Indian steel giant
Tata Steel has announced that it has started supplying
UK car makers with a British-made dent-resistant steel that helps to further reduce vehicle weight.
According to
Tata Steel's statement, the new steel product in question, called BH260, helps car manufacturers make doors and bonnets that are seven percent lighter, which improves cars' fuel efficiency. The steel, which is being supplied to the
UK market from
Tata Steel's South Wales operations, is made using a special strengthening technique which enables vehicles to retain their ability to withstand everyday knocks in the car park.
Two automotive grades that
Tata Steel has recently made available for the first time from its
UK plants will initially be made at the Port Talbot works before being finished at the Zodiac line at Llanwern, Newport, which adds an anti-corrosive zinc coating to the steel sheet and was upgraded earlier this year.
"Localizing product supply is just one example of how we are supporting our automotive customers. These and other automotive product developments are evidence of how we are upgrading our supply capability company-wide. We are achieving greater flexibility of supply by increasing the number of locations from which new products are available and by bringing to market products with enhanced properties and for multiple applications," said Henrik Adam, chief commercial officer of
Tata Steel.