HP and Global Steel Giant ArcelorMittal Announce Strategic 3D Printing Collaboration

Fortune Global 500 company ArcelorMittal, the world’s second-largest supplier of steel, has announced a strategic collaboration with HP to develop new additive manufacturing (AM) applications for ArcelorMittal’s steel powders. Via the partnership, the two companies will collaborate to bring new steel powders to a sufficient level of technical maturity, and then work with customers to create new steel use-cases for HP’s Metal Jet S100 metal binder jetting (MBJ) printer.

ArcelorMittal and HP will use the steel giant’s global R&D infrastructure, featuring 11 different sites on three continents and employing around 1,500 workers, to qualify parts for customers prior to commercialization. Once the parts are qualified, the partnership should also benefit from HP’s Metal Jet Production Service, announced in June 2024.

ArcelorMittal has been involved in AM for almost a decade, and in the fall of 2023 announced its first dedicated AM unit, ArcelorMittal Powders, with initial plans to produce 1,000 tons of steel powder per year at a facility in Spain. The conglomerate has emphasized sustainability as a key consideration driving its interest in AM, and through its work with HP, aims to both expand the options in its material portfolio and lower the cost per part for its steel powders.

Attendees of Formnext 2024 can learn more about the partnership by visiting HP’s booth D41 in Hall 12.1, or ArcelorMittal’s booth C21 in Hall 11.0.

In a press release, Aubin Defer, the chief marketing officer at ArcelorMittal Powders, said, “We are thrilled to collaborate with HP in advancing steel [AM]. This collaboration leverages our combined expertise to develop innovative solutions to drive the industry forward. The promising results of our steel powders with HP’s binder jetting technology are a testament to the potential of this partnership.”

HP’s global leader of Metals Sales & Go To Market, Alexandre Tartas, said, “We are excited to join forces with ArcelorMittal to push the boundaries of steel [AM]. This collaboration will enable us to leverage our technical expertise and ArcelorMittal’s leadership in sustainable steel solutions to create groundbreaking advancements in the industry. Combining the steel expertise of ArcelorMittal and HP [AM] positioning in high volume production offers a unique value proposition for the manufacturing industry.”

This is an ideal AM partnership on multiple different levels: in particular, the geographic reach and scalability potential of both companies involved gives the initiative a unique opportunity to genuinely accelerate metal AM adoption. Accelerating adoption is what more or less every collaboration in the AM space sets out to do, but ArcelorMittal and HP are two companies that actually have the infrastructure in place to deliver on that promise.

This latest announcement further reinforces what has been a mounting trend for HP, which is a focus on the Indian market. Between the company’s collaboration with INDO-MIM, its work with key service bureaus in India, and now the ArcelorMittal deal, HP seemingly has this increasingly important territory on lock when it comes to MBJ.

Given how significant India’s manufacturing sector already looks like it will be for the Trump administration’s industrial policy, HP may get the chance to test its India scale-up strategy rather immediately. If it works out, it will no doubt be a crucial model for the company’s AM strategy on a global level.

Featured image courtesy of ArcelorMittal