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Long and specialty steel products producer Gerdau has announced its special steel mill in Monroe, Mich., will begin transitioning to a 240-millimeter square bloom in September.

The move is part of a larger initiative to increase the steel cleanliness necessary for evolving critical applications in the automotive market and other industries, according to the company. The project is an expansion of the capability of the mill’s continuous casting machine, which was installed in 2012.

“The global push for energy efficiency and stricter CO2 emission regulations has significantly increased the importance of clean steels in the automotive industry,” says Luis Colembergue, vice president of sales and technology at Gerdau’s North American special steel division. “The need for high-strength steel parts with lightweight design, increased fatigue life and performance is more important than ever.”

By switching to a larger section size, the company hopes to achieve improved surface quality, a greater reduction ratio and cleaner steel with fewer inclusions. Gerdau also has recently invested in several other pieces of diagnostic equipment to evaluate improvement in steel cleanliness, including the latest automated SEM, image analysis for extreme value analysis and ultrasonic immersion testing equipment with low, medium and high frequency capability.

“These enhancements position Gerdau to thrive in this dynamic market that continues to challenge us to be more competitive every day,” Colembergue says.

Gerdau’s North American special steel division is headquartered in Jackson, Mich. The division produces high-quality engineered carbon and alloy SBQ steel bars for safety critical applications used in the automotive, commercial vehicle, construction, agricultural, distribution and energy markets.