Amsterdam, 12 April 2013 — AMG Advanced Metallurgical Group N.V.’s (“AMG”, EURONEXT AMSTERDAM: “AMG”) AMG Engineering unit, ALD Vacuum Technologies GmbH (“ALD”) announces that it has acquired a patented wear and corrosion resistance nitriding technology that utilizes an active screen plasma nitriding process (“ASPN”). This revolutionary technology will enable ALD to expand its services to new aerospace and energy applications and the medical market.
The ASPN technology modifies a component’s surface by adding nitrogen, using plasma technologies, to create a specific nitride layer. This modification improves the mechanical strength, corrosion resistance, and electrical conductivity of materials such as niobium alloys for fuel cells and carbon nanoparticles.
ALD and others currently provide alternative nitriding technologies; however, none of those technologies is capable of treating the surface of biomaterials due to the inherent limitations (e.g. temperature uniformity, and temperature level – which is essential to maintaining materials’ properties) associated with those technologies. The ASPN technology enables the nitriding process to occur in low temperatures and for non-conductive materials, which is not possible with any other technology commercially available today.
The ability to apply the ASPN technology at low temperatures is the key element that significantly broadens the market for this surface treatment. The ASPN process can be used for the surface treatment of biomaterials such as austenitic stainless steels and titanium alloys and polycaprolactone components for medical implantable devices. This technology enables ALD to access markets valued in excess of $500 million with growth rates above 10%.
About AMG
AMG creates and applies innovative metallurgical solutions to the global trend of sustainable development of natural resources and CO2 reduction. AMG produces highly engineered specialty metal products and advanced vacuum furnace systems for the Energy, Aerospace, Infrastructure and Specialty Metals and Chemicals end markets. AMG consists of three segments, AMG Processing, AMG Engineering and AMG Mining.
AMG Processing develops and produces specialty metals, alloys and high performance materials. AMG is a significant producer of specialty metals, such as ferrovanadium, ferronickel-molybdenum, aluminum master alloys and additives, chromium metal and ferrotitanium, for Energy, Aerospace, Infrastructure and Specialty Metal and Chemicals applications. Other key products include specialty alloys for titanium and superalloys, coating materials and vanadium chemicals.
AMG Engineering designs, engineers and produces advanced vacuum furnace systems and operates vacuum heat treatment facilities, primarily for the Aerospace and Energy (including solar and nuclear) industries. Furnace systems produced by AMG include vacuum remelting, solar silicon melting and crystallization, vacuum induction melting, vacuum heat treatment and high pressure gas quenching, turbine blade coating and sintering. AMG also provides vacuum case-hardening heat treatment services on a tolling basis.
AMG Mining produces critical materials utilizing its secure raw material sources in Africa, Asia, Europe and South America. AMG Mining produces critical materials such as high purity natural graphite, tantalum, antimony and silicon metal. These materials are of significant importance to the global economy and are available in limited supply. End markets for these materials include electronics, energy efficiency, green energy and infrastructure.
With over 3,000 employees, AMG operates globally with production facilities in Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Czech Republic, United States, China, Mexico, Brazil, Turkey, Poland, India and Sri Lanka and has sales and customer service offices in Belgium, Russia and Japan (www.amg-nv.com).
For further information, please contact:
AMG Advanced Metallurgical Group N.V. +1 610 975 4901
Jonathan Costello
Vice President of Corporate Development and Corporate Communications
jcostello@amg-nv.com
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