SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934
January 11, 2001
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(Date of Report, date of earliest event reported)
TITANIUM METALS CORPORATION
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(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware 0-28538 13-5630895
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(State or other (Commission (IRS Employer
jurisdiction of File Number) Identification
incorporation) Number)
1999 Broadway, Suite 4300, Denver, CO 80202
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(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
(303) 296-5600
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(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)
Not Applicable
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(Former name or address, if changed since last report)
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Item 5: Other Events
On January 11, 2001 the Registrant issued the press release attached
hereto as Exhibit 99.1, which is incorporated herein by reference. The press
release relates to an announcement by Registrant regarding the use of titanium
suspension springs on the 2001 model year Volkswagen Lupo FSI.
Item 7: Financial Statements, Pro Forma Financial Information and Exhibits
(c) Exhibits
Item No. Exhibit List
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99.1 Press Release dated January 11, 2001 issued by Registrant.
<PAGE>
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
TITANIUM METALS CORPORATION
(Registrant)
By: /s/ Robert E. Musgraves
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Robert E. Musgraves
Executive Vice President and
General Counsel
Date: January 11, 2001
<PAGE>
EXHIBIT 99.1
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT:
Titanium Metals Corporation Mark A. Wallace
1999 Broadway, Suite 4300 Executive Vice President
Denver, Colorado 80202 and Chief Financial Officer
(303) 296-5615
TIMET ANNOUNCES INTRODUCTION OF TITANIUM SUSPENSION SPRINGS
DENVER, COLORADO . . . January 11, 2001 . . . Titanium MetalsCorporation
("TIMET") (NYSE: TIE), together with Volkswagen AG, announced the use of
titanium suspension springs on the 2001 model year Volkswagen Lupo FSI. This
marks the first use of titanium springs in a production vehicle.
The Lupo FSI is marketed as the first car produced in Europe with
gasoline direct injection and the lowest fuel consumption gasoline car in the
world, achieving 48 miles per gallon. Volkswagen currently expects to
manufacture up to 3,500 of the 2001 model year FSI Lupos.
The Volkswagen Lupo springs, produced from TIMET's patented TIMETAL(R)
LCB alloy, contributed to the 180 lb. (82 kg) overall weight reduction achieved
by the FSI model versus the standard model Lupo. Similar in strength to steel at
half the weight, titanium is also approximately twice as flexible as steel,
resulting in spring designs that are significantly lighter (60%-70%) and offer
up to a 40% height reduction as compared to corresponding steel springs. The
titanium springs are produced by the same suppliers as steel springs using the
same production equipment.
TIMET has been working for a number of years on a strategy to gain
widespread acceptance of titanium in the automobile industry. Due to the
material's excellent physical and mechanical properties, it is already well
established in the racing car and limited production exotic sport car segments,
where material cost is less of a factor. In order to meet material performance
objectives at the prices required to gain acceptance in large volume production
vehicles, TIMET has developed new high volume production methods, as well as
three relatively low cost titanium alloys suitable for many automotive
applications.
The first major achievement in this strategy was realized earlier this
year when Chevrolet announced that the high performance 2001 Corvette Z06 would
carry a titanium exhaust system, the first significant titanium component ever
selected for a production automobile. The Corvette exhaust is produced from
TIMETAL Exhaust Grade(TM) titanium, which has properties tailored specifically
for exhaust systems. The titanium exhaust system is the largest single
contributor to weight reduction on the Z06, saving 18 pounds over the previous
year's hard top model, as well as offering significant improvement in corrosion
protection. About 6,500 of the 2001 model year Corvette Z06s are currently
expected to be manufactured.
Titanium exhaust systems and suspension springs now offer two of the
greatest mass reductions available to vehicle engineers. Consequently, these
recent breakthroughs have now attracted the attention of sport utility vehicle,
luxury car, minivan, and truck manufacturers seeking to improve performance and
to lighten their vehicles in order to reduce emissions in compliance with
mandated clean air standards.
TIMET, headquartered in Denver, Colorado, is a leading worldwide
integrated producer of titanium metal products. Information on TIMET is
available on the World Wide Web at http://www.timet.com/.
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