Borregaard, a Norwegian biochemicals producer, is currently building a new warehouse that will allow them to store all of their lignin in one place instead of different sites, thus improving logistics and reducing CO2 emissions from road transport. The warehouse is being built with beams from ArcelorMittal Europe – Long Products Sections and Merchant Bars.

330 tonnes of beams from Belval

Borregaard and the logistics company Borg Havn are building a modern, sustainable lignin warehouse in Øra, near Fredrikstad in Norway. The structure of this new 19 000 square-metre warehouse is currently being built with 330 tonnes of beams produced by ArcelorMittal Europe – Long Products Sections and Merchant Bars' mill in Belval, Luxembourg.

A modern, sustainable lignin warehouse

The new warehouse will bring many benefits:

• Optimise product flow and improve logistics: Today, Borregaard stores lignin at a number of different sites, several of which are outside the company's premises. Lignin is currently transported via Borregaard's own port facility or by road to Borg Havn for delivery to customers. A new warehouse to store all of the lignin will therefore mean more efficient logistics with fewer stages of transportation.
• Strengthen the position of the port: "Increased volumes will allow for transport to more European destinations, which will also benefit other users of the port. In this way, sea transport will increase and heavy road traffic will decrease," says Tore Lundestad, Port Director of Borg.

The building has also been designed with energy-saving solutions such as roof-mounted solar cells.

Zero-emissions solutions

Borregaard is keen to have efficient zero-emissions solutions for the transportation of raw materials to its production facilities and products to its customers. In addition to a joint pilot project to study possible autonomous transport solutions by ship across the Glomma river between Sarpsborg and Fredrikstad, Borregaard is also looking into the future potential for road transport using electric vehicles.

"This project will reduce CO2 emissions from road transport and relieve traffic growth on European roads. It will also greatly reduce the local heavy transport related to Borregaard's exports from Borg Havn," says Per A. Sørlie, CEO of Borregaard.

Borregaard's plant in Sarpsborg has an annual lignin capacity of 160 000 tonnes, and an increasing proportion is speciality products. A centralised warehouse at Borg is part of a project where Borregaard is investing 500 million NOK in upgrading and specialisation of the Sarpsborg plants producing lignin products. The project also involves enhanced drying capacity, new ideas for the storage of liquid materials, and improved solutions for logistics, infrastructure, and energy.

The warehouse will be completed by the end of 2019.

About Borregaard

Borregaard owns one of the world's most advanced and sustainable biorefineries. By using natural, sustainable raw materials, Borregaard produces advanced and eco-friendly biochemicals that can replace oil-based products. Borregaard has 1010 employees in factories and sales offices in 16 countries in Europe, America, Asia, and Africa. Borregaard also has strong positions in ingredients and fine chemicals.

About Borg Havn

Borg Havn Iks was founded in 2000. The company's line of business includes marine cargo handling services. Borg Havn Fredrikstad and Sarpsborg offers easy access, large capacity, and efficient logistics. They provide simple cargo handling and short boat times. The port is therefore a natural alternative for the transport industry, and they are a preferred partner within maritime transport and logistics. From Borg Havn, it is just a short distance to the E6, upon which you can reach Oslo in under an hour, and it takes only 20 minutes to reach Svinesund in Sweden.

Text: ArcelorMittal Europe, Constructalia
Photos: Henning Klausen at Metacon

Windows version 2.07 of our pre design software for large span trusses with the European rules for steel structures, Trusses+, is now available!

This tool can be used for both verification and optimisation.

The new version includes the following modifications:

•    an automatic update for new versions of the software and steel sections databases
•    new steel and sections databases v2019_1
•    a new interface
•    solver performance has been improved allowing for faster optimisations

Download the update for free on our software page: https://constructalia.arcelormittal.com/en/tools/software

ArcelorMittal Europe has sponsored a documentary about Leslie E. Robertson, who was the lead structural engineer of the Twin Towers of the original World Trade Center in New York City. He oversaw the construction of the tallest building in the world at that time (417 m) and has been haunted by its collapse and the events of 9/11.

The designer of some of the most prestigious buildings

With the support and the love of his wife and business partner, SawTeen See, Robertson rebounded and has designed some of the most prestigious high-rise buildings on the planet, such as the Shanghai World Financial Center. This 492-metre-tall building, owned by Japanese investor Mori Building, was designed by Robertson and See with 15 000 tonnes of HISTAR® steel sections produced by ArcelorMittal Europe – Long Products’ mill in Differdange, Luxembourg.

