Steel: A cornerstone of the world's economy

The industry directly employs more than two million people worldwide, with a further two million contractors and four million people in the supporting industries. Considering steels position as the key product supplier to industries such as automotive, construction, transport, power and machine goods, and using a multiplier of 25:1, the steel industry is at the source of employment for more than 50 million people. World crude steel production has increased from 851 megatonnes (Mt) in 2001 to 1,527 Mt in 2011. (It was 28.3 Mt in 1900). World average steel use per capita has steadily increased from 150 kg in 2001 to 220 kg in 2010. India, Brazil, South Korea and Turkey have all entered the top 10 steel producers list in the last 40 years.

Sustainable steel
Steel is at the core of the green economy, in which economic growth and environmental responsibility work hand in hand.

Steel is the main material used in delivering renewable energy solar, tidal and wind. All steel created as long as150 years can be recycled today and used in new products and applications. By sector, global steel recovery rates for recycling are estimated at 85% for construction, 85% for automotive, 90% for machinery and 50% for electrical and domestic appliances. This leads to a global weighted average of over 70%. The amount of energy required to produce a tonne of steel has been reduced by 50% in the last 30 years. Nowadays, 97% of steel by-products can be reused. Figures for water uptake and discharge are close to each other, with any small loss due to evaporation. Water recycled back into rivers and other sources is often cleaner than when extracted.

Steel is everywhere in your life

Steel touches every aspect of our lives. No other material has the same unique combination of strength, formability and versatility.

Almost 200 billion cans of food are produced each year. Steel cans mean saving energy as refrigeration is not needed. Cans mean tamper-free and safe food, nutritional value and beneficial environmental impact from recycling. Steel used for double-hulled capesize vessels delivering raw materials, finished goods and energy must have the highest impact toughness (to withstand constant wave motion), corrosion resistance (from sea water) and weldability (for manufacturing reasons). Skyscrapers are made possible by steel. The housing and construction sector is the largest consumer of steel today, using around 50% of world steel production. Approximately 25% of an average computer is made of steel. Over 320 million PCs were sold in 2010. Steel looks after our health. Steel surfaces are hygienic and easy to clean. Surgical and safety equipment and commercial kitchens are all made with steel.

Safe, innovative and progressive steel

Steel is an innovative and progressive industry committed to the safety and health of its people.

The industry is committed to the goal of an injury-free workplace. The lost-time injury frequency rate has decreased from 5.1 in 2004 to 2.6 in 2009. The number of worldsteel member organisations participating in the annual safety metrics survey has increased from 46 in 2005 to 87 in 2010. The steel industry globally spends more than 12 billion annually on improving the manufacturing process, new product development and future breakthrough technology. New lightweight steel is dramatically changing the market. In 1937, 83,000 tonnes of steel was needed to build the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Today only half of that would be needed. Vehicles structures using Advanced High Strength Steel (AHSS) weigh up to 35% less than those made with former conventional steel, substantially reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Life cycle thinking

Life cycle assessment (LCA): new solutions for new times.

Life cycle thinking is vital for the future. Environmental regulations which only regulate one phase (the use phase) of a products life cycle can create unintended consequences, such as increased CO2 emissions. One example of this is vehicle exhaust or tail pipe regulations which encourage the use of low density materials which are more CO2 intensive to produce.

LCA considers production, manufacture, the use phase and end-of-life recycling and disposal. Life cycle thinking leads to immediate environmental benefit. In addition to CO2, LCA assesses other impacts such as resource consumption, energy demand and acidification. LCA is easy to implement, cost effective and produces affordable and beneficial solutions for material decision-making and product design. worldsteel developed one of the first global sector databases for life cycle inventory data and invests to keep it current. Updated: April 2012

The World Steel Association was founded as the International Iron and Steel Institute on 19 October 1967. It changed its name to World Steel Association on 6 October 2008. worldsteel is a non-profit organisation with headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. A second office in Beijing, China, opened in April 2006. The World Steel Association (worldsteel) is one of the largest and most dynamic industry associations in the world. worldsteel represents approximately 170 steel producers (including 17 of the world's 20 largest steel companies), national and regional steel industry associations, and steel research institutes. worldsteel members represent around 85% of world steel production. worldsteel acts as the focal point for the steel industry, providing global leadership on all major strategic issues affecting the industry, particularly focusing on economic, environmental and social sustainability. worldsteel promotes steel and the steel industry to customers, the industry, media and the general public. It assists its members to develop the market for steel. worldsteel promotes a zero-accident working environment for steel industry employees and contractors 1China695.5638.78.9 2Japan107.6109.6-1.8 3United States86.280.57.1 4India72.268.35.7 5Russia68.766.92.7 6South Korea68.558.916.2 7Germany44.343.81.0 8Ukraine35.333.45.7

9Brazil35.232.96.8 10Turkey34.129.117.0 World crude steel production reached 1,527 megatonnes (Mt) for the year of 2011. This is an increase of 6.8% compared to 2010 and is a record for global crude steel production. All the major steel-producing countries apart from Japan and Spain showed growth in 2011. Growth was particularly robust in Turkey, South Korea and Italy. www.worldsteel.org

