Australia could turn more of its aluminium and copper resources into higher-value battery components, with a new report from national science agency CSIRO identifying opportunities to strengthen the country's domestic battery manufacturing capabilities. The report, The Future of Australian Battery Manufacturing: Cell Cans and Current Collector Foils, examines how Australia could use its existing industrial expertise, materials and manufacturing capabilities to produce key components for lithium-ion and emerging sodium-ion batteries. Rather than focusing solely on the country's critical mineral resources, the analysis explores practical ways to move further downstream and capture more value through local manufacturing. The opportunity comes as global demand for batteries continues to grow,...
Germany and France share one of Europe’s busiest downstream aluminium corridors, and the metal flows in both directions. In the first seven months of 2026, aluminium flat rolled products (FRP), which cover aluminium plates, sheets and strips (HS code: 7606), as well as aluminium foil (HS code: 7607), crossed the border each way, amounting to a total of around USD 692 million. However, the bilateral trade flow is tilted towards Germany, which remains France’s largest FRP supplier. Nonetheless, the inter-dependence remains as the countries do exchange the same products but engage in cross-border trade of specialised high-value products and alloys, feeding the demand on either side. The trade figures for January–July 2026, as compiled from the International Trade Administration, highlight...
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ISM Objects presents their range of bud aluminium lights that are available as ceiling lightings or pendant lamps. The bud aluminium lights range is manufactured from spun aluminium with a brushed texture and a clear lacquer finish. The ceiling lightings fixes to a standard ceiling batten and feature a brushed aluminium lampshade. The pendant lamps come with a flex cable suspension and can be covered in a choice of a brushed aluminium canopy or lampshade. The cable suspension is also available in its own range of colours including black, white or clear. The bud aluminium pendant lamps can also be attached to a fixed anodised aluminium rod that is adjustable upon installation. The bud aluminium lights range can fit energy saver halogen BC lamp or compact fluorescent BC Lamp light bulbs.
A $1.5M modernisation programme has been completed at Sayanal, the UC Rusal-owned foil and foil packaging producer. It included a change of the rolling mill's thickness gage and strip profile management system to improve foil's overall quality. The second stage of modernisation includes the replacement of the rolling mill, which will enable the mill to increase metal processing efficiency by 5-10% of the total volume. The mill revamp will boost the plant's production capacity and quality of aluminium strip for industries including construction, decoration, engineering and packaging. Sayanal equipment currently enables production of 4-6-micron thick foil. Its production capacity is 40kt/y.
Silver City Aluminum (Taunton, MA, USA) has been producing extruded aluminum products since 1952. Offering shorter tooling times at a lower cost than other metal forming methods, the extrusion process is straightforward. Billets of aluminum are fed into the extrusion machine, pressed into a die, and heated, emerging as a slat, blind, or other shaped aluminum product. After the billet has been pressed into the die and heated for approximately 1 min, a knife drops down, guillotine-style, and shaves off the excess 3–4 in. of aluminum (see figure). Occasionally, after a billet has been cut, the excess aluminum fails to fall off. When this hanging piece hits the die, it can cause the machine to shut down, leading to a loss of production or to $10,000 in die replacement costs. When a billet of...
Sapa Profiles, owned by Norway’s Orkla ASA, posted stronger year-to-date revenues thanks largely to its North American aluminum extrusion business. Sapa Profiles’ operating revenues totaled 18.9 billion Norwegian kroner ($3.48 billion) in the first nine months of 2011, up 17 percent.
"Shandong Nanshan Aluminum (600219) plans to invest 6.19 billion yuan to construct a production line for high-performance special aluminum alloy, with annual production capacity of 200,000 tons, reports yicai.com, citing the company’s announcement. The program includes three casting production lines in a casting workshop, a hot-rolling production line, and facilities that will manufacture aluminum plates and strips as well as thin boards. The annual production capacities of this program are expected to 50,000 tons of aluminum plates, 50,000 tons of thin boards of aluminum alloy, and 100,000 tons of aluminum strips. The aluminum plates manufactured by the plant are used in aerospace products, ships, tools, container tanks and trains. The thin boards are used in aerospace products,...
