Iron & Steel Casting Market Analysis

Iron & Steel Casting Market Analysis

In 2020, iron casting accounted for over 80% market share in iron & steel casting market. Cast iron holds an advantage over steel in terms of machining, cast, and compressive strength. It pours easily and shrinks lesser than steel. Iron is further subcategorized into white iron, ductile iron, and gray iron. Gray iron is the most commonly used cast iron and contains graphite microstructure with small fractures.

When gray cast iron is produced, the fractures reveal the graphite underneath the surface. It contains around 2.5% - 4.2% carbon, 1.0% - 3.0% silicon, 0.15% - 1.0% manganese, 0.02% - 0.25% sulfur, and 0.02% - 1.0% phosphorus. It has high thermal conductivity, superior vibration damping capability, and acceptable tensile strength. Additionally, this type of cast iron is cost-efficient and has an excellent ability to withstand thermal cycling. It is used in hydraulic components, pumps, linkages, gears, automotive suspension components, steering knuckles, tractor parts, wind turbine housings, machinery bases, and truck suspension components.

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Sand casting, also known as sand molded casting, generated around USD 75 billion in 2020. It incorporates expandable sand molds to produce complex metal parts that can be made from any alloy. This process makes use of metal, furnace, pattern, and sand mold. The advantages of sand casting include production of large parts, casting of complex shapes, shorter lead times, and low cost.

However, this process has a few disadvantages including low material strength & dimensional accuracy, poor surface finish, and high porosity. It is used in blowers or impellers, electronic equipment, engine blocks, gas or oil tanks, automobile parts, agricultural machines, pistons, valves, medical equipment, mining equipment, etc.

Automotive accounted for approximately one-third of the overall iron & steel casting market. It can be ascribed to the proliferating automotive demand across the globe. Iron casting is widely used for manufacturing engine components, suspension components, driveline, and braking components in the automotive sector. Steel casting is also widely used in cars and trucks. Rising spending power of middle-class populace coupled with proliferating urbanization in developing countries, increasing demand for luxury automobiles in North America and Europe are some of the factors propelling the growth of global automotive and will boost product consumption in coming years.

Asia Pacific dominated the global iron & steel casting market with over 60% market volume share in 2020. It can be attributed to the availability of raw materials, presence of numerous casting foundries, well-established manufacturing facilities, and rising product consumption in major end-use industries in the region. Supportive government initiatives to bolster the regional automotive and construction sector coupled with heavy public & private investments in the region will positively influence product usage in the region.