ThyssenKrupp Steel has developed its new three-layer composite TriBond in collaboration with C D Waelzholz, a Germany-based cold rolling operations. TriBond combines the properties of different steel grades, such as wear resistance and good formability, in one material. It is available as both hot and cold-rolled strip. TriBond is produced by hot rolled cladding, a process patented by ThyssenKrupp Steel. Three layers comprising suitably prepared rough strips and a slab are combined to form a packet which is then welded together along the edges and rolled to a coil on a hot strip mill. The pressure exerted during hot rolling fuses the layers together. The hot strip produced can then be processed directly or re-rolled to cold strip. The three-layer structure of TriBond makes it possible to combine different material properties. Typical applications are found in engineering and auto construction. By varying layer thicknesses and combining different steel grades, the hot roll cladding process can be used to provide further variants with optimised, tailored properties. It is also possible to combine stainless and carbon steels by this method.