Wuppermann said that it had completed a €2.5-million equipment upgrade in August, which means it can boost HDG output at the plant from 500,000 tonnes per year to around 750,000 tpy.
Wuppermann Hungary specializes in producing HDG for the automotive, engineering and construction sectors and started operations in 2016.
“Due to [the] extension of the air- and water-cooling systems, the transformer and the induction unit, the speed and capacity of the [equipment] can be increased significantly,” the company said, allowing it to “further expand its portfolio of zinc-magnesium coated products.”
European HDG prices started to pick up in August, reflecting the rising cost of the hot-rolled coil feedstock.
Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel HDG, domestic, exw Northern Europe, was €540-560 ($643-666) per tonne ex-works on August 26, up from €500-530 per tonne ex-works the previous week.
Wuppermann, which is headquartered in Leverkusen, Germany, primarily focuses on processing hot-rolled steel strip and has five production sites across Europe. It produces flat steel products in the Netherlands, Austria and Hungary and makes steel tubes and profiles in Austria and Poland.