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Steel Construction and Cladding

Record number of entries for steel awards

15th July 2005 There has been an unprecedented response from the industry to the 2005 Steel Awards and, according to Renee Pretorius, communications manager of the South African Institute of Steel Construction (SAISC), a record number of entries has been recieved. →

Local steel cladding a hit in the Far East

15th July 2005 The capability of handling both small and large orders for vitreous-enamelled steel-cladding panels, coupled with the expertise of matching existing colours, has led to Vitrex securing yet another export order to the Far East. →

New product line increases production output

By: Jade Davenport 15th July 2005 Internationally-recognised Genrec Engineering is renowned for the steel fabrication of some of the most innovative high-rise buildings, hotels and stadiums in the world, including the Burj-Al-Arab Hotel in Dubai, the Emirates Towers Dubai and the Zayed cricket stadium in Abu Dhabi. →

Steel merchant benefits from industrial expansion

By: Jade Davenport 15th July 2005 In 2004, South Africa was ranked as the twentieth largest crude-steel producing country in the world and the largest in Africa, producing 57% of the total crude-steel production on the continent. →

US cryogenic treatment system is now in SA

By: Jade Davenport 15th July 2005 The science of extreme low-temperature engineering in the form of US-based Cryogenics International’s patented controlled deep cryogenic treatment systems and processes to improve the metallurgical and structural properties of metals, plastics and other materials is now available in South... →

BEE company enters steel market 'club'

By: Jade Davenport 15th July 2005 The South African government defines black economic empowerment (BEE) as an integrated socioeconomic process that directly contributes to the transformation of South Africa and brings about a significant increase in the numbers of black people that manage, own, and control the economy, as well as... →

Significant growth for local steel fabricator

By: Jade Davenport 15th July 2005 South Africa’s largest privately-owned and black economic empowerment (BEE) compliant structural steel fabricator, the Cosira Group, is experiencing significant growth and expansion as a result of the increased expenditure in the petrochemical and power generation sectors. →

Showdown creating steel industry deadlock

By: Jade Davenport 15th July 2005 South Africa’s steel sector is facing four significant challenges, Engineering News can today report. →

Lone metals union in wage protest

By: Nicola Mawson 15th July 2005 Some 24 000 steelworkers were yesterday to start protesting over increases in the steel sector. →

Secondary raw material processor considers downstream prospects

By: Terence Creamer 1st July 2005 A large South African scrap collector and processor, the Reclamation Group (Reclam), is considering a range of downstream value-addition projects, across various materials, as it bids to consolidate its position as a leading secondary-resources company. →

World steel conference to be held in October

By: Nicola Mawson 27th June 2005 The thirty-ninth Annual Conference of the International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI) will take place on October 2 to October 5 in Seoul, Korea. →

Mittal Steel declares interim dividend

22nd June 2005 The world's largest and most globally-positioned steel company Mittal Steel's board of directors have declared an interim dividend of $0,10 per share, as per the dividend policy recently announced. →

Steel-sector strike threat reiterated

20th June 2005 A strike in the steel industry seems set to go ahead next week, despite parties in ongoing steel talks having moved on wage increases. →

Hiveld seeks to tap technology sweet spot

By: elizabeth rebelo 17th June 2005 South African steel andvanadium producer Highveld Steel & Vanadium, 79%-held by resources group Anglo American, is seeking to exploit a technology ‘sweet spot’ in its iron-making process, which, if successful, will not only yield higher steel production at far lower unit costs, but... →

Big cost focus as steel cyclee softens

By: Helene Le Roux 17th June 2005 Mittal Steel South Africa is making multimillion-rand investments in its local plants to reduce costs and improve efficiencies. →

Tough talking continues over metals-sector wages

By: Nicola Mawson 14th June 2005 Steel wage talks look set for a showdown this week after the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) issued a statement saying that it was “not optimistic that the future wage talks will deliver the desired results”. →

New stainless-steel alloy offers many benefits

By: Jade Davenport 3rd June 2005 South African research and development giant Mintek is renowned in the mining and metals industries for its product and process-development for new materials and metallurgical engineering projects. →

Steel giant standardises its global IT systems

3rd June 2005 Mittal Steel has contracted Unisys Africa, through local subsidiary Mittal Steel South Africa, to implement an IT policy framework for the organisation’s global IT operation →

