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Corus and Salzgitter to Partner on Development of New High Strength, High Ductility Steel Corus and Salzgitter agree to extend their cooperative efforts for the development of a new High Strength and Ductility steel designed for a variety of applications,
02/19/2009 - Corus and Salzgitter agree to extend their cooperative efforts for the development of a new High Strength and Ductility steel designed for a variety of applications, including components with complex geometrical structures combined with high-strength requirements.
Corus and Salzgitter—partners since 2005 in the development of High Strength and Ductility (HSD®) steels—have signed a cooperation agreement to further extend their cooperative efforts with a focus on developing a new HSD grade for a variety of applications, in particular for components with complex geometrical structures combined with high-strength requirements.
The partners say the new Cooperation Agreement will be of significant benefit to customers in the Automotive and other industries. It governs the scope of work for both companies in sharing complementary R&D expertise to develop and optimize these products.
Potential applications for the new grade will include sophisticated components for mechanical engineering applications. Such components could translate to significant benefits for automotive applications, including mass reduction, improved crash resistance, and enhanced design freedom for the automotive engineer. The new grade’s benefits will also enhance future designs, such as electrical and hybrid architectures. Progress updates will be provided in the course of 2009.
“Salzgitter is looking forward to continuing its very effective and synergy-creating cooperation with Corus in the development of these outstanding innovative steel grades,” said Hans Fischer, Member of the Salzgitter AG Board. “HSD steels will intensify the Salzgitter strategy to be a niche first-class supplier of high-quality steel products, meeting the market demands of the future. Next to the Automotive market, in which Salzgitter already has promising cooperation projects with key OEMs, the excellent properties of this product range also provide new and promising applications in related markets, such as engineering and transportation. Salzgitter plans to produce these HSD steels using the Belt Strip Casting Technology to be erected for the production of these grades at our Peine Works.”
Marjan Oudeman, Executive Director Corus Strip Products Division, said: “Corus welcomes this great opportunity to work further with Salzgitter on the development of this new and innovative product range. HSD steels represent a new era in material application for the automotive industry and will significantly contribute to the ever-increasing requirements of our customers. Through this cooperation Corus is demonstrating its commitment to investing in new and innovative products. I am convinced that this alliance with Salzgitter is bringing about improved product offerings with a better value proposition for our customers.
“This is a positive step for both our companies, but the real winners are OEMs and developers who rely on our products,” added Oudeman. “These new steels will help them to build lighter yet safer vehicles emitting lower volumes of CO2 and contributing to a greener environment.”
In addition to their new cooperative agreement, Corus and Salzgitter also announced their intention to intensify their cooperative product development in the area of High Strength and Ductility steels based on high manganese content in the range of 15%.
Corus and Salzgitter have been working together since 2005 to identify opportunities for the application of High Strength and Ductility steels in selected market sectors. The partners say they have made good progress in the last four years, and that program results are promising.