Robertson’s story

His story is now the subject of a documentary, Leaning Out, which premiered for the first time during the 2018 Architecture & Design Film Festival in New York City. The premiere was attended by our colleagues Jean-Claude Gerardy (ArcelorMittal Europe – Long Products), Ravi Ranganathan, Ramana Venkat, and Vince Mondelli (ArcelorMittal International Chicago).

ArcelorMittal is proud to sponsor this documentary focussing on innovation and visionary collaborations and recounting how Robertson embraced new technologies and innovative steels such as HISTAR® to design tall landmark buildings.

Leaning Out is now available on DVD/VOD. You can get your copy of Leaning Out now on the official website or Vimeo:

Official website
Vimeo

Text: ArcelorMittal Europe, Constructalia

Photos: Leaning Out documentary

This paper introduces the concept of Construction 4.0 and examines the digital transformation of the construction sector. The potential of additive manufacturing as a driver for innovation in construction that enables the fabrication of lightweight and functionally graded structures is presented and discussed.

Construction 4.0

The construction industry is adopting new technologies at a slow pace and has not yet been through the major disruptive digital transformation that other industries such as automotive or aeronautics have been through in the form of Industry 4.0. Industry 4.0 has greatly altered industry and production value chains and business models. As the construction industry faces the challenges of implementing digital technologies, intelligent machines, and smart materials, this transformation is taking place. Known as Construction 4.0, this transformation will bring about greater productivity, time-efficiency, and resource-efficiency while enhancing safety and quality.

Building information modelling (BIM) digitally integrates the aesthetic design and technical details of a construction project into one information package. BIM gives a digital prototype of the building to everyone involved in the construction, before it is built.  ArcelorMittal Europe is currently developing BIM objects for every one of its high added value steel products used in construction.

A greater level of digitalisation through BIM integrated with cloud computing technology will result in Cloud-BIM data that allows for easy access on mobile devices. This increased connectivity and access to the most up-to-date information will greatly improve productivity.

In the steel construction industry specifically, adaptive automation solutions such as arc welding robotic technology are already enhancing production. These welding robotic solutions can be fitted with laser cameras to further improve production quality and are capable of cutting complex geometries quickly without the need for finishing steps. Additionally, these robotic solutions are also being applied to steel cutting applications such as tubes, thick plates, and pipes resulting in greater efficiency.

The utilisation of IoT (Internet of Things) technology such as UAV (unmanned aerial vehicles) also has the potential to transform the building industry. UAVs can be used for tracking construction projects and making quality assessments in addition to monitoring construction sites, masonry assembly, and carrying out some of the dangerous work that currently decreases site safety.

Overall, Construction 4.0 will enhance stakeholder collaboration, creativity, and strengthen the supply chain.

Additive manufacturing in construction

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is defined as “the process of joining materials to make objects from 3D model data, usually layer upon layer, as opposed to subtractive manufacturing methodologies, such as traditional machining ” (American Society for Testing and Materials standard).

AM processes are increasingly used in industrial applications due to their unique features such as eliminating the need for tooling and more economical custom product manufacturing. AM processes typically used in the construction industry are commonly extrusion-based processes (cement/ceramic paste and polymer-based materials), binder jetting processes, and the fusion of high melting point materials for both on-site and off-site fabrication of new construction elements or repairing applications.

As AM evolves, it is allowing architects and engineers to design more complex geometries. The main challenges and opportunities of this evolving technology in the construction sector are explored in depth in this paper.

Materials and lightweight and functionally graded structures

One of the ways in which AM is contributing to Construction 4.0 is as a platform for materials design. It allows for the use of natural and recyclable materials, which is conducive to a more sustainable construction approach.

As this paper points out, resource efficiency is fundamental as we move towards a more efficient construction sector. Lightweight structural components allow for a decrease in waste generation, emissions, and consumption.  Utilising the technologies describe in the paper will bring us one step closer to this global goal.

Moving forward

Construction 4.0 promises to increase construction productivity, quality, cost, and resource efficiency, all of which will require the adoption of technical innovations such as IoT, BIM, AM, and other digital systems.

Text: Constructalia
Photos and report: Flávio Craveiroa, José Pinto Duarte, Helena Bartolo, Paulo Jorge Bartolo

A new R&D report presenting a new, innovative type of flat shear connection for steel-concrete composite structures is now available.

