Abstract
Metals industries need continuous innovation to remain profitable in the long term. Within Corus, the Research, Development and Technology department (CRD&T) has the important task of pushing forward innovations; it has the responsibility of bringing together all relevant scientific knowledge and technological skills, and moulding these into product and process innovation. The CRD&T covers all relevant technical fields with in house research; additionally, cooperation with research institutes, universities and metals manufacturers serves to increase the scope of its knowledge and skills. In the present paper, a brief overview is given of the approach towards, and the coordination of the many ways in which Corus cooperates with, outside parties. The actual implementation of new developments is what makes a metals company innovative. Here, three examples in the field of thermomechanical processing are presented: (a) the metallurgy in the ultrafast cooling section of a direct sheet plant, (b) the development of a grade 110 steel strip and (c) the development of a through process model for aluminium production. Each example illustrates the integration of internal and external developments into everyday operations.
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