Tata Unit Boosts R&D for Ultra-High-Strength Steel

The Tata Steel Ltd. says it spent $3 million to create an advanced research facility in the Netherlands to develop next-generation steels for three of its major automotive customers in the region.

The Mumbai-based company describes the installation in Ijmuiden, North Holland, as the most technologically advanced in the world. The facility combines research capabilities with a hot press forming line to make prototype car parts such as rocker panels and A- and B-pillars.

Tata says its investment was prompted by requests from customers who want lighter and stronger materials such as zinc-coated boron steels and help from Tata in determining how to process them more efficiently.