The steel industry stands at the intersection of two defining transformations: decarbonisation and digitalisation. These are not just technological shifts, but also social, economic, and political ones — a bit like performing open-heart surgery while running a marathon.
A few years ago, public discussions painted a simple picture of the future — decarbonisation achieved effortlessly through hydrogen-based direct reduction and electric arc furnaces. In reality, limited energy availability, material costs, and global competitiveness make this journey far more complex.
Similarly, while digitalisation has been discussed for over 30 years, true implementation in steelmaking remains slow. Despite the rise of Industry 4.0 and Artificial Intelligence, most energy-intensive steelmaking processes are still operated manually.
In this steelTalk, Dr.-Ing. Thorsten Hauck, Head of Process Optimisation in Iron and Steelmaking at VDEh-Betriebsforschungsinstitut GmbH, will examine the current status of both transitions and explore potential solutions to accelerate progress.