In Leoben, employees from 14 different nations develop and optimize new materials, products, systems and processes for all industry segments of RHI Magnesita.

The site is located in the Austrian province of Styria, in the immediate vicinity of the University of Leoben, one of the world’s leading universities in the area of material sciences. Some key customers and several important RHI Magnesita plants are also situated near the research center.

Today, Stefan Schriebl, Head of R&D Europe, talks to us about the Leoben site and its integration into the RHI Magnesita network.

1) What is special about your R&D hub?

What makes the site in Leoben unique is the diversity of international employees with different experience and training backgrounds. They provide a breeding ground where unique ideas can be created and grown. This environment also allows implementing complex, multi-disciplinary projects in which material scientists and simulation specialists all pull together in order to create the most beneficial systems in the market for our customers.

The excellent equipment offers our employees and the colleagues from other R&D locations the opportunity to seek out new paths that no one has ever taken before in the refractory industry and provides our customers state-of-the-art analyses and studies.

In addition to development, support is an integral part of our activities. This support goes far beyond determining test values and also comprises questions regarding recipe adjustments and raw material selection from our plants as well as processing customer inquiries regarding the choice of the appropriate refractory materials or the clarification of wear phenomena.  

Our responsibilities also include the harmonization and standardization of the test methods and measurements at the plants, including round robin tests. This also applies to the central support for different measurement methods, for example.

Moreover, the Leoben site is home to the “Intellectual Property Rights” department, which is responsible for tasks related patents, brands and licenses for the entire RHI Magnesita Group. Currently, the active property right portfolio consists of more than 170 patent families with more than 1,900 individual patents and patent applications.

Overall, roughly 300 people are employed at the Leoben site. A major advantage is the immediate vicinity to colleagues from the areas of Technical Procurement, Supply Chain Management, Quality Management, Production, Technical Marketing and Sales, with whom many ideas and improvements have been developed.

2) Which research areas do you focus on?

One core area deals with the development of new raw materials, material and binder systems, and refractory mixes, bricks and functional products. Different melting and firing units are available for the production of novel raw materials.  

Another area our projects focus on is the development of concepts and systems for our production for the use of recycling material in order to reduce CO₂ emissions and use resources efficiently.

The understanding of processes is essential both for us and for our customers. Therefore our goal is to further strengthen and expand our competitive edge in the simulation of thermal, thermomechanical and thermochemical correlations. A unique feature of Leoben are our water models, which are used visualize flows in a variety of customer production units and to efficiently test, develop and optimize functional products. In combination with numerical methods, we are a strong partner for our customers and, together with them, are able to significantly shorten development processes.

Test facilities designed in Leoben specifically for our plants allow not only individual manual measurement but also non-destructive 100% testing of our products in the production process. The data from these measuring instruments are analyzed together with a large number of other production and quality data in visualization and modeling methods, which are developed further by our process development in cooperation with external partners. With these analytical tools, our manufacturing processes and our products can be advanced continuously.

3) The objectives of the Technical Advisory Committee are to bring in new expertise and knowledge from outside, to strengthen the ties to the external world of technology and open up the innovation process. Which key partners are you collaborating with internally and externally? Why is this important?

We have a long tradition in the area of refractory materials and as a globally operating group we have great experience and expertise when it comes to the topic of refractories.

Within our internal network, we therefore keep in very close contact with our colleagues from the other R&D locations, international technical marketing and sales, who are experts for the different customer processes, and of course with the production sites.

To ensure that we are also the driving force in refractories in the future, we strive to continuously develop further and learn. This requires us to permanently acquire new skills. In part this also applies to skills that did not play a significant role in the past. Internal and external networking is the prerequisite for an intensive exchange of information.

Besides the additional technical expertise, developments of specific technologies in external collaborations often also enable advantages in terms of time and costs. Depending on the task, we therefore cooperate globally with key experts, universities and research institutions.  

Other important tasks to ensure that we keep our finger on the pulse of time include monitoring, researching and analyzing international patent activities.

4) “To act customer focused and innovatively” is one of our cultural themes. What does this mean concretely for your R&D center?

Many innovations and further developments are only possible together with our customers. This is why we endeavor to be present on site at our customers’ facilities with colleagues from the sales organization and technical marketing. 

A great number of customers visit us at our site in Leoben, either for guided tours, but also for further training at our Training Center. This type of networking is very important for us to find out which challenges the individual industries are faced with and how we can help to resolve such challenges.

Moreover, we develop important future topics in a partnership model in collaboration with key customers, plant suppliers and universities. The Austrian research promotion landscape offers many opportunities in this context, which we make intensive use of.

