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High strength steel is ready for roll forming

SSAB Swedish Steel has developed Docol Roll, which it claims is the world’s first advanced high strength steel made specifically for roll forming. The steel is available in two strength grades and can be formed to very tight radii.

The new steel has high yield strength, good dimensional stability after roll forming, and is suitable for being formed to tight radii. The steel is produced in two strength grades – Docol Roll 800 with a minimum tensile strength of 800 N/mm2 and Docol Roll 1000 with a minimum tensile strength of 1000 N/mm2.

In addition to high tensile strength, Docol Roll also has a high yield strength, and the difference between yield strength and tensile strength is small. This is the reason for the good roll forming properties of the steel. As a result, the profiles produced are dimensionally stable and flat, with low stress differences in the cross-section.

”Docol Roll minimises the risk of bending or twisting of the profile,” said Karl-Inge Nilsson, product manager for Docol.

SSAB said that right back at the development stage, the new steel aroused great interest in the automotive and other industries, and the product had been tested and evaluated in full-scale trials.

”This is a new steel for a market in which the interest in roll forming is steadily growing,” said Nilsson. The keen interest of the automotive industry in roll forming is due to the high productivity at low production costs that the method offers. The production of body and safety parts is a typical area in which Docol Roll is expected to sell.

The method has previously been used for producing sheet steel parts for the building industry, although the benefits of roll forming are also evident in other industries, particularly in combination with high strength steels.

Docol Roll is now being launched throughout the world and will be available through SSAB Swedish Steel sales subsidiaries and also through distributors.