Customers can choose from composite sheet thicknesses between 10mm and 28mm as well as steel skin thicknesses of 0.40mm and 0.55mm for the front and back. This allows Coretinium® to be customised to meet the varying load requirements from different application areas with regard to point loading or overall stiffness. The new Colorcoat Prisma® generation, with its innovative three-layer coating technology, provides additional UV resistance, higher corrosion resistance and significantly improved colour and gloss retention for the steel skins.

Launched in 2015, the innovative Coretinium® product was originally available with 10mm thickness and similar skins for front and back. Two years and multiple tests and application prototypes later, the material applications have been extended and it can now be used in trailer side walls, floors and doors to reduce weight, improve fuel economy and reduce CO2 emissions. The attractive and durable Colorcoat Prisma® steel skins make Coretinium® ideal for all areas on display and can be used directly in most applications.

Tata Steel worked closely with trailer manufacturer Cartwright, studying the behaviour of how the composite materials interact and how sheets can be joined together best. On this basis, Cartwright developed its new Streetwise® urban delivery trailer, a trailer that is 0.5 tonnes lighter thanks to Coretinium® composite sheet side walls, bulk heads and moving deck walls.

"Our close cooperation with customers allows us to further develop and refine Coretinium® for the requirements of the transport sector, whilst extending its application into additional areas. Customers like Cartwright, can realize up to a 30-45% weight reduction allowing them to cut cost or increase the loads they are shipping,” said Edwin Richards, Technical Sales Manager at Tata Steel.

An additional advantage of Coretinium® is its fire-resistance, according to the industry standard ECE R118, Annex 6, making the material of particular interest to bus manufacturers which are subject to stringent fire safety regulations. Here, the sandwich product can be used as a floor plate and a fire wall for engine compartments. Coretinium® is durable and shows no degradation from water ingress or moisture, maintaining its product life even in wet or humid conditions.

Not only for commercial vehicles
Also for the manufactured goods sector, Coretinium® is a useful and easy-to-handle alternative to commonly used materials. It can be used in anything from modular housing, exhibition stands and interior walls to event flooring, signage, boilers and heaters. Its lightweight, rigid, flat and versatile magnetic nature makes it an ideal material where strength and product flatness are required. Besides its outstanding aesthetics, the Colorcoat Prisma pre-finished steel skin gives Coretinium a B-s1, d0 fire resistance classification (as per EN 13823).

Coretinium® can be supplied globally to customers as a flat composite sheet in lengths ranging from 2.5-10 metres. The line uses EconCore’s patented honeycomb core production technology and is the first in the world to combine this with steel skins in a continuous process. With a new 6.5m CNC 5 axis saw & router machine installed earlier this year, the steel producer is now able to offer curved cuttings and rounded corners and cuts to size with a precision of +/- 0.25mm.