Global Sintered Steel Market - 2021-2028

Global Sintered Steel Market - 2021-2028

Market Overview

The sintered steel market size was worth US$ XX million in 2020 and is estimated to reach US$ XX million by 2028, growing at a CAGR of XX % during the forecast period (2021-2028).

Sintered steel is a metal that has undergone a sintering process, in which powdered metal is heated under its melting point until the particles form a molecular bond. Metals such as copper, iron and aluminum are commonly turned into sintered steel. Sintered steels normally possess resistance to high temperatures and a slow deformation rate. Powder metallurgy was valued for its ability to produce parts to near-net shape. Designers soon discovered that sintered steel had other properties that made it superior to wrought steel.

As a result, a growing number of PM parts are being made with complex geometries. The cutting characteristics of sintered steel can be managed by altering the microstructure using small additions of other substances to a standard powder composition. For example, machinability can be improved by combining copper or phosphorus. The additives also increase sintering speed and strengthen the material, enabling sintered steel to be produced at low temperatures that still rival the strength and elongation of wrought alloys.

Market Dynamics

The global sintered steel market growth is driven by the rising need from automotive companies.

Rising need from automotive companies

Sintered steels are extensively used to manufacture automobile structural parts such as synchronizer gears, transmission clutch plates, timing sprockets and rollers, power steering pressure plates etc. Most of the sintered-steel applications in today's automobiles have resulted from substitution in design for other fabrication methods. The possibilities for expanding its use are great when the peculiar ability to compact and sinter high precision shapes is recognized and understood. Desirable refinements of existing types of engines, previously impossible, such as rotary valves, become possible.

The automotive manufacturers have invested heaving in research & developments to develop new combinations for improving their vehicle's performance. For example, recently, A novel high-density sintered steel for automotive power-train gears was developed by mixing Cr–Mo completely pre alloy powder. It has been demonstrated that surface-rolled case-carburized gears with a density of more than 7.5 Mg/m3 made from this powder metallurgy material can achieve bending and surface fatigue strengths of 1.0 GPa and 2.0 GPa.

Rising prices of steel

The sintering steel market growth is restrained by rising prices of steel. The rising prices of steel are impacting the final cost of sintered steel products. Since March 2020, steel prices have been up at 215%. The benchmark price for hot-rolled steel hit another all-time high, climbing to US$ 1,825.

U.S steel prices are up by 200% and are assumed to remain high into 2022. In March 2020, before the covid-19 pandemic, steel prices traded between US$ 500 and $US 800. According to the market experts, the price of steel will be volatile in the upcoming years as well. Chinese steelmakers are thinking of adjusting their sinter feed blending ratios as the price of medium grades hit multi-year highs, raising the value-in-use advantage of high-grade ores.

Covid-19 Impact Analysis

The market for sintered steel was unstable during the initial months of the covid-19 pandemic, owing to steel shortages, less production and rising prices. The market for weathering steel has declined during the covid-19 outbreak. Global steel production decreased by 1.4% in the first three months of 2020 compared to the same period in the previous year. Although steel was declared an essential industry in numerous countries, demand for sintered steel production fell during the pandemic due to less demand from aerospace and marine industries.

However, the market has been witnessing lucrative growth after the pandemic, which has resulted in price hikes. Steel demand fell at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, but soon it spiked with end-users looking to recover their losses. At one point, steel prices were 300% above their pre-pandemic levels at over US$ 1,900 per ton.

Segment Analysis

By material, the sintered steel market is segmented into carbon steel, alloy steel, stainless steel and tool steel.

The demand for high-temperature resistance metals is boosting sales for Stainless sintered steel market

Sintered stainless steel is used as filter materials in applications demanding high-temperature resistance while retaining the filter element's ability to regenerate. For example, sintered stainless steel elements are used for filtering steam in food and pharmaceutical applications. Stainless steel sintering aims to obtain good corrosion resistance, good mechanical propertiesand adequate dimensional tolerances. However, over several decades, despite modest corrosion resistances, sintered stainless steels found niche applications such as office machine parts, lock parts, mirror mounts, some appliance parts, etc., where sintered stainless steels were able to compete with wrought stainless steels because of their corrosion properties met the moderate requirements.

