AHSS Archives - Page 3 of 4 - National Material Company

22 07, 2019

An Overview of U.S. Steel Service Center National Material L.P.

marshall2019-09-12T18:26:00+00:00July 22nd, 2019|News Blog|

You know National Material Company as a company that specializes in supplying, servicing and processing steel with unmatched efficiency. We operate steel processing facilities and service centers throughout the U.S. and Mexico to serve your manufacturing needs in a wide variety of markets.

But the full scope of NMC’s parent company, National Material L.P, is much larger. NMLP and its affiliates have a long history of quality and service dating back to 1964. NMLP serves many industries throughout the globe and is one of the largest suppliers of steel in America. With over 30 business units, this families’ capabilities go beyond just steel service.

Here, we will provide a brief overview of National Material’s family of companies, separated into six categories – steel service centers, steel processing facilities, stainless steel and alloy manufacturing, aluminum manufacturing, raw material trading, and related operations.

Steel Service Centers

The NMLP Steel Group includes National Material Company, National Material of Mexico, and Interstate Steel Company. Together, these three companies have made NMLP a well-recognized leader servicing the needs of the steel industry and leading industrial and consumer product manufacturers by means of nineteen specialized processing facilities located throughout North America.

National Material Company, LLC

National Material Company operates ten steel service facilities and is the family’s premiere steel manufacturer in the U.S. NMC specializes in supplying, servicing and processing the following: Hot Rolled, Cold Rolled and Cold Rolled Motor Lamination Steel, Oriented and Non-Oriented Electrical Steel, and Galvanized, Galvannealed, Aluminized and other coated metals.

National Material de Mexico

National Material of Mexico operates seven steel servicing locations between partners and wholly owned facilities. NMM is the premier processor in Mexico for a variety of steel products, from uncoated non-exposed to coated exposed carbon steel in slit, sheet or blank form, in all steel grades available on the market, including all types of AHSS steel grades.

Interstate Steel Company

Interstate Steel Company is a division of National Material Company and provides highly engineered pre-painted products. ISC also specializes in processed cold rolled & galvanized products. Interstate Steel’s capabilities include precision high speed slitting of surface critical products.

Steel Processing

National Material Processing, LLC

National Material Processing operates three slitting and two pickling and cut-to-length steel processing facilities and was the first steel processor to introduce a push-pull pickle line in the Indiana Harbor area. NMP specializes in the processing of heavy gauge, hot rolled carbon steel up to .500″ (1.27cm) thick and offers precision slitting, cut-to-length and advanced PRO-ECO, hydrochloric acid pickling services.

Interstate Steel Processing

Interstate Steel Processing (ISP) is a premier national distributor of flat rolled steel […]

24 06, 2019

10 Fun Facts You Didn’t Know About American Steel and the Steel Industry

Nathalia and Jorge2019-09-12T18:25:28+00:00June 24th, 2019|News Blog|

After achieving the mass production of steel, American steel industrialists pushed steelmaking to greater innovative levels. By the year 1920, 60 million tons of American steel were circulating around the world annually, making the United States the biggest global player in the steel service industry. Steel processing became a bulwark of the economy, engraving itself into the nation’s identity.

Today, National Material Company carries on the metal service and steel processing tradition. With the following 10 little-known facts, we salute those who paved the way by transforming the world through metal work.

The Man of Steel could have been the Man of Tungsten.

But that doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, now does it? According to Thaddeus Howze — author, editor, podcaster, and self-proclaimed answer-man on all things comics –Superman got the name Man of Steel because steel was the most common of the strong metals: Steel, Titanium, Tungsten and Inconel. (It may also have something to do with the fact that “Man of Steel” is much snappier than its clunky counterparts.)

Superman was created to symbolize the extraordinary capacity of the everyday man. Thus, steel won out as metal of choice because of the household name it had made for itself, thanks to the wide proliferation of the steel industry at the time.

“Superman was a ‘man of steel’ stronger than anything you could imagine, and yet something as close as the building you were standing in or the car you desired and one day hope to own […] Steel was everywhere and steel was the king of industrial metals during this period [1940]. Steel wasn’t just the metal of tomorrow; it was also the metal of yesterday. Places in the world that had developed steel before modern industries had long-lasting cultures and it was the development of steel which made the industrial age what it was.”( Source: Quora)

2. Showers, Star Wars memes, and steel.

The month of May is well-known for its rain showers. And Star Wars enthusiasts rejoice on May the Fourth Be with You. And let’s not forget – steel.

Yes, that’s right. In the 1960s, as the nation infused steel into its structure and character, Lyndon Johnson saw it fit to raise a pedestal for steel in the pantheon of American achievement. Therefore, he designated May as a national month for celebrating the steel industry.

“Steel is the core of industrial America. It has helped to make American productivity and technology the wonder of the world. This vital product which we produce in unmatched abundance is basic to our economy and essential to our security. It supports our buildings, spans our rivers, arms our fighting men. It […]

29 05, 2019

Steel Service Center Spotlight: National Galvanizing

andre2019-06-19T19:06:59+00:00May 29th, 2019|News Blog|

National Material L.P. and its metal service centers have a long history of quality and service dating back to 1964. Since its founding, N.M.L.P. has grown to over 30 business units and is now one of the largest suppliers of steel in America. The National Material group of industrial businesses consists of five groups; Steel, Stainless and Alloys, Raw Material Trading, Aluminum, and Related Operations.

