Aleris ready to supply aerospace plates to Airbus
Cleveland, Jan. 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Aleris today announced that its new rolling mill in Zhenjiang, China, has received qualification to supply aerospace aluminum plates to Airbus. This certification enables the Aleris Zhenjiang plant to supply aluminum plates for the production of various Airbus aircraft.
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Aleris' plant in Koblenz, Germany, has been supplying aerospace aluminum plates to Airbus for decades. The Aleris Zhenjiang plant, which opened in early 2013, follows the model of the Koblenz facility by establishing a localized aircraft aluminum plate supply chain in the Asia-Pacific region to meet the needs of both global and regional aircraft manufacturers.
Aleris Chairman and CEO Steve Demetriou said: “This qualification represents an important milestone in our growth strategy.We are pleased to be able to supply products to Airbus in these two strategically important regions — Europe and the Asia-Pacific. Airbus is one of the world’s largest aircraft manufacturers.This certification further demonstrates that our Zhenjiang plant can deliver high-quality, premium aluminum plates that meet the stringent requirements of the aerospace industry in a region where new aircraft demand is expected to grow significantly.”
In June 2014, Aleris announced that the Zhenjiang plant had obtained Nadcap certification, bringing the company to the final stage of gaining supply qualifications from Airbus and other major aircraft manufacturers. Bombardier and COMAC (Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China) also awarded supply qualifications to the Zhenjiang plant, with aircraft plate shipments commencing in late 2014. The Aleris Zhenjiang plant is among the first in the Asia-Pacific region qualified to produce aluminum plates for large global aircraft manufacturers.
Since its inauguration last year, while pursuing aerospace plate production qualification, the Aleris Zhenjiang plant has been shipping orders to commercial plate customers worldwide. These products are used in numerous technically demanding end-use applications, including engineering, transportation, shipbuilding, and air separation units. As a prerequisite for these end uses, the Zhenjiang plant has also received approvals from multiple certification bodies such as TUV, American Bureau of Shipping, Det Norske Veritas, Class NK, and Bureau Veritas, enabling it to supply products for shipbuilding, silos, pressure vessels, and other industries.
About Aleris
Aleris, a privately held company, is a global leader in aluminum rolling and extrusion products, aluminum recycling, and specialty alloy production. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company operates nearly 40 plants in North America, Europe, and Asia. For more information, visit: http://www.aleris.com.
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