Resources

Expertise

IRON AND STEEL

IRON

Iron as such is not a structural material but there is a market for spherazoidal graphite cast iron for underground railways where the soil is acidic or salty.

Concrete cannot function as well in acidic soil or soil where chloride attack is possible. For example, the estuarine clay conditions at the London Underground have led to cast iron tunnel linings being used. Even the new Jubilee line uses cast iron linings, albeit more sophisticated than the early 19^th and 20^th century versions.

STEEL SECTIONS ('LONG' PRODUCTS)

These are generally meant for skeletal structures in building construction.

This could mean anything from an office block needing a simple rectangular framework to the deck top for an offshore platform to a prestigious civic structure such as a sports stadium, concert hall or shopping mall. Skeletal structures built to harbour overhead electric cranes are a cost-effective solution for heavy industrial structures and there is a big market for them.

Due to the potential for 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) the largest market which has emerged in India is real estate.

STEEL HEAVY PLATES AND WELDABLE STRUCTURAL STEEL ('FLAT' PRODUCTS)

The primary markets comprise:

• Bridges
• Ships and Barges
• Large-diameter heavy-plate derived tubes and cylinders for offshore installations (jackets etc.)
• Containment structures such as bunkers and silos

Yet so far, since the mid ‘60s at least, India has not paid sufficient attention to steel for construction purposes.

The Institute for Steel Development and Growth (INSDAG) was established with assistance from the British Steel Construction Institute (SCI) but its activities are generally confined to printing textbooks and organising seminars to inform practicing Indian engineers about developments in Europe.  

INSDAG also assists the Tatas in selling their ‘Nebraska’ houses. These are lightweight dwellings made from galvanised or colour-coated sheets, and fixed to thin galvanised angle and channel frameworks. Tata and Bluescope of Australia recently formed a joint venture to mass manufacture these one or two-storey houses.

In order to better exploit the potential Indian steel market more specialist steel design offices and more specialist steel fabricators should be established. Heavy weldable structural steel plates can be used for bridge, offshore and ship construction once there is a solid base of expertise.