SHANGHAI, Sept. 1 - The 29th China Composites Expo opened today at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai).

Under the theme "New Materials Drive the Future," Great Wall Motor and its strategic partner Zhongfu Shenying held a joint technology sharing session, at which the two companies signed a memorandum of cooperation. The partnership will focus on joint research into the application of carbon fiber in vehicle bodies and key components, with the aim of replacing conventional substrates with advanced composites to reduce vehicle weight, extend driving range, and enhance safety performance.

The two sides will further expand cooperation in carbon fiber R&D, application, and market promotion, jointly advancing the use of carbon fiber in automotive lightweighting and helping propel automotive carbon fiber into a new "ten-thousand-ton" era.

Li He, Director of Great Wall Motor's Materials Technology Department, attended the signing ceremony and delivered a keynote address on trends and technological breakthroughs in automotive composites, citing the development of a carbon fiber cockpit as a case study.

"After five years of effort, our team has established an integrated process spanning materials, design, simulation, and manufacturing, and has built a fully enclosed, temperature- and humidity-controlled carbon fiber plant," Li said. "There, 15 to 20 senior technicians manually lay up 3,400 individual carbon fiber pieces, working continuously for 48 hours to complete the cockpit with precision. Weighing under 130 kg and boasting a torsional stiffness exceeding 40,000 N·m/°, the cockpit delivers exceptional performance."

With this full-chain breakthrough, Great Wall Motor has acquired end-to-end R&D capabilities for carbon fiber components — from material selection and design to simulation and manufacturing. The achievement not only redefines vehicle performance limits but also offers a key model for China's auto industry in overcoming bottlenecks in high-end composites, accelerating the transition of lightweighting technology from theoretical simulation to industrial-scale production.