The amount of aluminum extruded has increased considerably in recent years due to the metal’s wide availability and relatively low cost.

Kobe Steel Ltd. announced that its U.S. subsidiary, Kobelco Aluminum Products & Extrusions Inc. (KPEX) will invest approximately $42 million to increase the production capacity of its plant in Bowling Green, Ky. This investment, which is expected to create about 90 new jobs, will help meet the growing demand for automotive extrusions and fabricated products in the U.S. Plans call for new equipment to go into mass production in the first half of 2020. When the expansion is completed, KPEX will have two melting furnaces and two extrusion presses. Production capacity will increase to 1,000 tons per month, from the current 500 tons per month.

SMS group received an order from Varron Auto Kast Ltd. (VAKL) of Pune, India, for two extrusion lines.

Austria’s buntmetall amstetten placed an order with Germany’s SMS group for the supply of a 50-MN extrusion press for nonferrous metals and an inductive billet heater to be installed upstream of the press.