A continuous strip galvanizing line, Zodiac – Zinc and Other Developments in Alloy Coatings – is commissioned at British Steel’s Llanwern Works, The line was initially intended as a non-automotive line but changes were made during the final stages of design and construction to enable it to produce automotive body panels. The line processes strip between 900-1830 mm wide in thicknesses between 0.39-2.00 mm.
Many innovative features were subsequently added including High Current Density (HCD), electrolytic cleaning section and a dual pot system with a nitrogen enclosed wiping shroud (ARMC0 licence). The capability to produce galvanneal strip was developed through an electrical GA rig.
Shotton Works starts to produce a Colorcoat ® product with camouflage properties. A specially formulated polyester coating is applied to galvanised strip steel on the No.1 line to form a new product known as NATO green. The new low gloss coating is intended to mimic the infra-red background reflection of wavelengths used for infra red surveillance, making structures clad with the product less easy to detect. The first order is for a French military building. The product is also available with an infra red reflective coating in desert colour.
Coated Metals Limited, Pontardulais, Swansea, joins BSSP Coated Products Group.
In the year ended 31st March Shotton Works delivered 845,000 tonnes of prime material comprising 338,000 tonnes of hot dip galvanized, 297,000 tonnes electro galvanized and 208,000 tonnes of Colorcoat ®. The hdg figure included 42,000 tonnes of Zalutite ® produced on the No. 6 line and the electro galv. figure included 46,000 tonnes of Nizec ® produced on the No.3 line, both records. Both organic coating lines produced Durazec ®, zinc nickel plated strip with a lacquer coating, as well as the Colorcoat ® range.
Cookley Works joins British Steel’s Coated Products Group.
The development of new p.v.c. coatings and new applications for Stelvetite ® produced at Tafarnaubach Works particularly in the teletronic, food and domestic appliances sectors, brings a 25 per cent. increase in orders.
British Steel Profiles at Newton Aycliffe Works, part of the Coated Products Group, closes. While in the ownership of Dorman Long Limited in the 1960s, the North East works was involved in the development of p.v.c. coated steel. In recent years the works has been sourced with organic painted steel strip for on-site profiling from British Steel’s Bryngwyn and Shotton plants.
For the third successive year, deliveries by British Steel’s Coated Products works reach record levels. In the year ending 31st March deliveries of prime metallic and organic coated products totalled l,275,000 tonnes of which 40 per cent. was exported. Shotton Works delivered 1,023,000 tonnes compared with 880.000 tonnes in 1993/94 and 845,000 tonnes the previous year. Shotton also delivered 42,300 tonnes of uncoated cold reduced material and together with non-prime sales, delivered 1,119,000 tonnes of material, another record. The product by product breakdown for Shotton was.- Hot dip coated, 374,000 tonnes; electro galv. 388,000 tonnes; Colorcoat® 260,000 tonnes.
Deliveries from other works in the group were.- Bryngwyn 108,000 tonnes; Tafarnaubach 56,000 tonnes( Colorcoat® and Stelvetite®); Cookley 21,000 tonnes; Coated Metals 59,000 tonnes.
Shotton Works has a full order book as it celebrates its centenary.
Speaking at a celebration lunch at the works on Centenary Day, Tuesday, 24th September, the Chairman of British Steel, Sir Brian Moffat, highlighted the remarkable growth in demand for galvanized and paint coated steel strip during the past 25 years. In the early 1970s, Colorcoat ® accounted for only 10 per cent. of the industrial building materials market; by the end of the 1980s, its share had risen to an “astounding” 75 per cent. The amount of metallic coated steel used in cars had increased from virtually zero in 1980 to over 70 per cent. in the latest models so that about a quarter of the company’s current output of coated strip was for the automotive sector. John Summers and British Steel had, Sir Brian said, been pioneers in the field of coating technology with a number of “firsts” to their credit.
No.6 hot dip galvanizing line in the Coatings Two complex at Shotton Works is now capable of producing higher quality iron/zinc coated and smooth zinc coated strip for the automotive sector. The development enables British Steel to keep pace with increasing demand for corrosion resistant zinc coated steel for vehicle body parts. The Shotton scheme means that British Steel Strip Products can supply an additional 97,000 tonnes to the automotive sector annually. Metallic coated steel is currently used in over 75 per cent. of all major domestic appliances and 63 per cent. of the average car.
Shotton and the other five works in the Coated Products group deliver a record 1.5 million prime tonnes of coated steel sheet and strip. The Deeside works delivers 900,000 tonnes of coated steel.
A laminator unit is installed in the No.1 Colorcoat® line at British Steels’ Brynwyn Works, to meet growing demand for plastic coated strip in the consumer products sector.>
The Ellesmere Port business, H.H.Robertson Coated Strip, is acquired by British Steel. Its coating line is subsequently dismantled and re-sited at the company’s Turkish operation.
British Steel announce a £7.5 million development to increase annual capacity of the aluminising line at Coated Metals, Pontardulais in South Wales, from72K tonnes to 150K tonnes by 2000. The line, the only one of its kind in the country, applies aluminium to cold reduced steel strip between 600-1.250mm wide and 0.5-2.0mm thick. The product is used mainly for vehicle exhaust systems and domestic appliance parts, both high temperature applications.
The annual capacity of the terne coil-to-coil coating line at British Steel’s Cookley Works is doubled to meet anticipated demand from overseas car manufacturers.
The development involves the introduction of air knife coating control technology and the widening of the line from 1150mm to 1300mm. The product is marketed under the registered brand name Ternex® and is used mainly for automotive fuel tanks, being cheaper than plastic and with fewer manufacturing problems.
Firsteel Coated Strip, Walsall, joins British Steel Coated Products group. The works, opened in 1956, has a 450 mm wide multi-purpose coating line producing material for the automotive, bakeware and construction industries. The line was expanded in the mid 1970s.
The decade has seen marketing campaigns supporting the launch by British Steel of a range of new added value products for the construction and consumer products sectors. Galvalloy ® metallic coating has been introduced, enabling the Confidex® guarantee on Colorcoat® products to be extended. Colorcoat HPS200 ® now features a new generation of plastisol coatings; Scintilla ® emboss has replaced Stelvetite® leathergrain; Colorcoat Celestia® provides a metallic finish in a range of colours. Colour and gloss finishes have been improved, with an extended 28 shade colour palette available. All are featured in a new Colorcoat ® Building Manual, available to architects and others.
Colorcoat HP200 ® is superceded by Colorcoat HPS200® which has a new substrate, Galvalloy ®, cold reduced strip coated with a mix of 95 per cent. zinc and 5 per cent aluminium. This offers improved performance over conventional pure zinc hot dip coatings.
British Steel PLC merges with Koninklijke Hoogovens to form Corus Group.