Modern Marvels: Shipping Containers

It’s hard to imagine a world without container ships. These ships make it possible for us to request and send products all over the world. How do you think that Chinese- made pair of jeans go to you? Container ships are a feat of engineering and the backbone to our modern economy. The container aboard these ships are able to seamlessly be transported to the ship by semi-trucks, loaded on the ship, and taken off to be transported by truck to their destination. There is no need to unload the contents as in the old days.

Before containerization was invented, items were transported in packages and placed aboard ships. It was a painstaking, time consuming process. Containers can hold up to 64,000 lbs of cargo each. Thanks to the invention of containers, the shipping time for cargo was reduced by 84% and costs went down 35%. By 2001, almost 90% of dry cargo was shipped in a container.

Shipping containers are built to hold heavy material, withstand the salty ocean air, and last a long time. They are usually made of steel, but can also be made of aluminum, fiberglass, or even wood. The invention of the container was not met with open arms. Many trade unions for dock workers balked at the idea. They believed this invention would cause massive job losses. Many companies involved in ports and railways were worried about the huge costs involved in developing infrastructure to handle these new containers.

Containers can now be loaded and unloaded from a ship in a few hours. The sturdy containers also allow for less breakage while the ship is underway. There is also less theft. Container ships now make up about 14% of the world’s fleet based on tonnage. Despite improvements in efficiency, about 2,000-10,000 containers are lost at sea each year. This costs companies about $370 million dollars. This is due to storms, or even ships sinking. Shipping by container is still the best way to go for many companies around the world. You can thank this containerization innovation next time you purchase an item made overseas.

Eiffel Tower Facts

Even if you haven’t had the chance to visit Paris, you already know about the Eiffel Tower. It is one of the world’s most iconic structures aside from the Statue of Liberty and a few others. Named after its creator Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. The image below comes from the Eiffel Tower’s website and gives key figures regarding the structure.

• The tower was only intended to last 20 years but was saved due to the scientific experiments it was used for
• The tower served as a military radio post in 1903
• The first public radio programme was broadcast in 1925 from the tower
• Almost 250 million people have visited since it opened in 1889
• 120 antennas are atop the structure
• The country with the greatest percent of visitors (besides France) is Italy followed by Spain and the US
• The Eiffel Tower was the tallest structure for 40 years until the Chrysler Building was completed
• Every 7 years, 50 tons of paint are added to the tower to protect it from rust
• The temperature can alter the height of the tower by up to 6 inches
• The French nickname is La dame de fer meaning the iron lady
• The tower weighs over 10,000 tons and is made of iron

Happy Halloween from Leveltek

This October has been all about pumpkins. Pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin beer. The list goes on and on, so we wanted to create a “Leveltek” Halloween list full of festive steel, metal and iron decorations.

Project of Steel: Denver VA Clinic hosts topping off ceremony

At Leveltek International, we love to keep an eye on BIG projects going on around the country and the world. There are thousands of major construction projects underway as we speak. Some are bigger than others, but when it comes down to the amount of steel manufactured to complete these projects, its truly incredible.

This week, the last steel beam was put in place on the $800 million dollar VA Medical Center Facility in Aurora, Colorado. This massive replacement project, also known as “Project Eagle”, is a joint venture between Kiewit Building Group and Turner Construction.

All in all, since 2011, this total project has used 8,700 tons of steel, which is approximately equal to 2,175 elephants.

The 2+ million square foot facility will house a 30-bed community living center, a 30-bed spinal cord injury/disease center, a 182-bed tertiary, ambulatory care facility, a research building, a central utility plant and parking structures.

The project completion date, originally set for 2015 has been pushed to early 2016.

Ducker Study: Aluminum usage to surpass records

According to a recent study by Ducker Worldwide LLC, aluminum sheet usage for light vehicle body and closure parts will grow from less than 200 million pounds in 2012 to approximately 4 billion pounds by 2025.

The Troy, Michigan-based market research firm says aluminum usage will grow exponentially over the next decade, with consumption in 2015 surpassing records set in previous decades by about 1 billion pounds.

Imagine this: pickup trucks will feature an average of 548.9 pounds of aluminum per vehicle. So, what does this all mean? Well, according to Ducker the projected growth will require, “a tremendous increase in heat-treating capacity.” Ford Motor Co., General Motors and Fiat Chrysler will be the biggest consumers of aluminum sheet through 2025.

