On August 6, 2025, Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd. announced that its self-developed "Laser Heat-Resistant Notching Oriented Silicon Steel Manufacturing" technology has been awarded the special prize of the "Metallurgical Science and Technology Award," the highest honor in China's steel industry. This breakthrough has enabled steel to achieve comprehensive coverage in the domestic market for heat-resistant notched oriented silicon steel and successfully enter the overseas market. The company not only solved two major global challenges but also independently designed and built the world's first laser heat-resistant notching production line. With key control precision reaching the micron level, the production capacity of this line is approximately three times higher than that of foreign heat-resistant notching production lines, enabling large-scale production.

Also on August 6, 2025, Shandong Lufang New Material Co., Ltd. made significant progress in its "Silicon Steel Picking Line Renovation Project," which was successfully ignited and put into operation, marking the completion of the construction and equipment installation phase. The project aims to enhance the cleanliness of the strip steel surface through technological upgrades and equipment modifications of the existing silicon steel picking line, providing a high-quality "substrate" for subsequent rolling. It also achieves precise control of acid concentration to ensure consistency in silicon steel products, reduces energy consumption and environmental emissions to meet green manufacturing requirements, and introduces an intelligent control system for real-time parameter monitoring and dynamic adjustments.

Following this good news, on August 14, 2025, Shougang Group held a grand user technology seminar on non-oriented soft magnetic materials in Chongqing. Under the theme "Intelligent Integration · Innovation," the event brought together approximately 400 guests, including Luo Tiejun, Vice Chairman of the China Iron and Steel Association, Zhu Guosen, Deputy General Manager of Shougang Group, numerous industry experts, user representatives, and members of Shougang's soft magnetic material production, sales, and R&D team.

New Product Highlights: The seminar featured the global debut of two high-performance non-oriented electrical steel products. The first product, ESW8517, is tailored for the new energy vehicle sector, aligning with the future development trends of high-speed motors. Its core performance includes extremely low iron loss, achieving 7.9W/kg at 400Hz, setting a new global industry record. Additionally, its ultra-high yield strength of 490MPa enhances motor safety and improves motor efficiency by 0.72% under CLTC conditions. The second product, 20RSW175, is designed for frameless torque motors in humanoid robots. With its ultra-high magnetic induction intensity of 1.75T, along with improved torque and reduced iron loss, it successfully meets high torque density demands, filling a domestic gap in the field of ultra-high magnetic induction non-oriented soft magnetic materials.

On the same day, Industrial Bank issued the first loan of 22.4 million yuan to ArcelorMittal Jinxi New Material (Changzhou) Co., Ltd. for its new energy soft magnetic material project. This significant move marks the official commencement of the comprehensive construction phase of the ArcelorMittal New Energy Soft Magnetic Project, with a total investment of $2.6 billion (approximately RMB 18.8 billion). Regarded as one of the largest single European investments in China, the project aims to establish a globally leading benchmark factory for new energy soft magnetic materials, version 4.0. Located in the Changzhou Binjiang Economic Development Zone, the project covers a vast area and is jointly developed by ArcelorMittal and China Oriental Group. The goal is to build a high-tech, green, intelligent, and digital industrial base, implemented in two phases: Phase I will produce 1.5 million tons of non-oriented silicon steel, while Phase II plans to produce 300,000 tons of oriented silicon steel. Upon completion, the project will strongly meet China's market demand for soft magnetic materials and adhere to green manufacturing principles through 100% green electricity supply.

On August 15, 2025, Zhanjiang witnessed a significant milestone. The research team of the Shanghai Monof Project under China National Inspection Group, through relentless efforts, successfully developed an automated silicon steel sample processing and detection system, which passed acceptance inspection. It is worth noting that the team had already won the bid in 2023 for the "Baosteel Zhanjiang Steel Zero-Carbon High-Grade Thin Steel Sheet Factory Project - Full Plant Inspection, Testing, and Environmental Monitoring Engineering - Steelmaking Rapid Analysis Laboratory Equipment" project, fully demonstrating its technical prowess in the silicon steel field. This project not only has distinct characteristics but also marks another major breakthrough in China's automation of silicon steel processing and detection.

Technological Innovation: Seamless Integration of Online Shape Detection

A key innovation of this system is the successful integration of a shape tester into the silicon steel sample detection line for the first time, breaking the traditional limitation of shape testers operating independently from production lines. This innovation not only simplifies the process but also achieves remarkable results in real-time, continuous online detection of silicon steel sheet shape. By measuring shape accuracy before sample mid-plate shearing, the system significantly enhances detection efficiency and the accuracy of quality control.

Laser Technology Breakthrough: Revolutionizing Processes

The system pioneers the use of laser technology to remove silicon steel coatings, bringing revolutionary changes to the hardness testing of finished silicon steel products. Compared to traditional manual sandpaper grinding, laser decoating technology is precise and efficient, completing the task in just 8 seconds, and plays a significant role in improving overall detection efficiency.

Efficient Cutting: Enhancing Production Efficiency

In the sample cutting stage, the system employs an automatic variable-pitch cutting template to achieve efficient full-process cutting operations. In just 170 seconds, it completes complex operations such as shape measurement, laser marking, laser cutting, and sample sorting for nearly 10 samples. By intelligently adjusting sampling positions, the automatic variable-pitch template ensures precision in sampling at 1/4 and 1/2 positions. Compared to the manual shearing method of traditional plate shears, laser cutting technology not only reduces burrs to as low as 0.003mm but also significantly shortens cutting time, effectively reducing the scrap rate.