Report abstract

For buildings in steel-concrete composite structure, the current practice of the shear connection in fully embedded columns is the implementation of headed shear studs. This type of connector has been mainly developed for composite beams and some disadvantages have been identified for column application. For example, due to the shear stud geometry, the difficulty of the reinforcement application and more complicated handling of the column are recognised. Taking into account the additional high resistance, stiffness, ductility and production efficiency criteria, an innovative type of flat shear connection, with the potential for a fully automatic fabrication process has been developed. The proposed new type of shear connectors is made out of regular reinforcement bars welded to the flanges of steel profiles under a specific arrangement. The conducted investigation consisted of three different variants: transversal, longitudinal and angled (V-shaped) of connectors applied to the HEB120 steel profiles. In addition, tests without any mechanical connectors were conducted as reference tests. The specific load-bearing behaviour in terms of load-slip curves for each connector variant has been obtained and analysed. After the tests, the specimens were opened and the failure patterns were investigated. 3D non-linear numerical simulations in the FE code Abaqus® have supported the performed investigations. In the results, the load flux, the decisive force-transfer mechanisms and resistance limits have been identified.

Report (including abstract):
C. Odenbreit, ArcelorMittal Chair of Steel and Facade Engineering, FSTC, RUES, University of Luxembourg
M. Chrzanowski, ArcelorMittal Chair of Steel and Facade Engineering, FSTC, RUES, University of Luxembourg
R. Obiala, Global R&D, ArcelorMittal
T. Bogdan, Global R&D, ArcelorMittal
H. Degée, FET, CERG, Hasselt University

Text: Constructalia

Photos: R.W.M. Wong, European Commission, C.Odenbreit, M.Chrzanowski, R.Obiala, T.Bogdan, H.Degée

ArcelorMittal Europe - Long Products has released the 2019 edition of its complete sales programme of hot rolled steel sections and merchant bars.

Visit our Document library to download your copy.

Nowadays we personalise everything… Our cars, our furniture, so why not the roof over our head? Steel roofing solutions are growing in popularity as architects, designers, and homeowners seek out modern alternatives to traditional materials.

A new video

ArcelorMittal Europe – Flat Products has a new video on our latest innovation for roofing applications: Granite® Ultramat. It is a robust and long-lasting pre-painted steel which is flexible at low temperatures and offers a much wider range of aesthetics than traditional ceramic or zinc roofs. Moreover, it was just awarded a Golden Medal at the Budma fair in Poland.

Low maintenace, lower costs

Roofs made with Granite® Ultramat require low maintenance, which reduces the cost - an important asset for young families building a new home.

This is just a glimpse of the advantages... Check out this video showing the possibilities of a steel roof.

Text: ArcelorMittal Europe - Commercial communications, Constructalia
Photos: Nicolas Fussler, Marcin Przeor / Communication ArcelorMittal Poland
Video: ArcelorMittal

The technical objective of the LVS3 project is to disseminate knowledge acquired in recent years about the environmental impact assessment of steel and composite buildings. During the last decade, a lot of research projects have been funded to develop methodologies, systems, and products aimed at improving thermal efficiency as well as the global environmental footprint of steel buildings. The new EN 15804 standard, intended for environmental calculation of buildings, now takes into account the fact that steel is a recyclable material (Module D).

Sustainability includes environmental, economic, and social concerns for achieving long-lasting development. Sustainability of construction comprises the major health and environmental aspects related to the life cycles of all types of buildings. A building’s life cycle includes production, use, deconstruction, the underlying activities, materials, and energy flows, all of which generate inevitable influence on the planet – both good and bad. Steel, as a building material, has undeniable and inherent advantages in this respect, among others, due to its mature process of recycling.

The aim of the dissemination project LVS3: Large Valorisation on Sustainability of Steel Structures (RFS2-CT-2013-00016) is to provide information on the different steps used for the environmental assessment of steel and composite buildings in AMECO software.

The software and documents were developed and validated within the scope of the European Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS) project SB-Steel: Sustainability of Steel Buildings (SB_Steel, 2014).