Brrr: Steel Sheet Prices Cooling off

The heat is on across the Midwest following a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. But with that warm weather comes a cool down in steel sheet prices. The price climb that we saw earlier this year has since stalled and reversed course slightly as some mills in the Great Lakes region return to normal production levels. This comes as we’re heading into the seasonally slower summer months.

Market sources say that despite lead time and healthy demand, it wasn’t enough to justify further price increases, especially with more supply available. Many companies were hit by production or supply chain disruptions earlier this year, but have since resumed normal production.

According to an article by Michael Cowden with American Metal Market, an increasing spread between prices in the rest of the world is also keeping a lid on domestic hot-rolled tags. One Midwest service center was quoted saying, “Mills are entitled to be profitable, but it’s not real and it won’t last if it gets too far out of whack. And North America has been finessing a higher price than other industrialized parts of the world, which has some people concerned.”

Another thought is that the “out-of-whack” prices might be cold-rolled from China. Cold-rolled imports from China have surged as prices continued to nose-dive. Market sources said that there was concern Chinese cold-rolled prices were getting unusually close to hot-rolled offerings from Russia.

Still, not everyone is feeling that this cool down in domestic steel prices will happen because we’re expected to have an increase in demand from the non-residential construction sector.

It will be interesting to watch and see whose predictions play out over then next several months.

Exports Rebound to Five-Month High

It was a rough winter. There is no doubt about it and now leaders in the steel industry are pointing to that blistery white stuff for the slow start to the year. The good news is, flowers are blooming and exports are booming.. well, in comparison to February 2014. At Leveltek, we are excited to see a five-month high after numbers came back showing a great March.

Steel experts are also pointing to a recovery in deliveries in Canada and Mexico. According to the Daily American Metal Market (AMM), exports of all products to Canada rose 17.2 percent from the prior month, while products to Mexico gained 13.6 percent.

Richard Chriss, executive director of the American Institute for International Steel said in a statement: “The strong recovery in steel exports to Canada and Mexico in March bodes well for the next several months, as it indicates that the slow start to the year had much to do with snow-related logistical problems. In addition, a strong showing in major developing countries could indicate that U.S. steel is becoming more of a factor outside North America. This trend could accelerate if the situation in Ukraine leads to tighter sanctions on Russia,”

According to data from the U.S. Commerce Department’s Enforcement and Compliance division mill product exports rose 15 percent from February but were 5.5 percent below March 2013.

In fact, the monthly gain was largely due to increases in exports for hot-rolled sheet (up 49.5 percent), coiled plate (up 25.4 percent) and hot-dipped galvanized sheet and strip (up 24.6 percent).

 

The World’s Most Recycled Material

Steel is recycled more than all other materials combined. More steel is recycled annually than paper, plastic, aluminum, and glass combined. This is because steel scrap is an essential raw material in making new steel. With Earth Day this past Tuesday, we thought we should look at what allows steel to be recycled over and over and over again, with no change in performance.

There are tons of sources for steel scrap all around you. From tin cans in your cupboard to old bikes in the garage, the broken toaster in your kitchen, just about anything can be recycled. 

According to bordersteelandrecycling.com, by recycling steel, you are doing your part to reduce the need for new mined minerals. In fact, two of every three tons of new steel comes from steel scrap. The only reason the ratio for scrap isn’t higher is because there are many uses for steel that have extended life cycles like bridges, cars and rail road tracks.

Check out these 50 fun facts about steel that The American Iron and Steel Institute put together: 