The Revenue Department has terminated review of safeguard duty on import of certain aluminium products from China, as the domestic industry did not press for continuation of the levy. "The review safeguard investigation...concerning imports of aluminium flat rolled products and aluminium foil into India from China is hereby terminated," a Finance Ministry notification said. The review investigation started in February 2011 was terminated as the applicants, including, the Aluminium Association of India, sought end of the probe. The Directorate General of Safeguard in the Revenue Department said the investigation has become "infructuous" upon request for withdrawal of the probe application. The government had imposed safeguard duty of 12-14 per cent on aluminium flat rolled products and at...
The latest figures reveal building construction is the number one area of construction spend across all industries in Qatar in 2011 - having risen from $10.4bn in 2010 to $11.8bn in 2011. Building construction is predicted to remain the main area of strength over the next five years according to research by Ventures on behalf of The Big 5 2011. Exhibitors from Qatar will be showcasing their products at The Big 5 to buyers from across the Middle East and further promote the boom in the Qatari construction market. Qatar National Aluminium Panel Company, who will be exhibiting at The Big 5 2011 pointed out the benefits of participating in The Big 5. Sales and marketing coordinator Nabeel Abdulla said; "We are participating in The Big 5 for the second time as we can market our product widely...
Mr. Tim M. Siahatgar, Architectural Engineer, developer of MHS Prefabricated Building System Technology, is pleased to announce that he has been awarded the Patent right for Modular Housing Systems (MHS) from State Intellectual Property office of the People’s Republic of China under the following patent number: 200610127616.0. The unique structural Methodology of Modular Housing System is to maximize the Built Environment with cutting edge Aluminum Structure Technology. Mr. Tim M. Siahatgar and his related worldwide companies, are the original designers, developers and manufacturers of MHS Aluminum Building System. These structures are assembled on site, using our exclusive patented Modular Aluminum Extrusion and its interlocking connection system, in conjunction with MHS modular...
Superior Industries (SUP) announced its quarterly results on Friday. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.18. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Shares of Superior Industries (SUP) traded down 6.31% during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $18.42. Superior Industries (SUP) has a 52 week low of $14.17 and a 52 week high of $26.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $16.71 and its 200-day moving average is $19.69. The company has a market cap of $500.2 million and a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.61. Superior Industries International, Inc. is engaged in design and manufacture of aluminum road wheels for sale to original equipment manufacturers (OEM). The Company is a...
Sapa Extrusions, one of the northeastern Louisiana Delta's largest private employers, will create up to 30 new jobs and open a second facility in Delhi early next year, plant manager Ron Ballman said Friday. "We see this as an exciting opportunity to grow our business and our relationship with the community," Ballman said. "We're investing in the community and our work force. It's a huge vote of confidence from our company." Sapa, which extrudes aluminum products such as stadium seats, auto and construction parts and makes aluminum logs for raw material at the Delhi operation, will open a fabrication center in the former boat plant just north of the town on Louisiana 17. It's a relocation of a plant from Magnolia, Ark. "We plan to be operational by the first week of February," Ballman...
The Government has agreed to enforce mandatory standards on six tariff lines of aluminium sheets and foils, effective Nov 1, the International Trade and Industry Ministry said today. Implementation of the standards is to ensure raw materials used in end-products met quality and safety requirements, it said in a statement today. It is also to minimise import of sub-standard products and support the development and competitiveness of the local aluminium industry by producing high quality products that met international standards,it said. "Under the new ruling, importation of aluminium sheets and foils require importers to obtain a Certificate of Approval (COA) or a letter of exemption issued by SIRIM QAS International Sdn Bhd (SIRIM) for manufactured products or Construction Industry...
