NanoSteel confident its new AHSS is ready for volume production

Steel-technology development specialist NanoSteel is expanding its customer base for the new advanced high-strength alloys currently undergoing testing by OEMs and Tier 1s, as global automotive demand for stronger, lighter vehicle structures increases. The Rhode Island-based company, which emerged on the steel scene 12 years ago, also is working with additional steel mills to produce the AHSS sheet, according to David Paratore, CEO and President.

This past spring, NanoSteel delivered its first production-scale AHSS to GM and other OEMs for initial evaluations. (GM Ventures, the automaker's venture-capital arm, is a lead shareholder.) Joint development partner AK Steel was the first steel producer to manufacture this AHSS using traditional slab casting. The materials could be suitable for heavy-duty vehicle application, Paratore told Off-Highway Engineering, but currently the company is focusing on light-duty vehicles because of the intense focus in that segment on lightweighting to meet global fuel-efficiency requirements.