Aiming to lead in automotive lightweight composites, while driving innovation in glass fiber-reinforced polymers for future vehicles. This is the ambition of Hanwha Advanced Materials, a subsidiary of Hanwha, the 7th largest conglomerate of South Korea, after groups such as Samsung, Hyundai, and LG.

“Since entering the lightweight composites business in 1986, we have two materials that are number one globally,” revealed Choi Chi-hoon, Head of Business Development, during a conference held on 27 March at the Amtech Korea forum (Advanced Materials and Tech Week) in Incheon, about two hours west of Seoul.

The first, branded StrongLite, is a GMT (Glass fibre Mat-reinforced Thermoplastic) – a composite sheet made from polypropylene (PP) resin reinforced with a glass fibre mat, offering strength comparable to steel while being 20% to 25% lighter. This results in, among other benefits, improved electric vehicle range. GMT, which first entered mass production in 1995, now boasts the world’s largest annual output of 40,000 metric tonnes, while having held a 70% share of the market since 2009. Stronger than injection-moulded plastics, it is suitable for semi- and mid-structural components. Common end products include rear bumper beams, stiffeners, battery trays, undercovers and seat back frames.

A part of recent developments, “GMT, typically unsuitable for visible exterior parts due to cold pressing, was improved using heated moulds for better aesthetics and flow,” he said. “The technology was adopted by KG Mobility and applied in production. Building on this experience, we introduced the technology to GM in North America for potential applications.”

The second, branded SuperLite, is a LWRT (Low Weight Reinforced Thermoplastic) – also a PP and glass fibre (GF) sheet composite, but thermoformed at low pressure. “The air layers within the material provide excellent NVH [noise, vibration, and harshness] performance, making it particularly suitable for headliners, underbody components, luggage trays, and other lightweight automotive applications,” Mr Choi said.

Hanwha also makes extensive use of thermosetting SMC (Sheet Moulding Compound) materials, primarily involving unsaturated polyester and vinyl ester resins, mainly in battery cases, spare tyre wheel wells, luggage doors, and tailgate lids. “Being thermosetting, it maintains dimensional stability. Its thermal expansion closely matches that of metals such as steel or aluminium, making it suitable for large components. It is widely used, particularly in North America,” said Mr. Choi. “More recently, we have focused on enhancing material properties by developing epoxy resin-based SMC, commonly used in aerospace, for new applications,” he added.

From flagship materials to global expansion

“based in Sejong, our R&D laboratory is developing GFRP [glass fibre-reinforced polymer] for automotive body structures using high-fibre content urethane-based resin for compression performance. For example, Genesis EV seat crossmembers [made by Hyundai Motor] use hybrid GFRP and carbon fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP),” Mr Choi said. Their development excludes carbon fibre (CF), focusing purely on GF to achieve sufficient compression strength for side-impact applications. “Although CF composites are common in aerospace, automotive applications remain largely glass fibre due to cost,” he explained.

“Although the materials are mainly produced in Korea, they are shipped overseas to intermediate processing sites to manufacture composite materials at various global production locations for customers like Hyundai, Kia, General Motors, and Tesla.” Outside Korea, Hanwha Advanced Materials’ global footprint includes five factories in North America; production sites in China, Mexico and the Czech Republic; and business centres in both the United States and Germany. “China has been challenging. We initially had three factories, now reduced to one due to low yields and cost issues. We supply some Chinese OEMs [Original Equipment Manufacturers], but competition is fierce,” Mr Choi revealed. In 2024, Hanwha Advanced Materials achieved sales of about £541 million.

Approximately three-quarters of Hanwha Advanced Materials workload – as well as sales volume – is automotive-related, with the remaining quarter focused on solar : the company also processes encapsulation and manufactures backsheet materials for solar panels in film form, which are supplied to solar module manufacturers. The company is part of the Hanwha conglomerate, which achieved total group sales of £37.4 billion in 2025, with business activities spanning aerospace, defence, chemicals, energy, finance, and retail.

 

Hanna Siemiatycki, Editorial contributor