Hot Sheet
Steel
Mercedes-Benz has launched a partnership with the Swedish steel manufacturer SSAB for CO2-free steel.
Clean steel
Steel industry, automakers work toward reducing CO2 footprint
Steelmakers are ramping up efforts to cut back on carbon emissions with moves like ArcelorMittal’s plans to invest in a demonstration steel plant that will use hydrogen produced with renewable electricity in Germany. The German state pledged half of $131 million toward the endeavor in efforts to reduce iron ore in a CO2-free steelmaking process, according to an ArcelorMittal statement. CEO Uwe Braun of ArcelorMittal Hamburg said the new plant would allow the company to produce 100,000 metric tons of direct reduced iron (DRI) for steelmaking with green hydrogen by 2025.
Politics and technology are shaping the way green steel takes hold. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Council notes that the “right level of arbitrage between the economic efficiency and the political and social sustainability of climate policies” is essential to maintain fair competition in the steel industry. Approximately 30 percent of steel is traded internationally, so policies that promote a level playing field to ensure that steel companies in one region are not favored over another are critical.
U.S. officials sent the European Union a proposal to end a three-year dispute over imported steel to be discussed on September 29 in Pittsburgh, according to Bloomberg. The object is to restore trade flows with World Trade Organization-compliant rules on trade.
We are extremely happy to welcome Mercedes-Benz as a partner for fossil-free steel products. 
President and CEO Martin Lindqvist SSAB
Clean steel is driving innovation throughout the world as Hydrogen Breakthrough Ironmaking Technology (HYBRIT), a partnership between Swedish steel producer SSAB, energy company Vattenfall and high-tech mining and minerals group LKAB, announced it delivered clean steel to Volvo in August. The test run is the first in efforts to increase production to commercial scale by 2026. Over the last five years, HYBRIT has used renewable power to produce hydrogen and combined it with iron ore to create a porous material known as DRI/sponge iron.
Other automakers continue to implement innovative measures to cut back on the industry’s carbon footprint, while producing more efficient, lightweight vehicles. Stricter fuel-efficiency standards for new cars and light trucks, as well as a growing focus on electric vehicles by General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, continue. Automakers plan to expand electric vehicle (EV) sales to 40 to 50 percent of U.S. sales by 2030.
Daimler, AG’s Mercedes-Benz, signed a deal with SSAB in September, to ensure it becomes entirely carbon neutral by 2039, according to the company. “We are extremely happy to welcome Mercedes-Benz as a partner for fossil-free steel products. Together, we are building an entirely fossil-free value chain all the way to the end customer,” said Martin Lindqvist, president and CEO of SSAB. “We are proud to reduce global carbon dioxide-emissions in collaboration with our new partner.” General Motors has pledged to be entirely carbon neutral by 2040 and Toyota Motor Corp. by 2050.
EDUCATION
UTI expands welding program to NASCAR Technical Institute
Universal Technical Institute announced the expansion of its Welding Technology Training Program to its Mooresville, North Carolina, campus, NASCAR Technical Institute. This represents the eighth welding program that UTI has launched across its campus network and follows the successful fiscal 2021 rollouts of the program at its Bloomfield, New Jersey, and Lisle, Illinois, campuses. The 36-week course trains students on the hard and soft skills needed to prepare for a welding career in industries from automotive fabrication to aerospace. Enrollment is open now, with the first start expected in January 2022. UTI expects to see strong student and employer demand for the program. UTI is also planning to launch its ninth welding program later in fiscal 2022.
M&A
Sandvik to acquire CNC Software
Sandvik, Stockholm, has signed an agreement to acquire CNC Software Inc., Tolland, Connecticut, provider of CAD/CAM software solutions for manufacturing industries and the company behind Mastercam. By acquiring CNC Software, Sandvik gains a world-class CAM brand in the Mastercam software suite with an installed base of around 270,000 licenses/users, the largest in the industry, as well as a strong market reseller network and well-established partnerships with leading machine makers and tooling companies.
ENDOWMENT
Miller Fabrication Solutions donates equipment to training center
Miller Fabrication Solutions, Brookville, Pennsylvania, has donated four tool cribs to the Pittsburgh-based Anselmo Training Innovation Center. The industrial-built “vending machines” organize and store the hundreds of consumable parts used on manufacturing floors like that of the NCC training center. The cribs, valued at an estimated $6,000, will store and inventory a recently acquired supply of carbide and high-speed steel cutting tools, such as inserts, drills, end mills and taps, and screws, collets and holders.
INSTALLATION
COE installs press feed line
COE Press Equipment, Sterling Heights, Michigan, shipped and installed a SpaceMaster Series 3 compact coil line to Ameristar Manufacturing, a full-service metal fabricator in Mankato, Minnesota. The compact coil line combines unwinding, straightening and feeding of coil stock into one piece of compact equipment capable of processing a variety of materials within space-constrained areas. The SpaceMaster Series 3 fits within 15.33 sq. ft. of floor space where a conventional line would require twice that area. The Ameristar SpaceMaster Series 3 can handle materials from .010-in. to .187-in. thick up to 20 in. wide and coil weight up to 11,000 lbs. Materials capable of being processed include CRS, HRS, stainless and aluminum. The systems are capable of achieving press feeding speeds of 60 spm.
