A steel plate that has been treated in the hardening furnace ready for the quenching unit.
A quenched steel plate on the run out table. The next step is the tempering furnace.
|
Bisalloy Steels fills a unique niche in the steel market. So much so that locally and in Asia the name for the company’s quenched and tempered steel product, ‘Bisplate’ is a ‘generic term’ for this product type.
They commenced business in 1980, and to date are the only Australasian manufacturer of the plate, supplying the mining and resource, defence, transport and lifting equipment, structural construction, pressure vessel and agricultural industries.
When founded, the mining industry was Bisalloy’s key market, using the high strength and wear resistant steel plate for dump trucks, buckets, chutes and bins, and general materials handling.
However, by the mid 1980s, Bisalloy Steels expanded to include a second primary target market, the defence industry, gaining work as a sub-contractor on the Guided Missile Frigates (FFG), manufactured at Williamstown Victoria.
Bisalloy Steels Sales and Marketing Manager, Michael Sampson said that the company supplied high strength/high toughness steel made to the United States military specification 16216J (SH) grade HY-80 for the FFG project.
‘It was the first time we had made this type of steel, so there was significant technical collaboration with BHP, Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN),’ he said.
‘We had to go through first article testing. We made the first batch of steel and DSTO and RAN undertook extensive testing to ensure that we had the product that they were looking for,’ Mr Sampson said.
Bisalloy has been undertaking work on Australian Defence Force (ADF) projects ever since, including the Collins Class Submarine project, supplying high strength/high toughness steel for the hulls of the six submarines built by ASC; and working in collaboration with Blue Scope Steel, DSTO, the Army and other sub-contractors to develop armour grade plates for use on the Bushmaster project. Bisalloy became the steel manufacturer for the Bushmaster when Thales Australia was selected as the prime.
Similarly, Bisalloy has supplied armour grades to Tenix for the upgraded M113 AS3 Armoured Personnel Carriers.
Mr Sampson said supplying steel for ADF projects opened up opportunities in defence markets off-shore.
‘We are currently in discussions with Thales Australia to continue supplying the steel for any export contracts they win for the Bushmaster vehicle,’ he said.
‘Beyond that, in our non-defence work we have always had a presence in the export market with customers in Asia , New Zealand and elsewhere. So, it was a natural progression to look at opportunities to sell military grade steel off-shore,’ he said.
The company’s future involves expansion. Bisalloy is undergoing a further capacity upgrade to increase its manufacturing output by 30 per cent.
Mr Sampson said the investment involves the installation of a second shot-blaster at the manufacturing plant at Unanderra , New South Wales , together with modifications to make material handling more efficient. Nominal plant throughput is expected to increase from 160 tonnes per day to 220 tonnes per day. |
