A new partnership aims to develop super-clean, corrosion resistant stainless-steel surfaces. That’s according to PRO Stainless Designs, the Irish precision stainless-steel solutions provider, who today announced an ambitious three year partnership with I-Form, the SFI Research Centre for Advanced Manufacturing at Dublin City University.

By combining PRO Stainless Designs’ industrial know-how in stainless-steel treatments and finishes and DCU’s advanced materials expertise, the team hope to advance the qualities of stainless-steel and deliver superior surface finishes for food and pharma manufacturers.

Commenting today (27.08.20) Laurence McDermott, Technical & Innovation Director, at PRO Stainless Designs, said: “We believe more advanced stainless finishes are possible, and that this Research and Development program will deliver huge value for industries where sterile environments and adherence to strict standards and regulations are important.”

The annual global cost of metal corrosion is estimated to be €2.7/$2.5 trillion*. The corrosion of stainless-steeI, the most common material used in processing plants, is a particular concern for wet- and continuous process industries. Another challenge, particularly for biotech and pharmaceutical companies, is bacterial adhesion to the stainless-steel surface during drug production. 

Also commenting, Professor Dermot Brabazon of DCU School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering and Deputy Director at I-Form, said: “This exciting project blends the manufacturing capabilities of PRO Stainless Designs in advanced stainless-steel applications with DCU’s research focus in materials and surface engineering and targets a significant step forward compared to the state of the art.”

This project is supported by Science Foundation Ireland (SFI).