28 November 2023 | Saarstahl Ascoval, the French subsidiary of the Saarstahl/SHS Group located in Saint Saulve, has received the declaration of conformity according to IATF 16949:2016. Compliance with this standard is a requirement for supplying the automotive industry.
With the production of low-CO2 steel, the French plants Saarstahl Ascoval and Saarstahl Rail play an important strategic role within the SHS/Saarstahl Group. The electric arc furnace at Saarstahl Ascoval has already been producing rail products from secondary steel production since 2021. With the successful IATF 16949:2016 certification, Saarstahl can now also supply CO2-reduced steel to the automotive industry.
“Saarstahl Ascoval can now serve customers from the automotive industry who require IATF certification as a prerequisite for their suppliers’ quality management systems,” confirms Daniel Nicolaas van der Hout, Chief Sales Officer at Saarstahl.
Saarstahl Ascoval has also successfully passed the first external customer audit in accordance with VDA 6.3 with a compliance rate of 97 per cent. The customer, a major German automotive supplier, certified the high quality level of Saarstahl Ascoval.
Saarstahl aims to be carbon neutral by 2045. To achieve this, the group is relying on a combination of hydrogen, recycled steel scrap and the electric arc furnace route.
Error prevention and customer satisfaction
IATF 16949 is an internationally binding quality management standard for the entire automotive supply chain. Certification to IATF 16949 demonstrates that a company meets the QMS requirements of the automotive industry. It focuses on error prevention, customer satisfaction and the reduction of variation and inefficiency. It is not a stand-alone QMS standard, but is intended to complement ISO 9001:2015.
The company demonstrates that it has undergone a continuous improvement process and that it understands and follows the customer-specific requirements. The initial certification is valid for one year and can then be extended for a further three years through recertification.
Guillaume Béraud, Plant Manager at Saarstahl Ascoval, sees economic benefits for the company in the certification:
“It will also strengthen the site and the local economic region in the long term.”
Earlier this year, Tata Steel Nederland had already concluded new agreements with major players in the automotive and industrial markets, such as EMW and Bilstein, for the supply of low-CO2 steel.
(Source: Saarstahl/2023)