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Mark Loeffelholz, Head of R&D North America, has given us some insights into the characteristics and specialties of the R&D center in York.

1). What is special about your R&D center? 

York R&D concentrates more on “Development” than “Research” – focusing on shorter-term results for our company. We are currently a relatively small team, however, we are planning to grow our structure to provide even faster and more efficient local support to all of our customers and plants in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

2). Which fields of research are you focusing on?

The research focus is on doloma based bricks and monolithics, which is natural considering the outstanding dolomite raw material that RHI Magnesita mines and dead burns in York.

3). The objectives of the TAC are to bring in new expertise and knowledge from outside, to strengthen the ties to the external world of technology and open up the innovation process. Which key partners are you collaborating with internally (departments) and externally? Why is this important? 

As a relatively small team, it is absolutely critical that we have access to outside expertise and knowledge.  We rely on collaboration and constant interaction with our colleagues in our R&D hubs in Leoben (Austria) and Contagem (Brazil). Our interactions with the Raw Material Support team are also very enlightening. The Technical Marketing team serves as our eyes and ears to the markets, providing feedback on product performance and helping to guide our R&D efforts. Externally, RHI Magnesita is a member of the PSMRC (Peaslee Steel Manufacturing Research Center) at the Missouri University of Science & Technology. The scope of this industry-funded consortium includes rindustry funded consortiumindustry funded consortiumindustry funded consortium industry funded consortiumefractory research projects.

4). “To act customer focused and innovatively” is one of our cultural themes. What does this mean concretely for your R&D center? 

Our primary mission in York is to provide a high level of service to our customers. We provide product related support to Sales and Operations, and raw materials related support to the Purchasing/Supply Chain team. Our efforts ultimately guarantee best and high-class quality products and are essential to create value for our customers.

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We interviewed our two R&D leaders in Contagem about their activities in R&D Refractories and R&D Mineral Processing. They gave us an overview of their fields of research, characteristics of their site and what being customer focused means for them.

1) What is special about your R&D center/hub?

Modestino Brito, Head of R&D South America (R&D Refractories): We have a qualified, conscious and motivated team that reflects modern business competencies such as a sense of urgency, courage to take risks, cost awareness and accountability. We are ready to provide prompt responses to plant and marketing requests, with great focus on the customer’s needs and product quality. The laboratories and R&D facilities have specialized equipment to carry out product design and processing tests, such as different kinds of mixers, presses, furnaces and microscopes. Our instrumental laboratory is ISO/IEC 17025 – CRL1.196 accredited by INMETRO, a Brazilian government agency that audits and controls the requirements of this standard. This places us at the international level of chemical and carbon analysis of minerals and refractory products.

Paschoal Bonadia, Head of R&D Mineral Processing (R&D Mineral Processing): We are simulating all the main ore treatment operations on a small scale, collecting data and then bringing them to the industrial site at lower risks. At the same time, we are providing information for the conceptual engineering of expansion projects and new plants. The R&D Mineral Processing team supports RHI Magnesita plants that produce raw materials, helps them to improve their efficiencies and strengthens the company’s strategy on basic raw materials verticalization.

2) Which fields of research are you focusing on?

Modestino Brito (R&D Refractories): Current R&D projects focus on the study of different binder systems, application of alternative materials in various refractory products (secondary recycled material) and development of new products based on novel raw materials.

Paschoal Bonadia (R&D Mineral Processing): Our main focus is on magnesite beneficiation, especially on topics related to grinding, flotation, calcination and sintering, with the goal of providing the best raw material for the company, both in terms of quality and cost.

3) The objectives of the TAC are to bring in new expertise and knowledge from outside, to strengthen the ties to the external world of technology and open up the innovation process. Which key partners are you collaborating with internally (departments) and externally? Why is this important?

Modestino Brito (R&D Refractories): Internal partners are the operations, purchasing, technical assistance and sales areas. We cultivate a close and collaborative relationship to provide the best and most applicable responses to the company’s and the market’s needs. External partners include universities, suppliers and customers, such as the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), and key customers, among many others. These partnerships foster an innovation culture and are valuable for the development and assertiveness of our projects.

Paschoal Bonadia (R&D Mineral Processing): We have a team of researchers that work internally in close cooperation with various internal and external specialists including geologists and plant engineers. Externally, we develop post-graduation programs with the best universities in Brazil to address some of our challenges from a more academic perspective, which gives us the needed technical foundations to many of the ongoing projects more focused on applied and incremental improvement research. These collaborations are extremely important to broaden our view of the different approaches to the problems we have and keep us up to date on the latest trends in our field of studies. Now, with the TAC, we will be able to align our views with that of some of the greatest specialists worldwide.

