Aluminium alloy powder production for additive manufacturing is set to expand through a new technical cooperation agreement between CNPC Powder China Ltd and Xi’an Bright Laser Technologies Co Ltd (BLT). The agreement covers the production and international distribution of BLT-AlAM400, an aluminium alloy powder developed for applications in humanoid robotics, new energy vehicles (NEVs), aerospace and other industrial sectors. Under the agreement, BLT has authorised Shanghai-based CNPC Powder to manufacture BLT-AlAM400 on a contract basis in China and sell the powder internationally. CNPC Powder has also secured exclusive overseas agency rights, excluding BLT’s direct sales network and existing regional agents. With an annual powder production capacity of almost 10,000 tonnes, CNPC Powder...
BorgWarner has won its first commercial order for an electric motor developed with aluminium-wire hairpin winding technology. The US automotive supplier will provide the new eMotor to a major Chinese automaker for use in hybrid vehicles, bringing the technology into its first production application. The motor uses aluminium-wire hairpin winding technology and is designed for hybrid vehicles. Its applications include generator motors and traction motors for auxiliary drive systems, with production scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026. Explore AL Circle’s report ALuminium Wires & Cables - Insights & Forecast to 2030 for insights into aluminium applications, industry developments and opportunities across the electrical sector . Compared with conventional copper-wire motors with...
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Sapa Building System, a member of Sapa Group and one of the largest European suppliers of aluminium profile systems for windows, doors, sliding systems, conservatories and curtain walls, introduced the Confort Smartline, a new generation of energy efficient sliding door systems. The Confort Smartline is a thermally broken aluminium sliding system with a lift or a lift/slide vent. The technical improvisation helps to save substantial amount of energy. The Confort Smartline has been designed for extreme daylight and living comfort. The system, through its thermal performance, meets the standard of the Minergie certificate, a sustainability label for new and refurbished buildings that utilizes energy as its primary quantifiable indicator. The aluminium sliding system with Minergie label is...
Fairview’s aluminium cladding products has been chosen for the sculptural display at the light, music and idea event VIVID 2017 in Sydney. Liam Filson, an artist, will use aluminium cladding from Fairview for his sculpture “Hedron Bulb” at this year’s shows. The company is a specialist for the manufacturing of façade solutions throughout Australia, North America and the United Kingdom. Architects and builders use Vitrabond aluminium panels for cladding solutions as it features light weight cladding material. Liam said: “I knew what I was looking for but was surprised to find it at an architectural event. However, the product is extremely versatile and has the perfect finish for my sculpture. I’m looking forward to working with it on the Hedron Bulb“. The sculpture will get aluminium...
Midwest Steel and Aluminium is moving its operations to Rogers, Arkansas, USA in order to implement its $5.2 million expansion that will enable the company to double its space and hire 15 more people over its current capacity of 22 employees. Midwest Steel & Aluminum is a leading metal service center and distributor specializing in Aluminum, Stainless Steel and Brass products. The company currently leases about 27,500 square feet at 9151 International Parkway in New Hope for its facility. According to a media release from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Midwest plans to build a 55,000-square-foot office and distribution facility in Rogers over next three years. The company was founded in 1960 and since then it has been purchasing metal products from...
Monthly alumina output in China rose significantly in March, revealed first-hand production data of the Chinese alumina refineries as surveyed by the Shanghai Metals Market. Alumina production volume last month totalled 5,831,000 tonnes, up 27 per cent from March 2016 and +12.45 per cent from February this year. February's total alumina output was estimated at 5,185,000 tonnes. During the initial three months of 2017, that is, from January-February China produced 16,600,000 tonnes of alumina. The volume is 24 per cent higher than alumina produced in the corresponding period previous year. According to SMM estimate, April alumina output in China domestic market will decline by 2.48 per cent month-on-month to stand at 5,686,000 tonnes. China's primary aluminium output in March rose 23 per...
LME aluminium ended the last week in a drop falling 1.38 per cent from its previous close of US$1,956 per tonne on Thursday, April 6 to US$1,929.50 per tonne on Friday, April 7. The US dollar index which was hit slightly by Syria strike effect rose late Friday extending its weekly gains. The rising greenback put downward pressure on the base metals. This week, LME aluminium price is expected to stage a reversal and hover at highs in the range of US$1,950-1,980 per tonne, analyses Shanghai Metals Market (SMM). Reuters says LME aluminium is biased to approach a resistance at $1,970 per tonne, as suggested by its wave pattern and a Fibonacci projection analysis. As on April 7, LME official cash buyer price of aluminium stands at US$1,929 per tonne, cash seller & settlement price is...
