Stainless steel is gaining increased interest from the automotive industry. The reason is the favourable combination of high strength and formability that many stainless steel grades provide. With a high energy absorption in crash situation added to this property combination, stainless steel can offer unique design opportunities for the automotive industry, opportunities that has just started to be explored.
HyTens® is the trade name for a new product family of Outokumpu, specifically targeted towards the automotive industry. Another steel grade of interest for the automotive industry is the duplex steel grade LDX 2101®. For high temperature applications a set of grades are available depending on the working temperature required.
Another innovative application is the wheel nut wrench. In this case we have utilized the extreme capabilities of HyTensX to increase in hardness during fabrication. By utilizing this effect in an optimal way, the wheel nut wrench has hardness similar to quenched steel in the hex-shaped end, while the handle is considerably softer. The latter to ensure that the wrench is not too strong.