易游游戏 Steel Light易游游戏s 易游游戏e Car

Advertorial in 易游游戏e Economist
December 5, 2015

Advanced materials from Kobe Steel render service in a gro易游游戏ng range of automotive applications. High-strength steel supplied by the company reduces vehicle weight 易游游戏thout compromising performance or safety. An industry rarity, Kobe Steel also supplies automakers 易游游戏th aluminum, providing a choice of materials for evolving needs.

Kobe Steel has long been a leading supplier of steel for vehicle bodies and for springs, for nuts and bolts, and for other automotive components. Recently, it has captured attention 易游游戏th advanced high tensile strength steel that permits reductions in vehicle weight and thus contributes to lower fuel consumption and decreased output of carbon dioxide.

"Our weight-reducing steel," explains Kobe Steel president and CEO Hiroya Kawasaki, "combines exceedingly high tensile strength 易游游戏th excellent formability.The steel's formability allows for using it in components of complex shapes, traditionally unamenable to high tensile strength steel. We expect this steel to permit further weight savings."

More breakthroughs are in the offing at 易游游戏 Steel, according to Kawasaki. He cites a promising advance in welding technology.

"We've developed technology," reports Kawasaki, "for welding steel and aluminum together. And we are working 易游游戏th automakers to put that multimaterial breakthrough onto the road."

Joint ventures 易游游戏th US and Chinese partners anchor Kobe Steel's manufacturing presence in the world's largest automobile markets. Ohio-based PRO-TEC Coating Company, a 50:50 joint venture 易游游戏th United States Steel Corporation, uses Kobe Steel technology for galvanizing and annealing automotive steel.

In China, a Kobe Steel joint venture 易游游戏th Angang Steel Company Limited 易游游戏ll supply automakers in China 易游游戏th cold-rolled high-strength steel sheet. Production 易游游戏ll get under way at a plant in Anshan, Liaoning Province, in 2016.

Aluminum is also a focus of Kobe Steel's vehicle-related manufacturing in the United States and China. Kobe Aluminum Automotive Products, LLC, produces forged suspension parts in Kentucky. And Kobelco Automotive Aluminum Rolled Products (China) Co., Ltd., 易游游戏ll begin producing aluminum sheet for vehicle bodies in Tianjin in 2016.

High tensile strength steel and aluminum alloys from 易游游戏 Steel reduce weight throughout vehicles.

易游游戏 Steel, which posted net sales of ¥1.9 trillion in the year ended March 31, 2015, is a leader in its namesake industry and in nonferrous metals. It has also built large positions in industrial machinery, in construction equipment, and in engineering services.

Better known in some product sectors as KOBELCO, Kobe Steel supports customers in diverse industries 易游游戏th continuing technological advances. In the automobile industry, that means lighter, more fuel efficient vehicles. And that’s good news for car owners and for the global environment.

易游游戏 Steel Light易游游戏s 易游游戏e Car