Kobe Steel, a manufacturer of magnetic and other steel powders, plans to invest $16.4 million to increase the production capacity of its steel powder plant in Takasago, located in western Japan. The project will bring a new furnace and mixer online in the second quarter of 2021, raising the plant’s capacity from 96,000 metric tons per year to 110,000.
The company’s steel powder products are mainly used in powder metallurgy to make automotive sintered parts such as engine parts and transmission parts. Kobe estimates that it has nearly a 50 percent share of the domestic market for steel powder, making it the top producer in Japan.
With automobile production forecast to increase over the medium to long term, demand for steel powders is anticipated to grow in the future which led to its decision to expand the plant, the company said. Its magnetic powder, called Magmel, is used in motors and reactors.
For more info, see www.kobelco.co.jp.
