SASSDA celebrates 60 years of sustainability and growth
This year will be a special one in the history of the South African stainless steel industry. Our industry celebrates the 60th anniversary of its official establishment in July 1964. Since the beginning of the stainless steel industry in Southern Africa, Sassda has been recognised as the official voice of the industry - a role the association still plays.
In 1912, the Krupp company patented the first austenitic stainless steel. This was not publicised broadly and in England, Harry Brearly was trying to improve the durability of gun barrels by adding chrome to alloys. He did not succeed, but his work paid off when he became the first person to produce stainless steel products.
These took the form of cutlery made from martensitic stainless steel. This material was subsequently developed in America and led to the ferritic grades being produced in the 1930s. The last major development was the duplex grades produced in Scandinavia during the 1940s. South Africa and its neighbours have major reserves of the minerals that are instrumental in the production of stainless steel and the first stainless steel was produced in Middelburg in 1966. At that stage, local production capacity was 36 000 tonnes per year.
Columbus Stainless rises
During the early 1980s, there was further investment in strip rolling bringing the local capacity to 150 000 tonnes per year. The Columbus Joint Venture was formed, with the IDC, Samancor, and Highveld Steel as the major stakeholders.
During the early 1990s production grew to 500 000 tonnes per year. In 2002, Acerinox acquired a 64% shareholding, and this investment gave birth to Columbus Stainless and increased production to just under 750 000 tonnes per year.
During the last sixty years, Sassda has grown to an association covering the complete stainless steels value chain with just under two hundred members in the southern African region. However, it was not all plain sailing and over the last 60 years the association has had to adapt to a changing market and economy, as well as the dwindling economic growth of the country over the last two decades. Sassda is one of the oldest stainless steel development associations in the world and over the past 60 years, Sassda and the local industry have made their mark on the global arena with quality products and innovation and our “Cross and Ball” logo is world renowned.
Promoting sustainable growth and development
An aspect that has never changed is Sassda’s mandate to provide a platform for its members to collectively promote the sustainable growth and development of the industry with the main emphasis on stainless steel converted within the local economy. This is achieved by supplying the industry with world-class training, education, and technical support. There is a strong drive to collaborate with peer organisations to market the local industry and members by lobbying at a high level and creating networking opportunities for members.
The association is simultaneously building on its illustrious past and looking to the future for opportunities to actuate the mandate in new and innovative ways. We are also celebrating the return of the Stainless Steel Awards in 2024. The brief was that the event should recognise and applaud exceptional achievements within the stainless steel industry during the recent past.
However, it is also aimed at celebrating the resilience of the South African stainless steel industry and its ability to weather a range of storms over the past 60 years. It’s now time to celebrate the tenacity, resilience, and teamwork in our industry that is, in effect, a celebration of the sustainability of an industry, the Association and its members. It is an event where the positive side of the past six years will be highlighted as motivation for the future that still is not looking all that bright.
The awards will celebrate the material which builds our industry and society, and which is constantly improving life for all. It is to honour the people that keep the wheels turning in our industry, adding to economic growth, job creation, and a better environment for generations to come. It is the event that will again emphasise the fact that South African stainless steel has been simply brilliant for sixty years and that the intent is to remain brilliant for the sixty to come.
Michel Basson
Sassda Executive Director
