Manufacturing Today Issue - 247 April 2026 | Page 147

_________________________________________________________________________________ AVB( Aço Verde do Brasil)
that is incredibly important,” Silvia adds.“ We think that’ s very important because it gives us a competitive edge and differentiates us from the others.”
As environmentally conscious pioneers in the steel sector, AVB also embraces groundbreaking new technologies within its processes; most notably being one of the first large steel mill to use reforested charcoal in a blast furnace to make green steel.“ Most of the equipment was built together with Danieli, Siemens, and Primetals,” continues Silvia.“ Some technologies were created by ourselves to adapt specifically to our operation. When you combine the raw materials inside a blast furnace, it reduces the iron ore with charcoal to get liquid pig iron, which is charged into equipment called converters in the melt shop, where most of the silicon and manganese content are oxidized with a supersonic oxygen lance to produce the liquid steel. Gases are formed throughout all these processes, and we’ ve developed technology to collect and clean the process gas generated into a gas holder or pipelines which can be used to move turbines to produce renewable electrical energy. Much of the breakthrough technology in our company was developed by our group of engineers alongside our equipment suppliers, allowing us to operate without the use of fossil fuels – they don’ t exist anywhere else.”
These supplier partnerships are integral to AVB, such as its long-term relationship with iron ore producer Vale, and technology companies Danieli and Primetals.“ We cover huge industrial areas, and we strive to be valuable friends with our suppliers, as those companies are essential for raw
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