Salzgitter AG builds new hot dip galvanizing line

Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH (SZFG), a subsidiary of Salzgitter AG, has launched its “Hot Dip Galvanizing 3” (FV3) project and one of its largest single investments of the last decade. The plant engineering SMS Group based in Düsseldorf is the company’s project partner.

The new production facility, with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons, supplements SZFG’s already existing hot dip galvanizing lines. “This project is a key component in the strategy of the Salzgitter Group that focuses on qualitative growth for its strip steel business. It will help us strengthen our market position as a producer of premium products for national and international customers from the automotive industry. We have decided to make this investment, even though the political and social framework conditions for major industrial projects in Germany and Europe are currently going in an unfavourable direction,” explains Prof. Dr.-Ing. Heinz Jörg Fuhrmann, Chief Executive Officer of Salzgitter AG.

FV3 is due to become operational in 2022. Advanced-high strength steels for chassis and body applications that play an important role in lightweight automotive construction and in vehicle security are then to be produced.

Ulrich Grethe, member of the Group Management Board and CEO of SZFG’s Management Board: “At the same time, FV3 is also important for securing the sustainability of Salzgitter as a steel location and the jobs there, as this investment will enable us to further optimize our already high quality product portfolio.” The new facilities will produce hot-dip galvanized strips with thicknesses of between 0.7 and 2.5 millimeters and width of between 900 and 1,700 millimeters. The strip that is wound into coils has a maximum weight of 32 tons.

The production of high-strength and advanced-high strength steel grades is enabled through the very high cooling rates and the integration of an oxidization/reduction process in FV3’s furnace. “The range of materials will cover advanced-high strength dual-phase steels through to complex phase steels and on to quench and partitioning steels,” explains Dr.-Ing. Michael Brühl, General Manager of cold-rolled flat products at Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH. The configuration of the facilities offers the structural and technical prerequisites for realizing further innovative materials concepts.

Source and photo: Salzgitter AG