AMAG Group commissioned a new cladding station at its headquarters in Ranshofen, Austria. The new cladding operation is part of the company’s massive “AMAG 2020” expansion project, which – together with a new cold rolling mill and a multitude of other manufacturing lines – marks an important milestone for the company’s successful future.
“The new plants expands our technological expertise and boosts our competitive strengths,” said Helmut Wieser, management board chairman (CEO) of AMAG, at the opening ceremony. “With special multi-layer material composites made of aluminum, we are meeting the future requirements of our customers, especially from the heat exchanger and aviation industries.”
The cladding line represented a €4 million investment, with the project being delivered by two Austrian companies. Fill GmbH acted as general contractor and Fronius International supplied a state-of-the-art welding technology known as cold metal transfer (CMT). The cladding station includes two fully automated welding robots, which ensure the highest and most consistent quality in the welding process. The equipment is able to clad material in excess of 2 m in width, which is particularly important for the future production of clad aviation materials.
Cladding technology is mainly utilized in the production of brazing material, for cooling systems and heat exchangers in vehicles, buildings, machines, and plants. Brazing strips consist of a composite of aluminum alloys with different technological properties. AMAG’s future direction in the field of brazing materials will be towards corrosion-resistant aluminum sheets and strips for the aviation industry, among other sectors. The company believes this area will show rapid growth in the coming years. According to current estimates, around 40,000 new aircraft will be required over the next 20 years.
AMAG is a leading Austrian premium supplier of high-quality aluminum cast and flat rolled products for highly varied industries such as the aircraft, automotive, sports equipment, lighting, mechanical engineering, construction, and packaging industries. AMAG holds a 20% interest in the Canadian smelter Alouette, which produces high-quality primary aluminum for the rolling company, while safeguarding an exemplary net ecological impact.