Featured Story

Our Featured Story archive is a collection of the Featured Story’s which have been published in our magazine and taken pride of place as the ‘unique feature article’ on our Stainless Steel World home page. In addition to industry updates, market news and topical issues of the day the Feature Story provides an interesting mix of company profiles, in-depth technical articles, reports from major end users and features projects in a variety of industries ranging from oil & gas, chemical and petrochemical to the architecture, power generation, medical and food and beverage industries.

How digital transformation is changing the face of visual inspection

Industry 4.0 is the next revolution, driven by data and characterised by the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT), Cyber Physical Systems and Cloud Computing.

Traceability, we need to start somewhere!

These days it’s all about industry 4.0. For some that means digitization, sensors and automation. Others call it the fourth industrial revolution which is about decentralization and local production. But decentralization can also mean decentralized trust. In this article, I want to talk about the true advantages of the digital era as well as the benefits of a new technology called blockchain that provides decentralized trust. Specifically: how this could apply to the steel industry in general.

What effect from EU plastics ban?

In October 2018 Members of the European Parliament (MEP) voted to ban single-use plastic items such as plates, cutlery, straws, balloon sticks and cotton buds, which make up 70% of marine litter. The move creates many opportunities for the stainless steel industry.

Tool steel market to exceed 2.5 MT consumption by 2024

According to a new growth forecast analysis by Global Market Insights, Inc. the tool steel market will reach USD 6.5 billion by 2024.

Automated container-type pickling systems

An innovative new pickling system which is fully automated and completely enclosed offers a more environmentally-friendly and safe way for stainless steel manufacturers to pickle their products.

Solving materials challenges with Artificial Intelligence

A new research project named Swedish Metal is being launched by Sandvik, SSAB and the University of Skövde. Artificial Intelligence, Big Data and machine learning will allow unique and comprehensive production data analyses to be made. These analyses will hopefully show new cause-and-effect relationships – which can lead to more efficient and sustainable steelmaking processes.

Cooling towers: When experts work together…

Hamon d’Hondt manufactures finned tubes for cooling towers, welded tubes of all types, cooling towers, air condensers, energy savers, air and fume heaters, etc. It has been asked to produce cooling tower systems destined for a gas-fired power plant at Fadhili. This colossal project, awarded to Saudi Aramco, is an entirely new development to be built 30 km west of Jubail, in the eastern province of Saudi Arabia.

Stainless water tanks for ultramodern diving school

Gpi recently had the honour of supplying two large stainless steel water tanks for a very unusual project. The tanks will be used at a dive training school in the Netherlands. The Dutch tank fabricator shared some insights into this challenging project.

Breaking even at USD 20 / barrel: the new age of low cost oil

In late August, Equinor and the Johan Sverdrup partnership of Lundin Norway, Petoro, Aker BP and Total, submitted their development plan for the second phase of the project to the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy. With an increased resource estimate and lower investment costs, the full field development of Johan Sverdrup will contribute to even greater value creation.

Safer seas with stainless steel

Chemical tankers are specialized ships carrying liquid cargoes that may be environmentally hazardous, flammable or highly reactive. They are designed and operated under special rules, and increasingly have built-in molybdenum-containing stainless steel tanks. Sailing around the world, they transport liquid goods safely over long distances. They also represent a significant market for duplex stainless steels and molybdenum.