STEEL Talk presents to you interesting stories of Science, Technology, Energy, Environment, Life — and of course STEEL!

Anyone who doesn’t like getting deliveries? ʕ •ɷ•ʔฅ Probably none. In Korea, almost everyone — men and women of all ages — shops online and receives home deliveries. You can order anything and everything online these days — from clothing and electronics to even food! Then, is this possible for steel as well? That’s the question that flew into Newsroom today.

POSCO steel products are ordered and sent to companies that make the end products that people use — consumer products like mobile phones, cars, and refrigerators! When we receive parcel deliveries, it usually comes in a small box. Can you imagine how big steel could be shipped? POSCO Newsroom shows you how it’s done.

l Purchase POSCO Steel ‘Online’

▲ POSCO client companies buy steel through ‘e-Sales’ of [Steel-N.com]

Client companies can place orders directly through this site. When the order comes through, POSCO marketers look at the order form and checks if POSCO can produce the steel as requested, and also whether it can be delivered by the desired date. Then, they decide whether to produce the steel in Pohang or Gwangyang Works. Next, the system automatically checks the order with the marketers rechecking for any possible errors. After this process, the order is confirmed and then production begins!

While non-members can freely purchase products in general online shopping, an inquiry with client information is needed in advance to purchase POSCO steel. If a direct inquiry is hard, you can consider buying POSCO steel through a general trading company.

l How Is Such Large and Heavy Steel Delivered?

Have you ever seen a delivery truck in front of your house? You must have seen all the parcels stacked up inside. The items we order online are usually delivered by trucks. What about large steel? Well, POSCO’s steel could be sent on trucks, vessels, and even trains!

Once the steel is produced and its quality checked, it’s tightly packed according to its feature and the client’s request. The packing protects the steel from rain, abrasion, and other damages. The steel then leaves the warehouse in one of these three ways: land transport, sea transport, and rail transport, depending on the order.

Let’s suppose you ordered a box of fruit, and it was placed at the bottom of the parcel stack and delivered to you. Wouldn’t your fruit be scratched and bruised? This is why POSCO makes sure the steel is transported safely and appropriately so that customers can use them at the best quality. Now let’s look into the details of each transportation method.

Land Transport
Land transport is a way of loading steel onto cargo trucks and transporting them on roads. Best suited for short-distance transportation, this method is usually used in delivering to nearby areas. It’s easier to arrange than other modes of transportation, making it perfect for urgent deliveries. POSCO also makes a lot of steel that is too large to be transported by regular trucks, so there are special vehicles for this purpose. These vehicles enable the safe delivery of large-sized products.

Sea Transport
Sea transport is considered the most economical method since large amounts of steel — 3,000 to 5,000 tons depending on the size of the ship — can be transported at a single time. POSCO Pohang Works is located on the East Sea, and Gwangyang Works on the left side of the South Sea. So the location of both steelworks makes it appropriate for sea transport since the steel can be shipped to the docks as soon as production is complete. When shipping domestically, POSCO uses a specialized ship called, RO-RO (Roll-On, Roll-Off). Rather than having to ship products one by one, the steels are loaded on a truck in advance, and the truck itself is placed on the RO-RO ship. It makes the work process much more efficient. POSCO is exporting steel to numerous countries around the world as well.

Rail Transport
When transporting steel by rail, a ‘Special Freight Car’ is utilized. Products sensitive to moisture are transported using a freight car equipped with screens and waterproof curtains to protect products. Rail transport causes lower CO₂ emissions than land and sea transport. It’s also appropriate for pre-scheduled transportation and safer — since there’s a lesser risk of accidents.

As seen here, POSCO’s clients can use the online ordering system to order the steel they desire, as well as check the production and delivery process, just as they can with online shopping. Overseas deliveries and other special deliveries are no problem as well. That is all for today! If you have any questions about POSCO in the future, please send them to POSCO Newsroom!

* This article was written with help from Vin-Na Choi of POSCO Sales and Production Coordination Office