inflator replacements.
As of Monday, the completion rate for replacements was 89.8 per cent. Since the Takata recall started in
2009, Honda Australia has sent as many
as five recall letters to affected owners. Other efforts have included Facebook, text messaging and registered letters.
Postcode 3030 in Victoria has the
best completion rate but is in the top 10 as a Takata ‘hotspot’, with more than 450 vehicles requiring repairs.
Honda continues to reach out to affected customers, including in remote Outback areas of the country, and as far north as Thursday Island.
To date, Honda dealers have completed more than 593,000 inflator repairs. However, more than 67,000 inflators still need to be replaced in Honda vehicles across the country. This equates to 44,719 Honda vehicles still in need of Takata replacement work.
To date, Honda has sent out more than 1.4 million forms of communitaction to affected owners.
14 PAINT&PANEL July / August 2018
www.paintandpanel.com.au
RIO TINTO REVOLUTIONISES ALUMINIUM PRODUCTION
RIO TINTO HAS announced a process to make aluminium they say produces oxygen and eliminates all direct greenhouse gas emissions from the traditional smelting process.
As part of a partnership with Alcoa, the company has announced the formation of a joint venture company, Elysis, to further develop the process and to advance larger scale development and commercialisation of the process.
According to reports, the new technology will lower the operating costs of the process by 15% and increase production by 15%.
Elysis expects to offer the technology for sale by 2024.
The companies claim that the process represents the most significant innovation in the aluminium industry in more than a century.
Rio Tinto CEO Jean-Sebastien Jacques said the process was crucial in reducing carbon emissions from the smelting process.
“This is a revolutionary smelting process that can deliver a significant reduction in carbon emissions.
“It builds on the key role aluminium has to play in driving human progress, by making products infinitely recyclable, stronger, lighter and more fuel efficient.”
The joint venture will be based in Quebec, Canada with the company predicting that it could eliminate the equivalent of 6.5 million metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.
That represents an amount roughly equal to taking nearly 1.8 million light-duty vehicles off the road.