A fresh look for research excellence at AMAG
- New research center opened on schedule for normal operation
- Growing demand for R&D and testing technology due to site expansion and increasing specialization
- AMAG R&D spending 2019: approx. 30 million euros
- R&D and innovation: 155 staff (8% of the total workforce)
- Modern architecture with many design elements produced by AMAG itself
- Attractive office areas and space for creativity
The ceremony had to be kept small due to the coronavirus. The AMAG management board joined Herbert Ortner, Chair of the AMAG Austria Metall AG supervisory board to open AMAG's new materials research and testing center, the "Center for Material Innovation" (CMI).
The strategic expansion of the AMAG site in Ranshofen has been accompanied by a significant rise in production, with a corresponding increase in the number of special products. Linked with this, there has been a sharp increase in research and materials testing activities. AMAG has spent around 30 million euros on research and development over the last few years, including the associated investments. The Group employs 155 R&D and innovation experts - about 8% of the corporation's total workforce. The new research center marks an important milestone and sends a clear signal to AMAG's market and customers.
"Application-oriented research and development forms the basis for innovation and high-quality products, and is thus the foundation of AMAG's future success," explains AMAG CEO Gerald Mayer, continuing: "AMAG is sending a clear signal to the market and its customers in many different industries. As a premium supplier, we are emphasizing innovation and top quality ever more strongly, as is evident from the exciting range of new products we are releasing in 2020".
The new research center has a wide range of research facilities and testing technologies and offers numerous accredited testing processes. Accreditation is formal acknowledgment from a national accreditation center that the applicable qualification and equipment requirements have been met. It furthermore means that the new laboratory can offer a range of testing services to external customers.
The AMAG aviation products have already enjoyed a significant success in this area: the new sample preparation and materials testing procedures have been certified in accordance with the leading international industry standard Nadcap (National Aerospace and Defense Contractors Accreditation Program). This involved a challenging technical evaluation of how procedures meet customer requirements and industry standards applicable to the aerospace sector. This accreditation is only awarded to the leading companies in the supply chain for the international aerospace industry.
"We think of the new CMI as an innovation incubator," explains AMAG COO Dr. Helmut Kaufmann. "We are aiming to send a clear signal that we are taking AMAG's strategic positioning seriously - we are a premium supplier with high standards for innovation and cooperative, customer-oriented research. Our new research center, the CMI, creates the necessary space for research infrastructure, inspiration and brainwork, packaged in a fitting architecture".
The most important facilities at the CMI are:
- Metal forming laboratory for testing complex 3-dimensional sheet metal forming procedures and developing products and procedures in a lab-scale rolling mill
- Heat treatment laboratory
- Mechanical materials testing (tensile and pressure tests, hardness and bending tests)
- Metallography, using microscopy for investigating metal structures
- Surface technology, focusing on anodization, pickling, brightening, passivation, bonding and corrosion
- Laboratory for oil and emulsion analysis plus new water analysis lab
- Environmental measurement with a focus on emissions analysis
- Accredited testing center for metallography, surface technology, chemical analysis and materials testing – total of 57 accredited testing procedures
The architecture
The building is over 75 years old, but the original structure is barely recognizable following the conversion. The building's state-of-the-art technical infrastructure and creativity-fostering ambiance are complemented by its futuristic external appearance, with numerous aluminium features produced in AMAG's own mills.
The modern office areas have been carefully designed to meet the diverse and sometimes specialist requirements of the research work. There are new meeting rooms and publication rooms, and a library has been built where researchers can plunge deep into publications and research reports. The graphic design matches the atmosphere, creating a space conducive to almost limitless creativity. About 100 AMAG employees work in the CMI. They cooperate closely with the technology and production departments at the foundry and rolling mill.
