Challenges and Innovation in Steel Wire Production

Products and manufacturing processes of long-product producers are subject to constantly changing requirements, characterized by increasing demands on product quality and the efficient use of resources in production, combined with permanent cost pressures. For these reasons steel wire producers must constantly improve their innovation capacity to be able to meet increasing customer demands more flexibly and more efficiently. This awareness has been anchored at Swiss Steel AG, part of the Schmolz + Bickenbach Group, for many years and leads to more and new solutions in all corporate divisions.This article focuses on practical examples from the areas of process and product innovation. It discusses options for and the potentials and challenges of meeting current and future market needs.The successful implementation of new solutions requires an in-depth understanding as well as the application of knowledge throughout the entire process chain from development, production, sales to further processing and actual use of a product. The technical challenges are addressed as well as the opportunities presented when new approaches are sought.