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Summer reading

The pace of working life slows down over the summer as we take time to relax with family and friends. Meanwhile, those of us who are in still the office have an opportunity to catch up with recent news, and also tackle those lower priority tasks that will set us up for the second half of the year.

That’s why we’re sharing a few recent stories from our R&D team, employees and customers.

Strengthening professional ties

Helene Thomsen, our Head of Talent & Leadership, provided an update on the Young Professional Network we established in late 2022 for people under the age of 40. It is designed to give up-and-coming team members a chance to develop their networks.

By building relationships and friendships across the business, they will see what opportunities are available to them and will want to develop their careers with us.

During each 16-month program, a group of around 20 gathers at a series of events. Formal presentations and informal networking gives them opportunities to understand our strategy and meet colleagues from different backgrounds.

Feedback has been positive from the first program, which is now drawing to a close. The second group is now starting and we look forward to seeing how this friendly community continues to create benefits. Catch up on our recent story about the Young Professional Network.

Alloying with aluminum: new research for predicting corrosion resistance

Although our Hybrid Steel® provides corrosion resistance that compares with some stainless steels, there is a challenge. Hybrid Steel’s® significant aluminum content means that it does not conform with the PREN (pitting resistance equivalent number) index. In turn, it is hard for engineers to predict its corrosion performance in applications such as high-performance bearings, fuel injectors and other highly-stressed components.

To overcome this, researcher Steve Ooi, Ovako Group Technical Specialist based at Cambridge University has led the development of a new formula for Corrosion Resistance Index (CRI). Engineers can use it to evaluate the potential for corrosion in alloys containing a significant amount of aluminum, such as Hybrid Steel 50, 55 and 60.

Find out more about the development of CRI and download the scientific paper

   Olympic-grade weightlifting bars

With the Olympic Games taking place in Paris this summer, it’s worth remembering that our steel plays a vital role in weightlifting through our customer Eleiko. As the world leader in weightlifting equipment, it orders more than 100 tonnes of Ovako quenched and tempered bar every year.

“Eleiko and Ovako have worked together for several decades to develop a steel barbell optimized for Olympic weightlifting,” explains Eleiko CEO Erik Blomberg. “To us, Ovako means quality, reliability and trustworthiness. They consistently deliver high quality products and have strong in-house capabilities when it comes to research and development.”

It’s important to use the highest quality steel as bars must withstand intense loading and impact. By using Ovako’s clean steel, Eleiko ensures its bars have the strength, hardness and flexibility needed for competitions like the Olympic Games.

Read more about our work with Eleiko

Please invite any of your colleagues/networks to join us as we look forward to bringing you news of interesting aspects of the steel business world.

Stay tuned for more exciting updates as we continue to shape the future of steel and redefine what's possible.

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