Böhler Edelstahl expands its powder metallurgy operations
February 15, 2012
Austria’s Böhler Edelstahl GmbH & Co.KG has announced the expansion of its powder metallurgy operations with a €16 million investment. A new production hall is being built at the company’s Kapfenberg site, featuring an additional hot isostatic (HIP) press, as well as increased melting and atomisation capacities. The expansion will take place over a two year period.
With this investment Böhler Edelstahl, a company in the Special Steel Division of the publicly listed voestalpine Group, is responding to the growing demand for powder metallurgy (PM) products. PM tools, stated the company, are today able to meet the ever greater requirements for wear resistance, compressive strength, hardness and toughness.
The company reports that it has succeeded in enhancing its worldwide market share significantly with a balanced product portfolio of high-performance materials. In view of the increasing market demand, Böhler Edelstahl came to the decision to expand its PM production capacities in June 2011.
Böhler Edelstahl produces high-performance steels under the BÖHLER MICROCLEAN brand. These BÖHLER MICROCLEAN high-performance, high-speed and tool steels are primarily used in metal machining (hobs, end milling cutters, broaching tools, screw taps, etc) and in cold work tool applications (such as blanking and punching, fine blanking, forming, embossing) where conventionally produced materials reach their performance limits.
Additionally, hot work steels are used for pressure die casting and high-strength special steels are applied in aircraft applications, turbines in power engineering, medical engineering and in off-shore oil exploitation.
“With this investment we are once again strengthening our Kapfenberg site. We offer materials that give our customers that competitive edge,” stated Franz Rotter, Executive Board Member of the voestalpine AG and head of the Special Steel Division.
Böhler Edelstahl GmbH achieved a turnover of around €620 million in the business year 2010/11 and employs approximately 2,100 people.
Edited by: Paul Whittaker, Editor ipmd.net, [email protected]
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