The materials used to make sintered stainless steel parts are as follows:

Austenitic stainless steel- The material has the highest corrosion resistance. The most common ones are grades 316 and 304 for applications subjected to aggressive corrosive conditions. Grade 310 is utilized as refractory stainless steel. The hardness and mechanical strength can be increased by modifying the sintering conditions, but some corrosion resistance is lost.

Ferritic stainless steel- The materials are magnetic and less corrosion-resistant than austenitic steel. Grade 434 is utilized due to its high corrosion resistance. While grade 409 is used for high oxidation resistance at high temperatures and good weldability.

Martensitic stainless steels - The materials are used when the critical parameter is the hardness. The material has high hardness and has less corrosion ferritic stainless steel.

Geographical Analysis

Rising automotive sales is boosting the market in Asia-Pacific

Asia-Pacific region accounts for 60% of the world's population. Most countries, including China and India, make up some of the fastest-growing nations in manufacturing sectors due to the growing population. The region leads in automotive components production, which is a key shareholder amongst the applications of sintered steel. For instance, in 2020, China sold over 20 million passenger cars, making it the leading market in the region. Sintered steels are widely used to manufacture automobile structural parts such as synchronizer gears, timing sprockets, transmission clutch plates, power steering pressure plates etc.

Moreover, the region also leads in terms of steel and sintered steel production. The companies are expanding their production rates with a rising need for sintered steel products. For instance, in2020, The Rourkela Steel Plant, a unit of the state-run SAIL, has reported record production of over 3.86 lakh tons of hot metal and 3.54 lakh tons of steel. In sinter production, too, the Rourkela Steel Plant touched a new milestone by clocking 6,22,199 tons.

However, the sintered steel market was impacted by the recent government norms. In 2020, China's largest steel-producing city Tangshan forced sintering and blast furnaces restrictions and supplemented by aggressive emergency actions.

Competitive Landscape

The sintered steel market is consolidated with the presence of global companies, followed by a few local companies. The companies are attracting an audience with new grades and improved materials of sintered steel products. In addition, some of the key players contributing to the market's growth are MEK Group, Atlas Pressed Metals, GKN Sinter Metals Engineering GmbH, SSI Sintered Specialties, Nippon Steel Corporation, ASCO Sintering Co., Sumitomo Electric Industries Limited, ArcelorMittal, Hitachi Chemical, Schunk Sinter Metals and others. The major players are adopting new strategies to dominate the market, such as expanding production, launching new technologies, collaborations, contributing to the global growth of the sintered steel market.

GKN Sinter Metals Engineering GmbH

Overview: GKN Sinter Metals Engineering GmbH is an engineering and manufacturing partner of metal powders and product solutions for industrial and automotive markets. The company offers wide expertise in powder metallurgy design, processes and pressing technology. The company serves globally-operating industries through its 30 fully digitized plants in 4 continents. GKN invests in digitization and Industry 4.0 technology to keep the competitive edge in effectiveness, quality and speed.

Product Portfolio: The company offers various types of design and manufacture customized high-precision sintered metal components for many automotive and industrial applications.

Key Development: In 2019, GKN Sinter Metals continues its growth strategy by investing in a new facility in Mexico. Situated in Guanajuato, the plant will have 6,000 sqm of the roofed area and employ up to 250 people.

Why Purchase the Report?
• Visualize the sintered steel market segmentation by type, application, end-user and region, highlighting the key commercial assets and players.
• Identify commercial opportunities in the sintered steel by analyzing trends and co-development deals.
• Excel data sheet with thousands of data points of sintered steel market-level 4/5 segmentation.
• PDF report with the most relevant analysis cogently put together after exhaustive qualitative interviews and in-depth market study.
• Product mapping in excel for the key product of all major market players

The global sintered steel market report would provide an approximate 61 market data table, 62 figures and 180 pages

Target Audience
• Raw Material Providers
• Buyers
• Sintered Steel Manufacturers
• Distributors
• Industrial Companies
• Automotive Companies
• Industry Investors/Investment Bankers
• Education & Research Institutes
• Research Professionals
• Emerging Companies
• Distributors