Primetals Technologies and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) will acquire ABP Induction Systems (ABP), a global manufacturer and servicer of induction furnaces and heating systems. ABP provides state-of-the-art equipment for ferrous and nonferrous metal casting, forging and steelmaking. Its main products are induction melting, holding and pouring furnaces as well as induction heaters. MHI and Primetals Technologies will jointly take ABP’s shares, and future business activities will be conducted in close cooperation with and under the leadership of Primetals Technologies.

Aluminerie Alouette, a Quebec-based aluminum producer, received a $15 million investment by the Government of Canada for development projects at its aluminum smelter. The investment will help Alouette, which has an annual production capacity of 600,000 metric tons of primary aluminum, maintain at least 830 jobs and modernize its facilities. Upgrades will include a pot change-out program, converting anode baking furnaces to natural gas, use of automated production vehicles and integration of Industry 4.0 concepts.

Liberty Steel, part of Sanjeev Gupta’s global GFG Alliance, completed the acquisition of seven major steelworks and five service centers across seven European countries from ArcelorMittal. The seven sites employ over 14,000 people and include the major integrated steelworks at Ostrava in the Czech Republic and Galati in Romania as well as rolling mills at Skopje (North Macedonia), Piombino (Italy), Dudelange (Luxembourg) and two plants near Liege in Belgium. The service centers are based in France and Italy.

Alcoa Corp. announced that the Aluminerie de Bécancour Inc. (ABI) smelter plans to restart curtailed smelting capacity after members of the United Steelworkers union in Quebec approved a six-year labor agreement. The smelter, which is owned by Alcoa (74.95%) and Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. (25.05%), has total capacity of 413,000 metric tons per year. The restart will begin on July 26 and is expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2020.

Central Motor Wheel of America Inc. (CMWA) will invest nearly $112 million to expand its aluminum wheel manufacturing facility in Paris, Ky. The project will create 145 full-time jobs and increase the company’s production by 50%. CMWA plans to expand onto an additional 40 acres and add 270,000 square feet onto its existing 330,000-square-foot plant. The 145 new jobs will include production, maintenance and engineering. Work on the expansion will this summer, and company executives expect production to begin in July 2021.

Andritz received an order from China’s Qinghai Zhuofeng New Material Co. Ltd. to supply two continuous annealing and processing lines, each with an annual capacity of 110,000 tons. Start-up is scheduled for the second quarter of 2021 (line 1) and the second quarter of 2022 (line 2). The lines will produce high-quality, flat aluminum product for the automotive industry. Andritz’s scope of supply also includes automation technology and commissioning.

Noodle.ai and SMS group announced a partnership to further optimize the world’s first learning steel mill for Arkansas-based Big River Steel. The joint solution was created by implementing Noodle.ai’s learning algorithms into SMS group’s X-Pact MES 4.0. Noodle.ai was able to leverage the existing integration of SMS group’s X-Pact MES 4.0 in the steel mill‘s IT environment and in their SaaS (Software as a Service) applications. The new end solutions digitize applications throughout every stage of the steelmaking process, from the liquid phase all the way to strip finishing.

Mercury Marine opened the 23,500-square-foot expansion to its die-casting facility in Fond du Lac, Wis. The $9 million investment provides space for capacity increases, allowing the company to make complex blocks, driveshafts and gear cases for Mercury outboards. The addition will be filled with large-tonnage die-casting equipment, including a 4,500-ton machine, that will drive higher quality and better throughput to keep up with increased engine demand.

The second precaution necessary when brazing aluminum to stainless is...

The Industrial Heating Equipment Association (IHEA) heads to Cleveland, Ohio, for its 2019 Fall Seminars and Fall Business Conference. The event will be held at the Intercontinental Cleveland Sept. 24-26. The technical seminar series will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by the IHEA Fall Business Conference on Thursday.