ISSF announces winners of New Applications Awards

Tokyo, 18 May 2017 – The International Stainless Steel Forum (ISSF) has announced the winners of the Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards in the categories New Technology and New Development during their 21st conference (ISSF-21) which was held in Tokyo on 18 May 2017.

The ISSF is continuing its well-established practice of presenting Awards for Excellence in New Applications for stainless steel. The Awards are again presented in two categories: The Award for the Best New Application featuring new Technology and The Award for the Best New Application featuring New Market Development. The winning entries are selected from submissions from members or their customers. In an effort to encourage more participation in these prestigious Awards, the Board has agreed that there will in future be three Winners in each category – Gold, Silver and Bronze.

For 2017 the winners of the Awards for the Best New Application featuring New Market Developments are:

The Gold Award – Aperam, for the enclosure of the remains of the troubled Chernobyl Nuclear Reactor, which has been covered in a domed sheath of 316L stainless steel. This is an outstanding example of how new applications for stainless steel can simultaneously benefit the environment and imaginatively catch the attention of the Public, and mark Stainless Steel as being something that does good things. That is vitally important for our Public Image.

The Silver Award – because of the very high standard of the submissions, the judges decided to have two joint winners. The First Silver Award goes to Arcelor-Mittal for the Tidal Sluice Gates at Mont Saint Michel, using duplex materials. This is also a very public construction, situated as it is, at a very prominent tourist destination in France. The Second Silver Award goes to Nippon Steel and Sumikin Stainless Steel Corporation for the alloy-saving Duplex Stainless Steels for flood-gates for dams. This is yet again a very useful public service contract, where its extended service life will save significant public funds.

The Bronze Award was won by Acerinox for the Walkway Suspension Bridge in an underground railway station which is again a very public construction, and one which people will notice everyday.

The winners of the 2017 Awards for the Best New Applications featuring New Technology are:

Gold Award – Outokumpu, for the development of Bionic Lightweight Structures for Battery Vehicles, constructed from Outokumpu Forta H1000, 2H

Silver Award – Nippon Yakin Kogyo Co. Ltd, for Diffusion Bonded Compact Heat Exchangers made from modified 316L.

Bronze Award – SASSDA, for the development of Municipal Water Storage Tanks made from 3CR12 Stainless Steel to replace concrete.

Full details of the winning entries as well as all other entries have been published in a new Brochure entitled “The New Applications Awards – 2017” which is available on the ISSF Website (click here)