The economic significance of lightweight solutions in Sweden

Important results from the project

The project has made an analysis of the economic importance of lightweight technology in Sweden. An expert consultant in macroeconomics together with industrial representatives and the working group created a satellite account for lightweight technology which was used to understand the importance of lightweight in Sweden. The value added and employment multiplier of the lightweight technology was calculated, showing the total effect compared to the original direct effect. This measure highlights the macroeconomic leverage effect for the lightweight industry in Sweden.

Expected long term effects

The result shows that lightweight technologies have a large leverage effect on the Swedish economy. Now that we have the final numbers, we can start communicating the results in a structured way. The material will be distributed to political actors and organizations to show the economic importance of lightweight. We will compare our results with those of Germany and Austria to identify strengths and weaknesses, which can strengthen our cooperation with these countries. Expected impacts include increased awareness and resources for research and development within lightweighting.

Approach and implementation

The project was started by procuring an expert consultant. Then they started by defining what lightweight technologies are and how big a part they have in each industrial sector. This was done through a patent and publication analysis and workshops together with input from industry. Then a satellite account was created where the value added and employment multiplier of the lightweight technology was calculated. The results were summarized in a report that will now be distributed to key people in Sweden. It was a complicated project but the work flowed well.