Industry Watch: Business

One desktop computer does not contain much gold, Hanlon stated. But if unused PCs are cluttering up basements and attics, consider collecting them for a trip to a metals-reclamation facility. Include the neighbors. Small businesses in a community can join forces to send their unused PCs and cell phones to a metals-reclamation firm. Be sure to scrub all personal information from your computer before turning it over to anyone. You will probably need to remove and destroy your hard drive first. Collecting discarded PCs is a way for all community members to learn about reducing volume in landfills. “Everything affecting the environment starts locally,” Hanlon noted.

Over two million metric tons of gold ore and waste are recovered from electronic scrap in the U.S. annually. Old computers contain recoverable metals, including gold, silver, palladium, platinum and copper, from wires and circuit boards. Many other metals in PCs, like lead, are hazardous under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, a federal law controlling waste in the U.S. That law prohibits companies from incinerating some types of electronic scrap or disposing of them in municipal landfill. Precious metals refiners seldom process discarded, personal-electronic items, but retailers and manufacturers accept them, and you can check with your municipality about community recycling programs.

Retailer Best Buy, for instance, offers consumer-electronics-recycling programs in all its U.S. stores. Office Depot has kiosks where consumers can drop off used cell phones, batteries and accessories. AT&T stores accept unwanted cell phones and Personal Data Assistant devices regardless of the manufacturer or carrier. Radio Shack accepts used batteries. You may remember reports of bad odors in New York City the week after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It was blamed in part on thousands of PCs burning in office buildings. Waste handling is highly regulated, and firms involved in electronics recycling must be registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state environmental agencies. www.DillonGage.com

KOBE STEEL, LTD. (TOKYO, JAPAN) . . .
established a joint venture with Hitachi Metals, Ltd., IHI Corporation, and Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (KHI) called Japan Aeroforge, Ltd. to manufacture large forgings for use in aircraft and power plants. Japan Aeroforge will install Japan’s first 50,000 metric ton forging press to manufacture large forgings that previously could not be made in the country. This will enable the stable production in Japan for large forgings made of titanium, nickel and high alloys, the demand for which is expected to increase.

Furthermore, integrated production in Japan will promote the high-efficiency recycling of the large amount of waste chips and other scrap derived in the manufacturing process. It will contribute to reducing the use of rare metals, as well as improve cost competitiveness. This advanced forging press will manufacture large forgings mainly for the aircraft industry, which is growing worldwide. The four manufacturers invested in Japan Aeroforge are making full efforts to prepare for the start of production. The strengths of each of the four companies will provide the joint venture with strong support and will contribute to improving the competitiveness of Japan’s aircraft industry.

The world aircraft industry is an estimated ¥30 trillion market that is growing 4 percent to 5 percent per year. Japan’s aircraft market is currently over one trillion yen. Looking at the future growth of Japanese industries in general, the aircraft business has been positioned as a cutting-edge industry that should be strengthened. Japanese heavy industry manufacturers are bolstering their involvement in the aircraft industry and increasing their production share through international joint development. Facing western countries and emerging countries that are developing their own aircraft industries and in order to expand its business, Japan’s aircraft industry, including materials manufacturers, needs to significantly increase their competitiveness.

Under these conditions, domestic heavy industry companies and materials manufacturers launched a study group. With advice from industry associations, the companies have been examining ways to improve technological capabilities and cost competitiveness in the supply chain and other issues. With each company contributing technology, the joint venture is able to install equipment to make large forgings, which was not been possible before, and undertake an internationally competitive business.

Japan Aeroforge will press titanium, nickel, high alloys and other metals into forged parts for aircraft engines and fuselages, as well as forged parts for power plants. Hitachi Metals, Kobe Steel and other material makers will supply titanium, nickel, high alloys and other materials to Japan Aeroforge, which will then process the material. After processing, Japan Aeroforge will return the processed parts to Hitachi Metals, Kobe Steel and other materials makers for heat treatment, machining, and inspection. Hitachi Metals and Kobe Steel will then supply the forged parts to IHI, KHI, other domestic heavy industry manufacturers and heavy electrical machinery manufacturers.

