Alfiniti, Inc., a leading manufacturer of high-quality drawn and extruded aluminum tubing, serving diverse industries worldwide, started production of aluminum driveshaft tubing with larger outer diameters (OD) for Tier-1 automotive and aftermarket customers. The development is backed by the company’s expanded straightening capacity and multi-plant supply in the U.S. and Canada.
Aluminum driveshafts reduce weight, improving fuel efficiency and responsiveness. In addition, they provide high corrosion resistance (ensuring a long service life) and provide manufacturing flexibility, enabling platform fit across OE and aftermarket applications.
“A number of constraints kept us out of driveshafts in the past — maximum diameter, tube straightness, and perpendicularity of end cuts to allow friction welding,” said Steve James, president of Alfiniti. “We invested in both our [North Carolina] and Quebec plants to remove these constraints. With larger OD capability and a second large straightening line, we can meet industry TIR expectations and provide the redundancy OEMs want.”
Driveshaft Expansion Project
Alfiniti’s recent investment program added a new cross-axis roll-straightening line. The equipment delivers the straightness and concentricity required for modern drivelines, while adding redundancy to the supply chain along with three end facers to ensure perpendicularity and automated inspection and marking capability to provide 100% inspection and traceability.
The expansion project provides the following capabilities:
- Production for seamless aluminum driveshaft tubing, with common sizes (e.g., 3.0, 3.5, 4.0 × 0.125, 5.0 × 0.125, and 4.0 × 0.083) and lengths up to ~80 inches. Custom sizes are also available.
- Expanded OD capacity up to 5.375 inches OD from the company’s plant in Chicoutimi, Quebec, Canada, and up to 4.125 inches OD from its plant in Winton, North Carolina.
- Cross-axis roll straightening to 6 inches, HEY end-facing for perpendicular weld-ready ends, and automated 100% inspection (length, OD, wall/variation, straightness, and end perpendicularity) with inline stenciled traceability.
- TS 16949 registration for its Quebec plant in addition to the current TS16949 registration at its North Carolina plant.
- Supply assurance due to the dual-facility capabilities in the U.S. and Canada, including USMCA and HTS-compliant North American supply.
Alfiniti supplies aluminum driveshaft tubing to three Tier-1 axle manufacturers and the aftermarket, including programs that end up on General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis platforms, with aftermarket sales to most major aftermarket suppliers. The initiative has also been supported through partnership work with Rio Tinto.
“A cold inquiry through our website became a crash program — and first shipments followed,” added James. “Now we’re formalizing the capability, so Tier-1 and aftermarket buyers have another North American source with built-in redundancy.”