50 Fun Facts About Steel: 

1. Millions of tons of iron and steel are diverted from the waste stream to the recycling stream due to steel’s magnetic properties that make it the easiest material to separate from the solid waste stream.
2. Almost 69 percent of all steel is recycled in North America each year – more than paper, aluminum, plastic & glass combined. North America’s average recycling rate has been in excess of 60 percent since 1970.
3. More than 80 million tons of steel are recycled each year in North America.
4. For every ton of steel recycled, 2,500 pounds of iron ore, 1,400 pounds of coal and 120 pounds of limestone are conserved.
5. Steel products can be recycled repeatedly without loss of strength.
6. Recycling steel saves the equivalent energy to power about 18 million households for a year.
7. When you buy steel, you’re always buying recycled.8. More than 95 percent of the water used for making steel in North America is now recycled.
9. Since the first Earth Day in 1970, the steel companies in North America have invested more than $7.5 billion in capital equipment for the control of water and air pollution and the treatment of solid waste.
10. Since World War II, the North American steel industry has reduced its energy intensity by 60 percent. This conservation of energy has also contributed to a significant reduction in the generation of carbon dioxide.
11. The North American steel industry has achieved a 90 percent reduction in the discharge of air and water emissions versus 10 years ago.
12. The amount of energy needed to produce a ton of steel has been reduced by 34 percent since 1972.
13. $10 billion has been invested to create a New Steel that is better for the environment.
14. Steel parts are more dent-resistant and are up to 30 percent stronger than they were a decade ago.
15. More than 14 million cars in North America were recycled in 2006.
16. In 2006, the steel industry recycled enough steel from old cars to produce nearly 13.5 million new ones.
17. The first steel-made automobile was introduced in 1918.
18. A steel beam is placed inside car doors to better protect passengers in side-impact collisions.
19. Steel door latches help keep your car’s doors closed during a crash.
20. Your car’s safety buckles (seat belts) are made with steel.
21. A car’s structure, the safety cage, is made from steel.
22. An ULSAB Advanced Vehicle Concept is light yet safe, and it means better gas mileage and savings at the pump.
23. Over half of all the types of steels present in today’s automobiles did not even exist 10 years ago.
24. One scrapped car produces more than four steel utility poles.
25. 95 percent of the steel taken from commercial construction demolition sites was recycled and made into new steel products in 2002.
26. 100 percent of your steel roof can be recycled. Asphalt roofs – zero percent.
27. It takes more than 40 trees to build a wood-framed home. A steel-framed home—eight recycled cars.
28. Steel framing contains more than 28 percent recycled steel and is completely recyclable.
29. Steel roofs provide your family with excellent protection against wind, water, snow, ice and fire and are even hail-resistant.
30. Asphalt roofs actually weigh twice as much as steel roofs.
31. Steel roofs can last over 50 years, while traditional roofs last only 17 years.
32. Steel doors are fireproof.
33. Steel doors can provide up to 10 times more protection against intruders than wood doors.
34. Steel-framed homes won’t crack, warp, twist, rot, split or settle.
35. Steel-framed homes are impervious to termites.
36. 83,000 tons of steel was needed for the Golden Gate Bridge. Only half of that would be needed now.
37. Steel was first used for skyscrapers in 1883.
38. The New Steel makes it possible to build a high-rise building with at least 3 percent less steel than 20 years ago.
39. Steel food cans are the most recycled food package.
40. 24,000 community recycling programs in North America collect steel cans.
41. Canned food is as nutritious as its fresh and frozen counterparts upon preparation.
42. Canned goods do not contain preservatives.
43. Canned foods are the most tamper-resistant food packaging option available today.
44. 600 steel cans or tin cans are recycled every second.
45. More than 1,500 food items come in steel cans.
46. 90 percent of retired appliances are driven to recycling centers in North America by steel.
47. All 99 pounds of steel in the average major appliance can be recycled to make new steel products.
48. Appliance motors are made from steel.
49. Steel hinges on refrigerators can support more than 140 pounds of door weight without sagging.
50. Steel comprises approximately 75 percent of all major appliances.

Achieving Flatness

Our own Bob Sipp recently got published in Modern Metals Magazine with an article he wrote with Kelly Konrad all about achieving flatness in metals called “Achieving True Flatness”!  We wanted to invite everyone to take a look at the full article over on the Modern Metals website.  The full article can be found RIGHT HERE.

 

 

Above: The Benwood Wide Line located at the Benwood, W.Va., facility processes all coiled metals, without marking, to the highest global standard for laser-quality sheets up to 1⁄2 inch x 96 inches at any length, as well as coil-to-coil. Metals can include bright-annealed stainless and painted/embossed or P&O carbon steel. Even they will have no marks from Leveltek’s gripper technology

Defects in materials are rarely acceptable, and for some industries, they’re simply not an option

READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE HERE!

The Most Recycled Metal in the World (Infographic)

We just can’t resist a good metals industry infographic!  This one, from Tata Steel, is impressive, detailing the hows, whats and why of the most recycled metal in the world.