Hitachi Metals and Kobe Steel have incorporated Japan Aeroforge in their business strategies and intend to actively promote the business. IHI and KHI will also provide support for the smooth start-up of Japan Aeroforge. While Hitachi Metals has expertise in forging and molding technologies for nickel and high alloys, Kobe Steel is Japan’s only integrated manufacturer of titanium, from melting to final products. The two companies will be able to help improve Japan Aeroforge manufacturing capabilities. With a stable supply of large forgings, IHI and KHI will be able to utilize their high machining and fabrication technologies for aircraft parts developed over many years to strengthen the competitiveness of Japan’s aircraft industry.

Construction of Japan Aeroforge’s plant began in March in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture in western Japan. Production is anticipated to begin in March 2012. Okayama Prefecture has given strong support to the venture, and Japan Aeroforge plans to develop its business so that it can contribute to the local economy. Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc. and Sojitz Aerospace Corporation joined the venture later on. Through a third-party allocation of shares, paid-in capital will reach ¥3.7 billion. Total investment in the project is anticipated to be ¥20 billion. www.kobelco.co.jp/english

THE FABRICATORS & MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION, INTERNATIONAL (FMA; ROCKFORD, IL) . . .
announced the 2011 FMA/CNA Safety Awards winners. Open to all FMA and Tube & Pipe Association, International (TPA) company members, the program recognizes metal fabrication companies that adhere to excellence in safety. The Safety Award of Honor is awarded to companies having perfect safety records, i.e., no recordable injuries or illnesses for the reporting period. Award winners were selected by an FMA safety committee sponsored by CNA Insurance Group and designed to promote safety in the industry. One of this year’s honor winners, Main Steel Polishing Co. (Tinton Falls, NJ) has won for seven consecutive years.

Companies receiving the Safety Award of Honor include ADM-Mechanical (Decatur, IL), AK Tube LLC (Columbus, IN), Feralloy Corporation-Charleston Division, (Huger, SC), Main Steel Polishing Co., Inc. (Commerce, CA and Tinton Falls, NJ), Nisshin Automotive Tubing LLC (Versailles, KY), Roll Coater, Inc., (Hawesville, KY, Indianapolis and LaPorte, IN), Timesavers, Inc. (Maple Grove, MN).

The Safety Award of Merit is awarded to companies posting an injury and illness incidence rate for the reporting period that is better than the published Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) rate by 10 percent or greater, based on their North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code. Of the merit winners, Anderson & Dahlen Inc. has won a safety award for five consecutive years and AK Tube LLC, Big J Enterprises and Shickel Corporation have won three years in a row.

The merit winners selected by the Safety Council include AK Tube LLC (Walbridge, OH), Anderson & Dahlen Inc. (Ramsey, MN), Atlas Tube-Division of the John Maneely Co. (Chicago, Harrow, Ontario, and Plymouth, MI), Big J Enterprises, LLC (Albuquerque, NM), Eberl Iron Works, Inc. (Buffalo, NY), Feralloy Corporation – St. Louis Division (Granite City, IL), Feralloy Processing (Portage, IN), General Sheet Metal Works, Inc. (Tomah, WI), Genzink Steel (Holland, MI), GH Metal Solutions, Inc. (Fort Payne, AL), Kasa Fab, Inc. (Salina, KS), Main Steel Polishing Co., Inc. (Harmony, PA), Olympic Steel (Winder, GA, Milford, CT, Plymouth, MN, Detroit and Bedford Heights, OH), Roll Coater, Inc. (Greenfield, IN, Armorel, AZ, and Weirton, WV), Shickel Corporation (Bridgewater, VA), Tampa Tank, Inc. (Tampa, FL), Wheatland Tube-Division of John Maneely Co. (Chicago, IL).

The 2011 Most Improved Safety Record was awarded to Main Steel Polishing Co., Inc. (Commerce, CA), for posting an injury and illness incidence rate equal to or better than the published BLS rate, and also having the greatest percentage of improvement over the prior reporting year. BTD Manufacturing Inc. (Detroit Lakes, MN), J. L. Clark (Rockford, IL) and Olympic Steel (Schaumburg, IL) were recognized with a 2011 Safety Honorable Mention Award for posting an injury and illness incidence rate for the reporting period that was equal to, but less than 10 percent better than the published BLS rate, based on their NAICS code. www.fmanet.org