Norsk Hydro ASA is feeling the negative effects of destocking in its rolled products division, which posted a nearly 50-percent drop in volume in the third quarter over the previous three months. "Volume is down...on seasonality, but also (due to) what we call destocking in this segment, particularly in foil and general engineering," Svein Richard Brandtzaeg, president and chief executive officer, said during the company’s third-quarter earnings call Thursday.
Due to low demand in the market, shipments of aluminum paste for solar cells are expected to decrease around 30% in 2011, said Chi-jen Chen, chairman of Taiwan-based conductive paste maker Giga Solar.Prices are expected to decrease around 5% compared to the level at the beginning of the year,added Chen. According to Chen, it is better to cut down production during downturns for the firm to stay healthy than to achieve pretty numbers on financial reports. Capacity utilization of solar cells has been falling at the end of the third quarter and will likely continue throughout the fourth quarter, Chen pointed out. The company originally expected aluminum paste shipments to reach 3,500-4,000 tons in 2011,but due to the weak demand, the actual shipments are unlikely to reach 3,000 tons. The...
Kaiser Aluminum Corp. significantly scaled back production at its Kalamazoo, Mich., extrusion plant for a few weeks in the third quarter in response to service centers destocking, the company’s top executive said. "Destocking caught us a little bit flat-footed, and we curtailed operations at Kalamazoo to keep from building too much inventory," president, chief executive officer and chairman Jack Hockema said on the company’s third-quarter earnings call Tuesday. "It caused us to substantially reduce Kalamazoo’s production output to avoid any excess (metal) in the system."
An Eco-Efficient Aluminum for Aircraft project has been launched with the aim of offering lighter aluminium to aviation. The ECEFA project will develop an advanced aluminium product for civil aircraft fuselage skin applications. With a starting point of 10% density reduction compared to current solutions, the project’s aim is to offer weight savings through re-design. It will also study physical and mechanical performances allowing for reduced fuselage wall thickness, durability of the aerostructure and use of eco-friendly surface treatments. The project will be conducted at Constellium’s Research Centre in Voreppe, France. The project has been launched by The European Programme Clean Sky after a Call for Proposal of the Eco-Design for Airframe Integrated Technology Demonstrator (ITD)...
The Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC) has released the results of a study that confirms the material and economic advantages of using extruded aluminum for solar structural framing applications. Material, fabrication, transportation and field assembly costs were estimated and vetted for use in the study. The study, Manufacturing and Lifecycle Cost Analysis for Aluminum Solar Structures by IBIS Associates — a technology research and consulting firm, proves that there are compelling technical and economic reasons to consider and use extrusions for parabolic trough and other structural applications. “Approximately 30 percent of the worldwide CSP parabolic trough installations use aluminum extrusion, but there are still many companies that do not fully understand why extrusions are so ideally...
Novelis Inc., the world leader in aluminum rolled products, has provided aluminum for the facade of the iconic Titanic Belfast in Northern Ireland. Commemorating a century since the Titanic's maiden voyage, this dramatic new tourist attraction is poised to open its doors in 2012. The innovative building is located in the heart of Titanic Quarter in Belfast, where the Titanic was constructed. Influenced by the maritime heritage of the city, the building was designed by leading international architects and designers to attract visitors from all over the world. Tourists will be able to take a journey through nine different multi-level galleries where they will learn about the Titanic experience through video, audio, artifacts and models. Both inside and out, the Titanic Belfast touts a very...
Aleris has signed a Letter of Intent with the Zhenjiang Municipal People's Government in Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province, China, regarding a potential new investment of approximately $200 million by 2014 for the production of aluminum coil and sheet for automotive applications. If approved, construction of new production capacity would be expected to begin by the end of 2012. "Aleris is committed to supporting its global automotive customers and their supply objectives," said Steven J. Demetriou, Aleris chairman and chief executive officer. "China plays an important role in our global automotive growth strategy. "In line with that strategy, we are also on-track to complete the construction of a new cold rolling mill in our facility in Duffel, Belgium, by the end of 2012 that will...