PEOPLE
Beckwood announces promotion, new hire
Beckwood Press Company, Fenton, Missouri, promotes Josh Dixon to chief operating officer and welcomes Brad Cook as the director of operations. Josh Dixon’s new role will oversee company operations in all areas internally and externally, guiding the people and systems to enhance customer experience and global presence. Cook will provide the day-to-day leadership, knowledge and management necessary to foster Beckwood’s continuous growth and improvement initiatives.
TRAINING & EDUCATION
Carhartt and Metallica recruit skilled workers
Drawing inspiration from the 1981 “musicians wanted” ad that formed the band Metallica, Carhartt teamed up with the band’s All Within My Hands non-profit and created a want ad aimed at raising funds and connecting people to workforce education opportunities. The reimagined ad features band members from Metallica paired with copy that harkens back to the original ad with a World War-era “We Want You” feel. Job seekers and supporters alike are directed to visit Carhartt.com to learn more about how to get involved with All Within My Hands’ Metallica Scholars, an initiative dedicated to providing skills and services to students of all ages who are looking to enter a traditional trade or other applied learning program.
EDUCATION
Lincoln Electric and NC3 join forces
Welding education institutions can take a big step toward developing the next generation of certified welders by becoming Lincoln Electric Educational Partner Schools (LEEPS). Lincoln Electric and the National Coalition of Certification Centers (NC3) have joined forces to provide the curriculum and learning management resources necessary for benchmarking and standardizing welding performance. Designed for institutions looking to offer a full slate of stackable welding certifications focused on career preparation, the LEEPS program combines a comprehensive set of instructional tools, resources and the support, including some e-learning formats, needed to meet today’s welding challenges. LEEPS institutions have access to these resources plus a vital Train the Trainer program for educators to ensure welding students are receiving the right skills training backed by the deepest industry knowledge. As a LEEPS Center of Excellence, schools gain a recognized leader in welding education and manufacturing as their partner and an integral support system that will help them prepare more highly skilled welders to address critical workforce shortages in the welding industry.
RECOGNITION
Vested Metals continues to grow
For the third year in a row, Vested Metals International, a St. Augustine, Florida-based company focused on raw material specialty metals and steel distribution, value-add processing, and metallurgical consulting, has been named one of the fastest-growing privately held companies in America. Spearheaded by president and founder, Viv Helwig, Vested Metals is currently listed at 1,361 on the 2021 Inc. 5000 list, the nation’s most prestigious ranking for independent businesses. Aside from Vested Metals’ recent Inc. 5000 accolade, the company has recently been named #24 on Jacksonville Business Journal’s 2021 “Fast 50” with this being the third year in a row to place on the list as well as a winner in GrowFL Florida Companies to Watch. Helwig, himself, was named as a finalist of the prestigious Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2021 Florida award.
M&A
Hardinge Inc. acquires Ohio Tool Works
Hardinge Inc., Berwyn, Pennsylvania, and Ohio Tool Works LLC, Ashland, Ohio, have completed a definitive agreement under which Hardinge has acquired OTW, enhancing Hardinge’s machine tool and workholding portfolio with an attractive platform of high-precision honing machines, tooling and abrasives. OTW designs and builds both standard and custom honing technology for a diverse and growing base of global customers across the industrial, aerospace, defense and metalworking industries.
PEOPLE
HGG appoints new GM
Gerrit Teunissen has been appointed general manager for HGG Profiling Equipment operations in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Teunissen, recently relocated from Australia to the U.S., will work out of HGG’s customer service and support center in Houston. He will have direct responsibility for all North American HGG operations, including customer service and support, product, and sales management.
ENTERTAINMENT
ESAB provides welding equipment for “Metal Shop Masters”
ESAB, Annapolis Junction, Maryland, announced it is the sole provider of welding equipment for Season One of “Metal Shop Masters,” a new Netflix reality TV series that premiered September 10. The show features seven competitors, five men and two women, who face off in elimination-style fabrication challenges. At the end of six challenges, the last fabricator standing will have earned the title of Metal Shop Master and win a $50,000 prize. The show is hosted by Jo Koy, an award-winning comedian and star of several Netflix stand-up specials. ESAB products used on the show include Rebel EMP 205ic AC/DC welder, Thermal Dynamics Cutmaster 40 plasma cutter, MIG and TIG gloves, and leather and FR welding jackets.
ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
Desktop Metal acquires Aidro
Desktop Metal, Burlington, Massachusetts, announced it has acquired Aidro, a pioneer in the volume production of next-generation hydraulic and fluid power systems through metal additive manufacturing across a wide range of industries. Aidro offers expertise in design for additive manufacturing, including finite element analysis simulation and topology optimization techniques. Aidro engineers leverage these technical capabilities to redesign traditional hydraulic components for AM production using complex geometries to reduce weight, save space and consolidate multiple components into one, eliminating assembly and welding requirements.
RESOURCES
LVD launches innovation tour
LVD North America, Akron, New York, announces its INNOV8 program and the LVD Innovation Tour. INNOV8 helps fabricators bring innovation to their sheet metalworking operations, providing in-person and virtual avenues to connect with technology and industry experts, informational resources, purchasing incentives, and more. One element of the program is a mobile roadshow that launches October 4, 2021 traveling to fabrication shops across the U.S. The Tour features a 46-foot customized truck that brings solutions directly to fabricators in a unique, interactive experience.
