Wednesday 19 November 2008
Full steam ahead for Aussie steel fabricators
THE
AUSTRALIAN Steel Institute has released results of a survey of 48 Australian steel fabricators, showing the sector is boosting its capacity and competitiveness.
The survey showed steel fabricators invested an average of $4.4m since 2006 in advanced plant and equipment, making for a total recorded investment of over $210m.
When these results are combined with data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the total investment across the Australian fabricator community for the two years is estimated to be in excess of $400m.
Fabricators invested in technology like new overhead cranes, plate rolling equipment, CNC beam lines, angle lines and plasma cutting lines. The total capacity for the sample surveyed rose by 143,000t per year, or 30%.
The fabricators surveyed also increased covered production space by around a total of 120,000sqm.
The ASI expects this expansion to continue, with many respondents declaring they are planning a total of $100m in plant and equipment investment.
According to the institute, fabricators are increasing their capability and capacity. They are not only install new plant equipment, but also keeping skills in Australia to build and maintain a sustainable steel manufacturing sector.
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