Steel bestows its annual Steel Tomorrow Award to innovations implemented within the company. These innovations can be improved processes, services, or business models as well as new projects and technologies. The most important criterion: proximity to customers.
Winners
1st prize: Under a research project Alexander Björn Jungermann and his colleagues developed the quenched and tempered fine-grain structural steel XABO®1300 for very heavy-duty mobile crane applications. The new high-strength heavy plate with a minimum yield strength of 1,300 MPa meets growing demand from mobile crane manufacturers and opens up new design possibilities.
2nd prize: Stephan Schiester and his “low-earing packaging steel” team offer customers major benefits. The premium material is used to produce high-quality metal closures. Technical modifications have made for a leaner production process while maintaining the same high quality Level.
3rd prize: Axel Pohl and his team have added to the PLADUR® Relief family. The unique finish and corrosion resistance of the Relief family combined with outstanding forming properties give customers a competitive edge. Continuous expansion and enhancement of the Relief family has allowed the product to become well established on the market.
This year’s winners were all recognized for innovative products. First place in the 2015 competition went to the Heavy Plate business unit, for introducing the high-strength fine-grained structural steel XABO® 1300 to the market. This product was developed for modern lightweight designs, used in applications such as crane manufacturing.
Second place went to the tinplate manufacturers thyssenkrupp rasselstein®, for their low earing packaging steel. They succeeded in optimizing very thin, high-quality tinplate for screw caps to such an extent that it no longer develops protrusions during the deep drawing process. This outstanding feat of engineering gives this special product a unique selling point.
Third place went to the team behind pladur® Relief family. This is a ZM Ecoprotect® sheet to which various paints can by applied by means of a special print rolling technology. Once it has been coated, this steel can look like high-quality wood, slate, or ice crystal.