Nespresso and Czech bicycle producer Festka have joined hands to come up with a unique product to promote aluminium recycling. Festka recycles the ubiquitous aluminium coffee capsules from Nespresso to fabricate a unique bicycle called the Festka Doppler. The bicycle was sold at a charity auction held during Mercedes-Benz Prague Fashion Week. The auction money went to support the Tereza Maxová Foundation, which works for underprivileged children. The unique product not only demonstrated the recyclability of Nespresso aluminium coffee capsules in an innovative manner but also caught the visitor’s eyes. Commenting on this unique project, Michael Mourecek, co-founder of Festka said, “Aluminum has a long history of use in the bicycle manufacturing industry. Creating a bicycle from recycled...
Bauxite industry was in an upswing last week. China, still the largest consumer of the ore, was reported to have imported higher volumes of bauxite in February. The demand for the mineral ore in the country is on a steady rise and this is expected to keep driving its imports in the foreseeable future. Below are some of the top bauxite news from last week that certainly call for a re-look: Government of Odisha, the mineral-rich state on India's east coast, was able to collect INR 6,693.62 crore royalty as on March 27, 2017- the highest since enactment of the amended Mines and Minerals-Development & Regulation (MMDR) Act on January 12, 2015. The revenue, as per state mining ministry data, has accrued from 96 mines engaged in bauxite mining and extraction of other mineral ores....
Winter is over and the spring has slowly started putting colours in nature’s landscape. Positive trends in the global aluminium market, news of alumina and aluminium capacity cut in China and a stable US dollar have made April the perfect time to attend some of the major global events. Here are a few significant events worth attending to leverage on the positive market trends and form business relationships: 1. 121st Metalcasting Congress Date: 25 th –27 th April, 2017 Location: Milwaukee, WI, USA The AFS Metalcasting Congress is an annual technical conference and trade show event that brings together suppliers, foundries and casting customers under a single umbrella for the biggest industry event of the year. This conference will include Technical Presentations, Roundtable Discussions,...
Indian aluminium companies are shifting their focus from being primarily a smelting oriented sector to a value-added industry, and in their endeavour to become one they are finding in the Mines Ministry a true facilitator. Piyush Goyal, minister for power, coal, mines and new and renewable energy recently said in an industry meet that his ministry will encourage value-addition initiatives in the aluminium sector and work hand in hand with the companies to enhance their self-sufficiency in the face of surging imports. Goyal was addressing industry executives at the CII Global Natural Resources Conclave in New Delhi, where he said it was time India targeted aggressive expansion not only in mineral exploration but also in downstream aluminium value-added product creation and marketing....
BioCity, Nottingham's newest landmark destination, unveiled earlier this month stands out with its curtain of 17-metre high aluminium tubes and fibre-optic lights that link the building with NASA satellites. The entire installation provides a stunning entrance to the building standing tall in the eastern side of the city. BioCity houses a £30-million new life sciences hub and marks an important step forward for one of Nottingham's key emerging sectors. The new five-storey building with its unique aluminium facade was lit-up for the first time recently ahead of its official opening last week. Dr Glenn Crocker, chief executive officer of BioCity, said: "This is art that the whole city can enjoy. There are some who see the arts and sciences as distinct, almost polar opposites but that is not...
Arconic Inc. announced the divestiture of its Fusina, Italy rolling mill to Slim Aluminium on April 6 2017. The transaction follows a thorough review process and is part of Arconic Global Rolled Products’ (GRP) continued drive to convert the business from a commodity producer to a high-margin aerospace and automotive supplier. Arconic expects to record restructuring-related charges representing the loss on sale of approximately $60 million after tax, or $0.12 per diluted share, in its Statement of Consolidated Operations for the first quarter of 2017. The charges primarily relate to the non-cash impairment of the net book value of the business as well as the injection of $10 million in cash into the business prior to its sale. GRP has increased its adjusted EBITDA margin by 890 basis...