The project was divided into four steps:

•     realisation of documentation and software about the sustainability of steel structures
•     translation of the documentation and software interface
•     training for partners involved in seminars
•     organisation of seminars in different European countries

The dissemination package available consists of different documents and software:

•     a design guide
•     a background document
•     AMECO software
•     an App version (mobiles/tablets) of LCA calculations available; also in the App Store (iOS) and Google Play (Android)
•     PowerPoint presentations
•     all of the documents translated into the majority of the European languages

All of the documents are also available on the following website dedicated to this project in (almost) all European languages: http://sustainable-steel.eu/

ArcelorMittal R&D contributed to a research and development project related to Standardization of Safety Assessment Procedures across Brittle to Ductile Failure Modes. The objective for this research and development project, called SAFEBRICTILE, was to develop a procedure for the safety assessment of the various failure modes that are relevant for steel structures.

Several objectives to fulfil

The following objectives have been fulfilled within SAFEBRICTILE:

1. Development of an objective and consistent assessment procedure for the safety assessment of the various failure modes that are relevant for steel structures. The unified procedure will cover: modes driven by plasticity + modes driven by stability + modes driven by fracture.
2. Development of a more complex procedure in which newly developed design rules are defined by a pre-established safety factor.
3. Reassessment of several rules in Eurocode 3 covering the failure modes treated in the project by applying the developed safety assessment procedures in order to check their compliance with the target failure probability.
4. Proposal of new or improved design rules for cases where deviations from the target failure probability were observed.
5. Conceptual development and further maintenance of a European database of steel properties resulting from experimental tests.

Conclusions

The report gives an overview of the reliability assessment of the Eurocode 3 design rules carried out within the project related to cross-sectional resistance; buckling resistance of columns, beams, and beam-columns; and weld resistance. It presents adjustments to these design rules proposed whenever it was necessary. It also establishes recommendations on the statistical distributions of the relevant basic variables for steel structures compiled in a European Database of Steel Properties that was also developed within the project.

Text: Constructalia
Photos: ©European Union

On 31 October 2018, the first phase of the Doha Metro in Qatar was inaugurated. ArcelorMittal steel fibres were used in the construction of the tunnels, and are being used in three projects in the construction of this first-class transportation network.

Opening the door for further opportunities

In 2015, ArcelorMittal WireSolutions signed three contracts to supply approximately 21 500 tonnes of steel fibres to the Doha Metro, strengthening ArcelorMittal’s position as a leading supplier of steel fibre to the tunnelling industry.

The contracts represented ArcelorMittal WireSolutions’ first delivery of steel fibres to the Middle East, opening the door for further opportunities in the region and worldwide.

Under construction for an investment of 32 billion Euro, the Doha Metro, operated by Qatar Rail, will be one of the most advanced metro systems in the world. 300km long and comprised of 98 stations, this world-class transportation network will be ready to support a world-class tournament, FIFA World Cup Qatar, in 2022.

Red Line South

ArcelorMittal WireSolutions signed a contract with a consortium led by QDVC* to supply 7520 tonnes of HE++ 90/60 premium steel fibres for the production of tunnel lining segments for Doha Metro’s Red Line South.

Red Line North

ArcelorMittal WireSolutions also supplied 7500 tonnes of HE++ 75/50 steel fibres for the production of tunnel lining segments to Doha Metro’s Red Line North in a contract signed with precast manufacturer SMEET. A consortium led by Italian company Impregilo** is responsible for construction of this line.

Golden Line

The third contract, signed with Qatari construction materials supplier CCI (Commodore Cement Industries), involved the supply of 6400 tonnes of HE++ 90/60 steel fibres to Doha Metro’s Golden Line, also for the production of tunnel lining segments. This line is being constructed as part of a joint venture led by Aktor***. ArcelorMittal’s DSTC offices in Dubai and Qatar worked closely with ArcelorMittal WireSolutions to fulfil project delivery requirements.

Tunnelling specialists

Steel for all three projects was produced at ArcelorMittal WireSolutions sites in Bissen, Luxemburg, Sheffield, UK, and Syców, Poland.

“These are…excellent examples of our leading position in the steel fibre business, demonstrating how we offer our customers best-in-class service and support for their projects. ArcelorMittal WireSolutions remains a strong solutions provider and a reliable partner to all our customers in the tunnelling industry. With this success, we have strengthened our team of tunnelling specialists in the company,” says José Ramón González, Steel Fibre Manager.

*Consortium led by QDVC, a joint venture between Qatari Diar & VINCI Construction Grands Projets. Includes GS Engineering & Construction and Al Darwish Engineering.
**Consortium led by Italian construction company Impregilo. Includes South Korea's SK Engineering & Construction and Qatar's Galfar Engineering & Contracting.
***Joint venture led by Athens-based Aktor and comprised of Larsen and Toubro, YapiMerkezi, STFA, and Al Jaber Engineering.

