ArcelorMittal Europe – Flat Products
ArcelorMittal Europe – Flat Products
Over the past decade, ArcelorMittal’s range of Amstrong® and Amstrong® Ultra high strength steels has continued to grow. Equipment manufacturers have been actively exploring the increased strength and lightweighting potential of these steels. PALFINGER, for example, is now able to create cranes with up to 13 boom sections which can lift material 38 metres. This is a dramatic improvement on the four to five boom sections per crane which was the average in 2006.
ArcelorMittal’s wider coils allow PALFINGER to create longer booms
One of the key advantages of ArcelorMittal’s HSS offer is the dimensional feasibility of the Amstrong® Ultra range. “ArcelorMittal can deliver quality coils and sheets with a larger width – up to 2000 mm – than other steelmakers,” notes Wolfgang Bachl, head of raw material purchasing at PALFINGER. "Wider coils allow PALFINGER to produce longer booms which increase the reach and payload of our cranes."
ArcelorMittal and PALFINGER have worked closely on the development of the Amstrong® Ultra range for many years. “There is good collaboration between the technical teams from ArcelorMittal and PALFINGER,” notes Wolfgang Bachl. “We organise technical workshops together, and we are exploring the possibilities of innovative new grades which are still on the drawing board such as Amstrong® Ultra 1300 and 1500.”
ArcelorMittal is also one of the only steelmakers that can match PALFINGER’s global footprint. Recently the crane maker started producing cranes in Brazil, and ArcelorMittal is supplying the plant with HSS grades such as Amstrong® Ultra 700. “It’s very important to have a local supplier of HSS in Brazil,” says Wolfgang Bachl.
Steel has a great role to play in our innovation, and ArcelorMittal is one of the most innovative steelmakers we work with.
The cooperation between the two companies is set to continue as PALFINGER expands its global production Wolfgang Bachl notes: “It’s not so easy to follow PALFINGER, but ArcelorMittal already supplies our facilities in Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, and Slovenia. Within the next two years we also expect to be using ArcelorMittal steel to manufacture our cranes in Russia.”