Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC) established Nippon Steel Bar & CH Wire (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. (NBC China) for the production and sales of cold-heating wire in China in December 2013. This is being achieved in conjunction with partners of NBC China, Matsubishi Metal Industry, Miyazaki Seiko Co., Sanyu Co., Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Metal One Corporation and Nippon Steel & Sumikin Bussan Corporation. The land for the new plant was determined to be within the Suzhou Wuzhong Economic and Technological Development Zone, where the new company was located, and the construction of the new plant started on 12 June 2014, aiming at a start of operations in June 2015.
NBC China was established in 2006, and operations began in 2007. Supported by the growth of automobile production in China, the plant, with a current capacity of 7,000 tons/year, is now in full operation. This expansion of NBC China adequately addresses demand for cold heading wire in China for which further growth is expected. The expansion is also performed in order to further enhance competitiveness in quality, cost and delivery. A plant with facilities that can consistently conduct the processes of pickling, wire drawing, and heat treatment will be built, and production capacity will be increased to 42,000 tons/year.
