By Andrea Svendsen, Managing Editor. On July 20, 1969, the Apollo 11 mission culminated in Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landing the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on the Moon — a mission decades in the making and which effectively ended the Space Race. Getting to the Moon required the development of new advanced technologies under Project […]
Metal Exchange Corporation (MEC), headquartered in St. Louis, MO, is forming a new joint venture with Novellini Industries Srl in Mantova, Italy. Called novALmec, the newly formed company will supply aluminum billet capacity to the European market. “With this being our first investment in an overseas manufacturing facility, the selection of our partner was crucial,” said […]
By Hank Sattlethight, Aluminum Association. The aluminum extrusion industry in the U.S. and Canada shipped 5.51 billion lbs of extruded products in 2018 and surpassed the industry peak shipments of 2006 by more than 3% (Figure 1). Domestic demand for extruded products, which includes imports, totaled 5.65 billion lbs in 2018, up 5% over 2017 […]
Trimet Aluminium SE began trial operation of its “virtual battery,” a technology aimed at making the energy intensive smelting process more flexible. The aluminum electrolysis process has traditionally required a constant supply of energy to remain stable, but this new approach allows for variations in energy input and more control over the smelting process. “We […]
The U.S. government announced the complete and permanent lifting of Section 232 tariffs on aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico, without imposing quotas to cap imports at a certain level. In return, the countries agreed to drop all pending litigation with the World Trade Organization regarding the Section 232 tariffs. The leaders of three North America aluminum associations […]
Taber Extrusions, an NMLP group company, installed a new friction stir welding (FSW) line at its Russellville, Arkansas, manufacturing facility for the aerospace, rail, automotive, marine, transportation, and other industries. With this machine, Taber will be able to weld large double sided thick profiles with minimal cycles of the machine, providing greater efficiency and more precise results. […]
The Falcon 9 launch system, developed by SpaceX, is considered to be one of the most significant technological achievements in the history of rocket engineering, primarily due to the recoverability and reusability of its first stage boosters. Reusability is a key element to SpaceX’s aim of increasing the reliability and reducing the cost of spaceflight. […]
By James C. LaBelle, CSD Structural Engineers, and Tanya A. Dolby, Kawneer Company. Introduction Recent developments, including testing and analysis, have resulted in an increased understanding of the pull-out strength of screws installed in screw chases in aluminum extrusions.1-3 One common use of this type of connection is to secure a continuous retainer that in […]
UC Rusal and RusHydro, one of Russia’s largest generating companies, commissioned the first potline at the Boguchansky aluminum smelter (BoAZ), part of the Boguchany Energy and Metals Complex (BEMO). It is also the first example of a large scale public-private partnership in Russia. “The launch of the first production line of the Boguchansky aluminum smelter is […]