National Galvanizing, located in Monroe, Michigan is an ISO 9001:2008 certified leader in the heavy gauge galvanizing industry. Their 245,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility offers multiple services including pickling, galvanizing, galvannealing, and slitting, all in one location. This combination of capabilities provides customers with unparalleled responsiveness to meet the ever-changing demands of today’s steel market.

National Galvanizing is a joint venture between National Material L.P. and Heidtman Steel, and has been leading the heavy gauge galvanizing industry since 1984.

Advantages of Galvanized Steel

Galvanized Steel is treated with zinc to create a long-lasting alloy that is resistant to rust and corrosion. This process creates a final material with the strength and formability of steel plus the corrosion protection of zinc-iron coating. Zinc protects the base metal by acting as a barrier to corrosive elements, and the sacrificial nature of the coating results in a long-lasting and high-quality steel product.

Rust Resistance: The iron elements in steel is incredibly prone to rusting, but the addition of zinc acts as a protective buffer between the steel and any moisture or oxygen.

Easy Inspection: It’s easy to tell how strong a galvanized coating is just by looking at it. There are also quick stress tests that can determine how thick the zinc coating is.

Sacrificial Anode: This ensures that any damaged steel is protected by the surrounding zinc coating. It doesn’t matter if the steel section is completely exposed; the zinc will still corrode first.

Longer Life: With galvanization, a piece of industrial steel is expected to last more than 50 years in average environments, and can last over 20 years with severe water exposure. No maintenance required.

Galvanizing Advanced High-Strength Steel

In addition to leading the heavy-gauge galvanizing industry, National Galvanizing also provides complex galvanizing chemistries that allow for the galvanizing of advanced high-strength steel.

Galvanizing advanced high-strength steel, versus galvanizing regular steel, is a more sophisticated process. First, the coils of steel are cleaned and put through both a zinc pot and chemical treatment to passivise the rust. Afterwards, the steel is tempered and tension-leveled to produce a high surface quality on the galvanized steel.

In addition to the material durability described above, Galvanized Advanced High-Strength Steel is a remarkably strong material. Because AHHS is both light-weight and exceptionally strong, advanced high strength steel is becoming the go-to material for the growing regulatory needs of the automotive industry and beyond. Its concentrated properties allow manufacturers to easily reach their emission, safety, and fuel […]

4 03, 2019

AHSS Infographic: Advanced High Strength Steel Matters

andre2019-04-12T01:55:29+00:00March 4th, 2019|News Blog|

5 02, 2019

Advanced High-Strength Steel Rules the Road in 2019

marshall2019-02-05T17:59:41+00:00February 5th, 2019|News Blog, NMC Media|

Advanced High-Strength Steel is a new generation of steel revolutionizing the automotive industry. The widespread use of advanced high-strength steel doesn’t seem to be slowing down as we move into 2019. This high-performance material offers high-strength and low weight, all while maintaining formability that is crucial to the automotive manufacturing process.

Strong and dependable, steel continues to be the frontrunner when it comes to car manufacturing. A recent survey showed that steel is the preferred material in automobiles, with 90% of consumers saying they believe steel is stronger than other materials used by automakers. 75% said that a car’s crash safety, and other safety features, were the most important factors when buying or leasing a vehicle.

Various automotive manufacturers have announced intentions to increase their use of AHSS in automobiles, and several 2019 and 2020 models made with higher proportions of the advanced high-strength steel have already been unveiled.

SUV’s

Source: Repairer Drive News

Last month, a large automotive manufacturer “…revealed its brand-new “flagship” three-row SUV, describing a steel body with a 13.7 percent higher average tensile strength than its next-generation 2019 coupe.”

The article continues to highlight the SUV’s new build, saying it has “…a very rigid structure, with strategic use of Advanced High Strength Steel (AHSS) in key suspension and crash areas to provide increased tensile-strength. Use of Advanced High Strength Steel has several benefits: lighter overall vehicle weight and greater vehicle strength and rigidity without the excessive costs of more exotic lightweight materials.”

The SUV “…is expected to achieve TSP+ from the IIHS and a 5-star NHTSA rating. Robust underbody and side structures are designed to increase energy absorption and cabin intrusion in a severe collision, especially in the small overlap test. Further, its underbody uses multiple load paths to better disperse potential crash energy in the event of a collision.’”

Sedan

Source: Repairer Drive News

Another automotive manufacturer announced that “The 2019 sedan model ‘strengthens its bones’ for its third generation, describing a body made up of 54 percent advanced high-strength steel.”

The vehicle also added “hot-stamped components”, a reference likely to indicate ultra-high-strength steels.

This new configuration is likely to restrict what auto body shops can do to the popular sedan. Higher-strength steels tend to carry heat, sectioning and repair restrictions because of their metallurgy or role in crash protection.

“Because body stiffness plays a major role in NVH performance, engineers worked to increase rigidity for a quieter cabin and better handling tuned to match the car’s sporty and dynamic exterior appearance, resulting in a 16 percent stiffer body in white,” the automotive manufacturer wrote in a news release Wednesday.

“New subframe designs help to improve lateral responsiveness, while steering feel is upgraded compared to its predecessor’s thanks to enhancements within the Motor Driven Power Steering (MDPS) system that reduce artificial steering feel and friction.”

Throughout the last year, we shared information on the […]