[ Cover Story ]
[ Cover Story ]
technical and commercial requirements of large-scale offshore and onshore projects.
Stability, capacity expansion and workforce growth Becoming part of the Jiuli group has provided financial stability, enabling long-term investment decisions. Capital has been allocated across EBK’ s German sites to modernise equipment, upgrade welding lines, and replace ageing systems with state-of-the-art production technology. The strategy has been twofold: 1. Increase and optimise production capacity. 2. Bring innovative, premium products- particularly RollClad ®- to full industrial maturity. downturn that required it to downsize. By June 2022, the company had fully recovered.“ Since the acquisition, staffing levels have increased by more than 130 employees, bringing the workforce to approximately 430. Should market demand remain strong, we see clear potential for further growth aligned with our strategic development plans,” continues Jens. Following significant workforce growth in recent years, EBK established a dedicated training centre located approximately 500 metres from its headquarters. The facility provides structured technical training, including NDT certification programmes, and will progressively introduce advanced welding courses, complemented by wider professional development initiatives. The investment reflects EBK’ s commitment to building in-house expertise, recognising that highly specialised clad pipe manufacturing depends as much on skilled personnel as on cutting-edge equipment.
R & D Synergies with Jiuli Jiuli Hi-Tech Metals maintains an extensive research and development organisation, and technical collaboration between the two organisations has become an integral part of daily operations. Knowledge exchange occurs both virtually and through reciprocal visits to manufacturing sites in China and Germany. Iris Rommerskirchen explains:“ EBK contributes its expertise in highly sophisticated mechanically lined and clad pipe systems, while Jiuli brings complementary strengths in materials development and large-scale alloy
Meet the team
During this interview, Stainless Steel World spoke with:
• Scott McCann, Managing Director
• Iris Rommerskirchen, Business Development Director
• Bulut Gün, Head of Operations
• Jens Neumann, Head of Human Resources
production. This technical exchange strengthens EBK’ s position in premium applications where corrosion resistance, fracture performance, and dimensional precision are critical.”
RollClad ®: next-generation mechanically lined pipe“ Mechanically lined pipes are traditionally produced by hydraulically expanding a thin-walled corrosionresistant alloy liner into a heavy-wall carbon steel carrier pipe,” continues Iris.“ The bonding mechanism is purely mechanical; no metallurgical diffusion bond is formed. Conventional MLP manufacturing relies on internal water pressure to expand the liner. This method may induce non-uniform stress distributions and differential loading between liner and carrier.” EBK’ s patented RollClad ® technology represents a fundamental departure from this approach.“ RollClad ® employs a proprietary rolling tool that applies controlled radial and axial pressure along the entire pipe length. This produces a highly homogeneous, much stronger mechanical bond than MLPs produced by hydraulic expansion. The resulting increased gripping force between
“ The benefits of this investment strategy became evident in the third quarter of 2022, when EBK secured the largest contract in its history for clad pipes. The project, classified as a mega-order, required approximately eighteen months to complete. Successfully delivering such a contract demonstrated EBK’ s ability to compete at the highest international level,” explains Jens Neumann. Workforce development has been equally significant. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, EBK faced a severe
Watch the EBK company video at https:// youtu. be / Xe1aCCLz2ck
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