Glossary

The prices of alloying elements fluctuate heavily on the raw materials market. Manufacturers calculate a base price for the steel and then add the alloy surcharge to cover the current costs of the elements contained within the material.

Every alloying element has a current market price per kilogram. The surcharge is determined based on the element’s content within the alloy and its respective market price.

For stainless steels or high-alloy steels (e.g., 1.4301, 1.4571), the alloy surcharge constitutes a substantial component of the final price.

It protects the cables from harsh downhole environmental factors while simultaneously supporting the weight of the cables, which would otherwise snap.

Due to this streamlined downstream processing, maintaining a highly complex geometry with extremely tight tolerances is essential to guarantee flawless operation. The material itself must be completely defect-free, as even minor residual flaws from the steel manufacturing process can lead to component failure. Here, once again, we demonstrate what sets us apart: precision.
 

Made from titanium and cobalt-chromium alloys, these materials offer exceptional biocompatibility. As they contain no toxic or allergenic elements, they are well tolerated by the body. CAD/CAM blanks are available for immediate delivery from stock, but can also be custom-manufactured according to customer-specific drawings.

Doctor blades are widely used in the printing industry. They are characterized primarily by a fine microstructure and consequently smaller carbide particles. This results in very smooth cutting edges with lower coefficients of friction. Our Unna plant and our location in Taicang, China, worked hand in hand to turn our hardened steel products into proven solutions for demanding applications. One thing is clear to all of us: working together as “One Zapp” makes us more successful by allowing us to combine expertise from across the company.

Due to their high tungsten carbide content and a binder such as cobalt or nickel, they are extremely hard, wear-resistant, and retain their hardness at elevated temperatures. For this reason, they are widely used in cutting tools, drills, and milling cutters.

Hot hardness is a key property of hot-work tool steels. It describes a material’s ability to retain its hardness even at elevated temperatures.

• Sand control: Deployed in horizontal, vertical, or deviated wellbores to prevent formation sand from clogging the production stream.
• Downhole filtration: Installed to filter reservoir fluids and protect artificial lift systems (pumps) from damage.
• Well completion: Used in gravel pack completions or stand-alone screens to maintain wellbore structural integrity.
• Water/gas management: Utilized in injection wells and for separating produced water or gas from oil.
• Refinery/process filtration: Employed to remove catalysts and contaminants from fluids in refining processes.

Within fuel cells, multiple individual cells are arranged in series to form what are known as “stacks,” since a single cell can only generate a relatively low voltage. These cells are separated by bipolar plates.

Precision-rolled stainless steels are often used to manufacture these plates, placing our materials in direct competition with carbon, graphite, or ceramics. These fuel cell stacks are, in turn, integrated into complex fuel cell systems.

This means that beyond the core cell itself, downstream equipment—consisting of various subsystems like heat exchangers and recuperators—is required. The primary characteristics of these materials are corrosion resistance, high-temperature corrosion resistance, and gas tightness, all achieved at a competitive manufacturing cost.

• Automotive industry: Fine-grained steels make it possible to produce body components that are both strong and readily formable.
• Structural steel: Improved toughness and weldability enhance the safety of structural frameworks.
• Tool steels: Adapted grain sizes optimize hardness and wear resistance.
• Pipes and pressure vessels: Fine-grain microstructures prevent brittle failure under stress.

For decades, the Zapp Group has been certified to DIN EN ISO 9001, the most widely used standard in our industry. This certification confirms that our internal business processes align with international quality management standards. As a result, customers and end consumers can rely on globally recognized excellence when it comes to our quality workflows.

ISO/TS 16949 is an additional, globally recognized quality management standard tailored to the automotive industry. These sector-specific requirements were introduced to reduce defects and optimize the supply chain. In 2017, it was succeeded by IATF 16949:2016. The ultimate goal remains achieving high customer satisfaction through sustainable product quality, continuous process optimization, and a philosophy focused on defect prevention across the entire supply chain. Naturally, we hold this certification as well, providing our customers with peace of mind throughout their own production chains.

In the home, they are found in appliances such as dishwashers, gas water heaters, and heat pumps. They also play an important role in medical technology, where they are used in ventilators, anesthesia machines, and dialysis equipment, as well as in vehicles and aircraft.

The foundational crystal structure of ferritic steel is ferrite, a solid phase featuring a body-centered cubic (BCC) lattice that remains stable in iron at low temperatures. Applications range from standard building materials like nails or structural steel to electrical steel sheets featuring excellent magnetic properties.

Austenitic steel is a type of stainless steel characterized by its face-centered cubic (FCC) crystal structure (austenite), which renders it non-magnetic and highly formable. These steels typically contain more than 13.5% chromium and over 8% nickel. They are distinguished by superior corrosion resistance, toughness, and ductility, making them a frequent choice for sectors such as the food and medical technology industries.

Martensite is a hard microstructure formed by rapidly cooling, or quenching, steel. During this process, the steel’s crystal lattice becomes highly distorted, resulting in an exceptionally hard material. This property is particularly important in toolmaking.

Titanium is a lightweight, silver-gray chemical element characterized by high strength and excellent corrosion resistance, occurring in nature primarily within minerals. Titanium alloys are blends of titanium with other metals (e.g., aluminum, vanadium) specifically engineered to enhance the distinct properties of the pure metal, such as strength or formability. They are exceptionally durable while remaining lightweight, making them a frequent choice for high-performance components in industries like aerospace or medicine—including turbine blades, exhaust pipes, and implants.

By alloying titanium with elements such as aluminum, vanadium, iron, and non-metals like oxygen and nitrogen, titanium can achieve unique, tailored properties. Consequently, there are numerous titanium grades offering high elasticity, high specific strength, or outstanding biocompatibility. Titanium is therefore used in applications ranging from marine heat exchangers and jewelry to medical technology.