The Middle East’s largest manufacturer of pre-painted galvanised steel sheets has diversified into the production of aluminium composite panels (ACPs) and corrugated steel sheets.

The Universal Metal Coating Company (Unicoil) began commercial production of ACPs earlier this year, a development the Jubail-based company says will make it a more powerful player in the region’s metal industry.

ACP’s have superior weather resistance and formability and are widely used for aesthetically superior and highly durable facades.

As well as applications in external building cladding, ACPs are used within the signage industry as an alternative to heavier more expensive substrates. They have several other applications.

The new Unicoil line comes at a time when Saudi Arabia is in the thick of a new wave of investments in the construction sector and other fields after the recent economic downturn.

Also recently, the company began operating a roll forming line in Jeddah with a capacity of 30,000 tonnes annually for making corrugated steel sheets.

ACP line at Jubail
The ACP manufacturing capacity is 1.2 million sq m. The unit has been set up in Unicoil’s main production complex at Jubail, which also has a pickling line, a cold rolling mill, a continuous galvanising line and a colour coating line. In Jeddah, the company is engaged in colour coating and the making of corrugated sheets.

'Our growth strategy is to increase our role in the finished products segment and explore high-value-added products such as decorative panels that can be derived from the existing colour coating lines,' commented Unicoil president Fahad Z Al Thukair. He added that the company was aggressively targeting sales of ACPs in 2011.

Even as commercial production of aluminium composite panels commenced, the company reported a strong year of production of galvanised steel and pre-painted galvanised steel.

Galvanised steel output was 175,501 tonnes in 2010 against 120,424 tonnes in the previous year. Production of pre-painted galvanised steel was 120,594 tonnes (100 per cent of Jubail plant capacity) against 101,014 tonnes in 2009.

Production in special grades
Unicoil’s total galvanising output capacity is 250,000 tonnes while the colour coating capacity is 210,000 tonnes including 90,000 tonnes from the Jeddah plant. The company produces a wide range of galvanised steel sheets and pre-painted galvanised steel sheets in special grades conforming to international standards.

'We cater to major customers in both commercial and industrial business segments. We also export to overseas customers in the Middle East and North Africa region, especially the GCC area,' said Al Thukair. 'In our estimation, our market share is approximately 60 to 70 per cent in Saudi Arabia,' he added.

While the company is aggressively targeting sales of aluminium composite panels in 2011, it expects to cross 230,000 tonnes in total sales of galvanised steel, pre-painted galvanised steel and corrugated sheets during the year, Al Thukair said.

Unicoil is a joint venture between Zamil Group Holding Company and Rashed Al Rashed & Sons Group. A pioneer in pre-painted galvanised steel sheets in the Middle East, the company reached last November a milestone by exceeding the 1 million-tonne threshold at its Jubail plant.

In 2007, the company acquired SIDC Metal Coating Company which operated a colour coating unit in Jeddah with an output capacity of 90,000 tonnes.

'Unicoil moves forward with its vast experience and corporate vision for future growth. Furthermore, Unicoil is on the lookout for business avenues that lie ahead and it has ambitious business diversification plans to cater to the demands of an ever-increasing market and to maintain its dominant position in the industrial segment,' a company statement said.

'We are committed to creating career opportunities for young Saudi nationals and making technological innovation for the kingdom’s industrial development and economic growth.'