Nickel

Two-thirds of all nickel mined and produced globally will make its way into the production of stainless steel, therefore, the viability of the worldwide nickel market is heavily dependent upon stainless steel production.

It has been announced that Rolled Alloys has received 2014 Boeing Performance Excellence Award. The Boeing Company issues the award annually to recognize suppliers who have achieved superior performance.

Carpenter Technology Corporation is planning to soon open its new superalloy powder facility in Alabama as part of a multi-level agreement with United Technologies Corporation’s (UTC) Pratt & Whitney Division.

Currently, the short-term outlook for the stainless steel market is mixed as demand varies by sector.

For example, sales to the automotive supply chain are quite buoyant but investment in the oil industry is very depressed, as it has been since commodity oil values started to fall, last year.

Allegheny Technologies Incorporated (ATI) has announced that it is expanding its nickel-based superalloy powder capabilities to satisfy strong demand from the aerospace jet engine market and growing demand from the additive manufacturing industry, particularly for 3D printed parts used in the aerospace, medical, electrical energy and oil & gas markets.

Recently across the globe, there has been an increase in stainless steel scrap prices over recent weeks. The range for the 304 quality has climbed to US$ 1300-1350 per ton while 316 material has advanced to US$ 1780-1830.

The supplier of high-quality seamless stainless piping solutions, CENTRAVIS, has been qualified by The Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Petroleum Operations Ltd. (ADCO) and Zakum Development Company (ZADCO).

Recently, additive manufacturing is making a big impact across a variety of engineering disciplines and consumer markets. Basically it is the process of building up structures layer by layer. The process allows for the opportunity of incorporating valuable internal features into structural components during their manufacturing.

Special steels and alloys stockholder INTOCO, which is based in Cheltenham, England but also sells to North America, has announced additions to their comprehensive oil & gas based product range.

Starting in July 2015, they will stock highly certified Nickel Alloy 718 round bar in both API and AMS specifications.

MEPS International has reported that so far in 2015 a quick decline in the cost of raw materials, especially nickel, has led to a substantial cut in stainless steel prices in the United States and in countries where the prices are denominated in American dollars.