The iron and steel industry in India is one of the most essential industries in India which propels its industrial development. It has helped in generation of several subsidiaries and small scale industries and also supports the power, transport, fuel and communication industries in the country. Out of the 200 MT of total production, 50% is exported. Furthermore, Iron ore Exports have augmented by 17%, because of demand from China. Production in the iron and steel segment has been escalating since the last 20 years. Moreover, export duty levied on iron ore has been reduced which has been proved as an impetus to the industry. The major players in this sector, includes, Tata Steel, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), Bhushan Power and Steel Ltd, Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL), ESSAR Steel. History of Iron and Steel Industry in India Iron and Steel Industry in the country has experienced a sustainable growth since the independence of the country. A humble beginning of the modern steel industry was reached in India at Kulti in West Bengal in the year 1870. But the outset of bigger production became noticeable with the establishment of a steel plant in Jamshedpur in Bihar in 1907. It started production in 1912. The new township was named after J.R.D Tata. This venture was followed by Burnpur and Bhadrawati Steel plants in 1919 and 1923 respectively. It was, however, only after Independence that the steel industry was able to find a strong foothold in the country. Excluding the Jamshedpur plant of the Tatas, all are in the public sector and looked after by Steel Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL). Bhilai and Bokaro Steel plant were set up with Soviet alliance. Durgapur and Rourkela came up with British and West German technical expertise, respectively. Production Scenario of Iron and Steel Industry in India: Iron and steel industry normally is a heavy industry. All its raw materials are heavy and massive. They encompass iron-ore, coking coal and limestone. Location of this industry is thus administered by its proximity to raw materials, predominantly coal. The finished products in turn are also heavy and need efficient transport system for their distribution. The Chota Nagpur plateau bordering West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa, and Madhya Pradesh, therefore has been the natural nerve-centre of this industry. Iron and Steel industry is also a basic or key industry. It forgoes the heavy machines and tools industry. Umpteen light, medium, small and cottage industries depend on it, as a result of modernisation and industrialisation of a country. Iron and steel industry also necessitates enormous investment, staple infrastructure, mainly able means of up-to-date transport and communication system and most importantly plentiful fuel or power supply.

Various new Industrial policies and other initiatives undertaken by the Government of India have given a new thrust for growth and participation to the iron and steel industry. As a result, expansion and modernisation measures are being adopted by the units that already exist as well as numerous new plants are being set up in various regions of the nation, which are more improved, economic and cost effective and implement advanced technologies. Fuelled by growing demands from automobiles, infrastructure, real estate sectors, the Indian iron and steel industry has gained global recognition. Tata Steel, which leads and dictates the Indian scenario, has spread its horizons and acquired Corus, the UK-Dutch steel company. Moreover, Mittal Steel, owned by the renowned L.N. Mittal, has takeover Arcelor, a French steel company, resulting in Arcelor Mittal, which has become the top most global steel company. Moreover, large investments are being made in the steel plants in Orissa by the Korean company POSCO. Vishakhapatnam Steel plant has the advantage of importing quality coking coal from abroad and is at ease in exporting its products straight to the world market. In 1997-98 it had produced near about 2.2 million tones of pig-iron. The plant has been able to uphold international standards of competence. Industry Structure: The Iron and Steel Industry in India has 2 separate divisions: * Integrated producers, and * Secondary producers Amongst the Integrated producers, the major producers include Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited (TISCO), Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) and Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), who generate steel by converting iron ore. The Secondary producers like Ispat Industries, Lloyds steel and Essar Steel, create steel through the process of melting scrap iron. These are mainly small steel plants and produce steel in electric furnaces, using scrap and sponge iron. They produce both mild steel and alloy steel of given specifications. Development of Iron and Steel Industry in India As compared to China, India had an excellent beginning. India has been ranked in the seventh position for the world?s seventh largest steel manufacturer by the International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI). In 2006, India produced around 44 million tones. Several measures undertaken by the government have increased the growth of the iron and steel industry in India. Some of the measures include low import duties, simple tax structure and unrestricted external trade. The social reforms introduced by the government improved the development process of iron and steel industries in India. The government has lately declared that special economic and investment regions would be established in almost 6 states. These would hence support further processing like production of steel, including a few special economic zones where state of the art infrastructures would be provided by the government to develop a better industrial region. Thus, augmentation of productivity in Iron and Steel Industry in India, by adopting more effective and efficient technologies for manufacture, will effect in amalgamating social, environmental and economic development objectives.

It is common today to talk about "the iron and steel industry" as if it were a single entity, but historically they were separate products. The steel industry is often considered to be an indicator of economic progress, because of the critical role played by steel in infrastructural and overall economic development.[42]

In 1980, there were more than 500,000 U.S. steelworkers. By 2000, the number of steelworkers fell to 224,000.[43] The economic boom in China and India has caused a massive increase in the demand for steel in recent years. Between 2000 and 2005, world steel demand increased by 6%. Since 2000, several Indian [44] and Chinese steel firms have risen to prominence like Tata Steel (which bought Corus Group in 2007), Shanghai Baosteel Group Corporation and Shagang Group. ArcelorMittal is however the world's largest steel producer. In 2005, the British Geological Survey stated China was the top steel producer with about onethird of the world share; Japan, Russia, and the US followed respectively.[45] In 2008, steel began trading as a commodity on the London Metal Exchange. At the end of 2008, the steel industry faced a sharp downturn that led to many cut-backs.