The London Underground, nicknamed "the Tube," is a great way to travel and discover London and its hot spots. Londoners and London lovers, you will soon be able to explore parts of the city on ArcelorMittal rails as ArcelorMittal Europe – Long Products Rails & Special sections has secured the contract to supply rails for the Northern Line Extension (NLE).

A great addition for the area and for the commuters

The Northern Line Extension (NLE), part of TFL/LUL*, will bring great benefits to the areas of Vauxhall, Nine Elms, and Battersea. Transit time from Nine Elms or Battersea to the West End or the City could be, in some cases, less than 15 minutes and up to 25 000 jobs and 20 000 new homes could be created.

Ferrovial - Laing O`Rourke (FLO) JV are the principal contractor completing the 3.2-km extension that also involves the construction of two new stations at Nine Elms and Battersea. These will be completed in 2020.

Rails from our state-of-the-art mill in Gijón

As part of the tender award, ArcelorMittal is supplying rails manufactured at our state-of-the-art rolling mill in Gijón, in Northern Spain. All will be delivered on a just-in-time basis to construction sites across London on specialist rear steer vehicles as access/egress is limited.

The mill has recently benefited from a 30 million Euro investment with new rolling mills and a mill extension allowing rails to be rolled at 108m.

ArcelorMittal manufactures rails and special sections from mills in Spain, Poland, Luxembourg, and the United States, and is the world's leading steel and mining company. ArcelorMittal is proud to work with FLO JV towards the completion of the track installation in 2019.

*Transport for London/London Underground Limited

Good news for astronomy enthusiasts: the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), which will be located in Chile, is currently being built with ArcelorMittal Europe – Flat Products’ steel plates produced in Gijón, Spain. Once in service, this powerful telescope, equipped with a 3.2-billion-pixel camera, will make a survey of the universe in 3D.

10 years studying the universe

Thanks to its dry atmosphere, Chile has become the site of choice for many astronomy observatories with 70% of the world’s astronomical infrastructure planned to be in the country by the 2020s.

This is where the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), developed by AURA (Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy), is currently under construction. The project has been funded by the US National Science Foundation (NSF) and aims to produce the deepest, widest image of the universe night after night for 10 years.

The LSST uses a three-mirror design, which offers a wide field of view and is able to survey the entire sky in only three nights. It will deliver sharp images taken by a 3.2-billion-pixel camera, the largest digital camera ever constructed.

A robust structure made with our steel

In 2014, a Spanish consortium formed by Asturfeito and GHESA won the offer for the design, construction, and testing of the Telescope Mount Assembly.

ArcelorMittal Europe – Flat Products’ mill in Gijón supplied customer Asturfeito with steel plates for the construction of the telescope’s structure. Our plates in grade S355J2 + N provide the necessary toughness for an application such as this one.

The competitiveness of our offer in terms of price and technical requirements convinced Asturfeito to opt for our steel solutions. Regarding logistics, the location of our mill was an added benefit due to its proximity with the customer’s facility (also in the region of Asturias).

Coming in 2020

Asturfeito fully assembled the LSST in its production site and carried out control and performance tests in collaboration with GHESA. The telescope will be disassembled and the parts will be transported from the port of Avilés to Chile this autumn before being installed at 2600 metres of altitude in Cerro Pachón. LSST will see “first light” with a commissioning camera in August of 2020 and begin the ten-year full science survey in October of 2022.

About Asturfeito

Our client, Asturfeito, is a leading company in the engineering, manufacturing, and commissioning of capital goods with more than 20 years of experience in the scientific, nuclear, petrochemical, renewable energy, industrial, and steel industries. The company currently employs 220 people and has three production sites in Asturias: in Tabaza; in the Principality of Asturias Business Park (PEPA), very close to the port of Avilés (facilities where the skeleton of the telescope has been built); and in Silvota.

Fact & figures about the LSST

•    16 metre-diameter
•    375 tonnes
•    8.4-m mirror - the width of a singles tennis court
•    3200-megapixel camera
•    Each image the size of 40 full moons
•    37 billion stars and galaxies
•    10-year survey of the sky
•    10 million alerts, 1000 pairs of exposures
•    15 terabytes of data...every night