4) “To act customer focused and innovatively” is one of our cultural themes. What does this mean concretely for your R&D center?

Modestino Brito (R&D Refractories): Understanding the customers’ needs is a daily challenge. Our researchers are encouraged to support marketing in customer visits and attend seminars and conferences worldwide to be constantly up to date regarding the market changes and needs. With this in mind, they are able to develop projects that are original, relevant and valuable to our customers.

Paschoal Bonadia (R&D Mineral Processing): On the Mineral Processing area our main customers are internal ones, like the plants that produce raw materials, although we also give technical support to part of the raw materials sales. For us, the cultural themes lead the way and we strive to provide our customers, either internal or external, with a prompt response and the best possible solution for value creation, even if the problem presented is still unknown to us. Our driving force is to find answers to new challenges and situations, cooperating with other departments across the company and taking advantage of our research facilities.

The post R&D Series: Our R&D Center in Contagem (Brazil) appeared first on RHI Magnesita.

Two research hubs and three centers to expand our technology leadership

To keep its finger on the pulse of the local markets, RHI Magnesita operates decentralized research at five locations including the strategically important growth markets in China, India and North America. Besides the research hubs in Leoben (Austria) and Contagem (Brazil), RHI Magnesita’s research network consists of the research centers in York (USA), Dalian (China) and Bhiwadi/Visakhapatnam (India). The decentralized organizational structure allows RHI Magnesita to better understand local demands and tap the opportunities in a rapidly changing global market.

RHI Magnesita’s global research team of more than 270 employees is located at the research hubs in Leoben (Austria) and Contagem (Brazil) as well as the centers in York (US), Bhiwadi/Visakhapatnam (India) and Dalian (China)

Taking innovation to 1200°C and beyond

Our mission “Taking innovation to 1200°C and beyond” reflects our commitment to R&D and innovation. The focus in R&D lies on constantly optimizing the business, operating in the entire supply chain through the development of several technical studies, supporting Mining, Production, Quality, Sales, Technical Marketing, seeking and maintaining our continued technological improvement in all aspects of business. Every year we invest more than any other competitor in product and service innovations. With more than 270 employees in R&D RHI Magnesita has the industry’s largest dedicated research team. On top, we have more than 340 technical engineers and experts in the marketing organization that consult, develop and deliver innovative solutions directly to customers on site. All our experts and technicians do not only closely cooperate with renowned research institutions and universities, industry partners and customers all over the world but also with various internal departments to create continuous and sustainable value add for our customers.

New Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) was nominated

Bringing in new perspectives and knowledge from outside and strengthening the ties to the external technology and research world will be key roles of the new Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) that was nominated this month. The TAC will play an essential role in supporting RHI Magnesita to grow its business with the help of new technologies and to make better use of the current technologies available in the group.

“The new Technical Advisory Committee brings together external scientists and researchers with our internal specialists from R&D, business development and technical marketing. The keyword is Open Innovation. Our objective is to open up the innovation process by actively and strategically using the outside world in order to increase the innovation potential through knowledge transfer and thought-provoking impulses from outside”, says our Chief Technology Officer Luis Bittencourt.

The main purpose of the TAC is to challenge the RHI Magnesita R&D community with their R&D portfolio and to expand the technology work beyond the company into the external world connecting with universities, start-up companies and technology partners.

About RHI Magnesita

RHI Magnesita is the result of the combination of RHI and Magnesita to form the leading global supplier of high-grade refractory products, systems and services which are indispensable for industrial high-temperature processes exceeding 1,200°C in a wide range of industries, including steel, cement, non-ferrous metals, and glass, among others. With a vertically integrated value chain, from raw materials to refractory products and full performance-based solutions, RHI Magnesita serves more than 10,000 customers in nearly all countries around the world.

With more than 14,000 employees in 35 main production sites and more than 70 sales offices, the company has unmatched geographic diversification. RHI Magnesita intends to use its global leadership in revenue, greater scale, complementary product portfolio and diversified geographic presence to target markets and regions benefitting from more dynamic economic growth prospects.

The combined company generated pro forma €2.7 billion in revenues in the financial year 2017. For further information please visit www.rhimagnesita.com

Enquiries:

RHI Magnesita N.V.

Stefan Rathausky, Senior VP Corporate Communications
Tel +43 50213-6059
E-mail: stefan.rathausky@rhimagnesita.com

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