US rust-protection system now in South Africa

By: Jade Davenport 3rd June 2005 Durban-based Epure Coatings has been specialising in rust-prevention in the automotive industry for the past seven years and has recently introduced a new rust-protection system into the South African market called CarWell Rust Protection System. →

Mittal uses technology to offset coking-coal price hikes

By: Nicola Mawson 2nd June 2005 Africa's largest steel producer, Mittal Steel South Africa, is expecting to reduce blast-furnace costs at its Newcastle mill by about R60 a ton, following the successful installation of a R204-million pulverised coal injection (PCI) plant, which was handed over yesterday - four months ahead of... →

Union 'dissatisfied' with steel talks

By: Nicola Mawson 31st May 2005 After a deadlock in steel talks earlier this month, the Numsa and Seifsa are to meet again today to continue negotiations. →

High steel prices hamper reinforcing market

By: Mariaan Webb 20th May 2005 The training committee of the South African Reinforced Concrete Engineers’ Association (Sarcea) has been particularly active over the past few years and, by the end of August, the association will have trained about 180 steel fixers. →

Fibre reinforcement being widely used in cement market

By: Mariaan Webb 20th May 2005 Although fibre-reinforced concrete (FRC) is not a very recent technology, it is being more extensively used in many different areas of the South African concrete market. →

Rise in crude steel output continues

20th May 2005 World crude steel production rose eight per cent year-on-year in April, the International Iron and Steel Institute reports. →

Highveld sells Columbus stake

16th May 2005 South Africa's second largest steel producer Highveld Steel and Vanadium Corporation has reached agreement with Acerinox to dispose of its 12% interest in Columbus Stainless and 1,45% residual interest in Acerinox for €91,4-million. →

Union to ballot auto workers

13th May 2005 The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) has indicated that it will ballot 6 000 Volkswagen South Africa (VWSA) workers at the company's Uitenhage factory. →

Steel-industry wage talks hit snags

11th May 2005 Trade union Solidarity has joined forces with the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) against employers' organisation in the metal and engineering industry. →

Wage dispute in steel industry confirmed

11th May 2005 Metal and engineering industry negotiations yesterday ended with Numsa and the other five industry trade unions declaring the threatened state of dispute. →

Steel sector wage dispute likely

10th May 2005 Steel-worker union the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) will today declare a dispute with the Steel Engineering Industry Federation of South Africa (SEIFSA). →

SA seeks to integrate pricing and beneficiation strategies

By: Terence Creamer 6th May 2005 The South African government is taking steps to build on progress being made in ensuring competitive domestic prices for key inputs such as steel, chemicals, and aluminium by seeking to integrate its pricing and beneficiation strategies. →

Steel industry wage talks expected to be 'tough'

By: Nicola Mawson 6th May 2005 The steel industry union, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa), has warned the Steel Engineering Industry Federation of South Africa (Seifsa) that wage talks this round will take the form of “hard and serious bargaining”. →

More steel-sector consolidation needed - Fitch

2nd May 2005 International rating agency Fitch Ratings says that further substantial consolidation of the global steel industry is needed if leading steel manufacturers are to achieve better pricing power over raw material suppliers. →

SA steel giant's headline earnings surge

27th April 2005 Assisted by substantially higher global steel prices and tight cost containment, Mittal Steel South Africa yesterday reports a 136% increase in headline earnings for the quarter ending March 2005 over the corresponding period last year. →

Finished-steel product use to exceed 1bn tons in 2005

21st April 2005 The total use of finished-steel products in 2005 will exceed a billion tons for the first time, according to a forecast by the International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI). →

March steel output up 6,5%

20th April 2005 The International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI), which tracks steel output in 61 countries, reports that world crude-steel production was up 6,5% year-on-year in March to 92,9-million tons. →

Bearings reduce maintenance costs in casting processes

15th April 2005 The bearings division of Bearing Man distributes a range of NSK bearings that provides efficient performance and reduced maintenance costs in many steel and metal processes, including casting, rolling, finishing, raw materials handling and iron making. →

New product to improve worker safety

By: Jade Davenport 15th April 2005 South African mining houses, petrochemical industries and heavy-industrial companies are increasingly coming under pressure from trade unions to prioritise the safety standards of all employees working in dangerous areas. →

Fluorescent step-nosings promote mine safety

By: Jade Davenport 15th April 2005 Industrial flooring company Toughflex Polymer Systems has, over the past five years, been introducing a new concept in →