voestalpine opens state-of-the-art duo rolling mill at Böhler Bleche GmbH & Co KG in Mürzzuschlag

The voestalpine Special Steel Division (former Böhler Uddeholm) is already operating in 60 locations in 50 countries; it is emphasizing accelerated internationalization, but also expanding existing production locations in Austria by making major investments. “With the commissioning of the state-of-the-art duo rolling mill in Mürzzuschlag, we are continuing to extend our value chain in the special steel field to include and engage our customers. The special features of the new rolling stand provide an enormous advance in quality and a significant increase in the capacity provided in Styria,” states Franz Rotter, Management Board member of voestalpine AG and Head of the Special Steel Division. With the start-up of the rolling mill, an additional 2,000 tons of premium special steel plate can be produced starting in the next business year.

The duo rolling stand at the Böhler Bleche GmbH & Co KG locations produces plate with thicknesses ranging from two to ten millimeters and a maximum width of two meters. A particular feature of the plant is its state-of-the-art, fully automatic handling and thickness gauge. The drive motor has an output of 2.8 MW and the gearbox alone has a total weight of 115 tons. The new facility was installed in only six weeks—a record. “The expansion of the Mürzzuschlag facility is an important step to improve voestalpine’s competitiveness. Today, we are already the worldwide market and technology leader in many fields. By creating additional capacity for heat treatment and using optimized manufacturing technology, customer requirements can be fulfilled even better in the future so that the results will ensure the production site’s long-term survival,” says Rotter. With its 520 employees, Böhler Bleche GmbH & Co KG in Mürzzuschlag is the largest employer in the Upper Mürztal valley region; with its annual revenue of EUR 155 million, it is a global leader in the manufacture of top quality special steel plate.

The plate manufactured on the rolling stand is sought by international customers in important fields, such as the aerospace and chemical industries, the toolmaking segment, and energy technology. Plate produced here is used, for example, for engine mounts for the Airbus A330, but also for the production of containers and pipes for the chemical industry and for the manufacture of industrial blades. These premium materials are exported from Styria to more than 50 countries worldwide. In addition to its main markets in Europe, such as Germany, France, and Italy, the Mürzzuschlag production site also supplies many customers overseas, such as the USA, South Korea, Japan, China, and Singapore.

The voestalpine Special Steel Division is focused on technologically sophisticated materials and customer-specific services. It is a global market leader for tool steel and one of the leading providers of high-speed steel and special forgings. The most important customer segments are the automotive, energy (both production and oil/natural gas exploration), and mechanical engineering industries as well as the consumer goods and aerospace industries. In the business year 2012/13, the division with its two business segments of High Performance Metals and Special Forgings, reported revenue of more than EUR 2.7 billion, of which around 40% was generated outside of Europe, and an operating result (EBITDA) of EUR 369 million. It has around 12,700 employees worldwide.