Outokumpu to Divest Aalten Plate Service Center to Roba Holding
Strategic Research Institute
Published on :
29 Jun, 2022, 6:08 am
Finnish stainless steel producer Outokumpu is divesting its plate service center in Aalten in the Netherlands to Roba Holding, which is a family-owned business located in the Netherlands and a supplier of steel, stainless steel, aluminium, recycled metal as well as non-ferrous metals. Outokumpu will continue to supply Aalten with plates produced at its Degerfors plate mill in Sweden as well as from other Outokumpu mills, even after the closing of the deal, estimate to take place in approximately 1–3 months. All the employees, management and operations in Aalten will be part of the deal and transfer to Roba Metals.
Outokumpu’s VP, Corporate Finance & M&A Antti Maununiemi said “Through this transaction, we are combining our forces with our customers who makes sense and allows us to make our European operations the most profitable in Europe. The divestment does not affect our other coil and plate operations in Europe. We continue to work together, as Outokumpu continues to supply Aalten with plates produced at Outokumpu mills.”
At PSC Benelux, located in Aalten in The Netherlands, plate service centers offer bending, sawing, welding, machining, laser cutting, plasma cutting and waterjet cutting. Plasma cutting is available in thicknesses up to 150 mm. Material up to 70 mm in thickness can be cut under water, reducing heat impact on the material. Thick dimension material (70–150 mm) is dry-cut. Water jet cutting produces clean cuts with narrow tolerances, reducing the need for further machining and additional costs. Benelux water jets handle materials up to 150 mm in thickness and maximum plate dimensions of 6 by 3 meters. Advanced laser cutting equipment is used to process sheets 6 meters long by 2 meters wide. A 6 kW CO2 laser cuts material up to 25 mm in thickness. Two quality cuts are available at Benelux: Standard, and Bright Line for high-shine, smooth cuts with narrow tolerances that need no subsequent processing. In machining, Benelux offers unique production efficiencies. Turning can be done in dimensions of up to 1,450 mm, and drilling and milling are performed on a table measuring 2,200 mm by 860 mm. The facility’s CNC operation includes one machine equipped with multiple functions (turning/drilling) that streamline production processes.