Ireland, the main alumina refining hub in entire Europe, is a major bauxite importer. The country has been featuring as one of the world's top five bauxite importing countries since 2006. It ranks fourth in terms of bauxite import volume after China, USA, and Ukraine. Since 2015, annual bauxite imports in Ireland have increased at around four per cent rate year-on-year. {newsStudioGallery} International trade data shows, Ireland imported 4.603 million tonnes of bauxite in 2016, up 4.3 per cent from the previous year. In 2015, total bauxite import in the country was estimated at 4.41 million tonnes. In 2017, however, bauxite import by the European nation is projected to drop by 7.6 per cent year-on-year to total at 4.25 million tonnes. The cost of bauxite imports in Ireland has come down...
UAE-based Taweelah Aluminium Extrusion Company (TALEX), a joint venture between Abu Dhabi’s SENAAT and Gulf Extrusions has announced its expansion plan in the city of Melbourne in Australian with an initial investment of AU$500,000 with a plan to increase it to $40 million over eight years. The expansion has been planned to leverage on the “substantial opportunity” to promote the company’s exclusive hard alloys, designed for high-end engineering applications and supply the market directly through local warehouses and distribution network. TALEX has plans to invest in key local industries like major building systems suppliers for residential projects, big fabricators, wholesalers and engineering application sectors through the project. The company will start with a commercial office in...
One of China's major aluminium producing companies Yunnan Aluminium Co Ltd., posted a net profit of 111 million yuan for the full year ended March 31, 2017. The profit rose 276.03 per cent from the previous year despite the fact that the primary producer had agreed on cutting production in a China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association (CNIA) meeting held last year in June. Yunnan Aluminium's earnings per share for the financial year stood at 0.05 yuan. As per the company's official disclosure, profit from aluminium ingot increased by 110.57 per cent from the corresponding period previous year. The downstream division producing aluminium processing products registered a profit growth of 270.30 per cent year-on-year. Yunnan Aluminium's total revenue for 2016 was estimated at 15.543 billion...
The government of India may start the process of commercial coal mine auction once it receives public feedback on the discussion paper floated by the coal ministry. These mines will not be restricted to any particular end use of the coal. The private miners will be able to manage production, pricing and marketing strategy of the allotted mines independently. “We have recently put out a draft on commercial mining of coal on the website and invited public comments. Once we receive public comments (we will auction these coal blocks for commercial mining). We have also almost identified the coal blocks for the purpose,” Power, Coal, Mines and New and Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal told reporters at a conference of coal quality. Goyal further said, “There will be big as well as small...
LME aluminium price declined in tandem with other base metals during night trading on Thursday, April 6. The contract dropped 0.30 per cent from its earlier close of US$1,962 per tonne on Wednesday to stand at US$1,956 per tonne on Thursday. The decline in the light metal price reflects a limited diversion from the US dollar index which was pushed down by the risk-averse market sentiment after the US launched cruise-missile attack on Syria. However, experts believe that the attack is going to have a feeble effect on the base metals. As per Shanghai Metals Market projections, LME aluminium will keep fluctuating between US$1,940-1,975 per tonne on Friday, April 7. As on April 6, LME official cash buyer price of aluminium stands at US$1,955.50 per tonne, cash seller & settlement price is...
Hydro, one of the largest aluminium companies worldwide, is set to open new automotive production line in Grevenbroich, Germany on May 4. The new state-of-the-art production line will manufacture aluminium parts with capacity of 150,000 tonnes of aluminium per annum for the automotive industry. Hydro has invested EUR 130 million in European automotive industry to help the car makers to minimise the car weight resulting in less emissions. The company had already made strategic investments in Norway and Germany in order to meet this requirement. Hydro President & CEO Svein Richard Brandtzæg said, “I look forward to showing the result of great efforts made by our sharpest engineers, leaders and operators. It has taken years of research, experience, ingenuity, in close cooperation with...
Western Australia’s mineral and petroleum industry has reported sales of A$94.8-billion in 2016, which registers an increase of A$3.4-billion YOY. The largest chunk of sale has been contributed by iron ore, nickel and petroleum sector. Alumina is the third most valuable mineral commodity in Western Australia accounting for 6% of the state’s total mineral value. Both the two producers of alumina in the state, Alcoa World Alumina and Chemicals and South32 run their operations close to capacity in the Kwinana, Pinjarra, Wagerup and Worsley Alumina refineries. The sales volume remains flat year-over-year in 2016. However, the Western Australian Department of Mines and Petroleum (DMP) noted that since there was a fall in alumina price in 2016, it indicated that the value of alumina sold...
