Jindal Stainless Hisar Ltd (JSHL), an integrated stainless steel producer, has forayed into the defence sector by signing a license agreement with Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) which entails transfer of technology for manufacturing high nitrogen steel (HNS) for armour applications.
With this, Jindal Stainless Hisar Ltd has become the India’s first company to commercially manufacture high nitrogen steel for the defence sector. The use of HNS will replace the existing import of rolled homogenous armour (RHA), thereby resulting in improved cost efficiency in material acquisition for armour applications by 50 percent.
HNS is not only tough but also has good strength. In addition to being non-magnetic as well as corrosion resistant, the HNS cost is about 40 percent less compared to rolled homogenous armour steel. Very few countries in the world have developed this technology of HNS. This material has potential for a number of defence and civil applications like armouring, mine trawls, oil industries etc.
“HNS technology is a step forward towards Army’s quest for lighter and high performance armouring material compared to the currently used materials. It has also the potential for a number of civilian applications and for exports as well. This is a major step towards achieving the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Make in India,” stated Dr Subhash Bhamre, Minister of State for Defence.
Dr S Christopher, chairman, DRDO, added, “This achievement comes as a giant leap forward, towards DRDO’s quest for stronger and high performance defence material.”
HNS has potential application in all armoured vehicles. JSHL is also working to produce additional variants of HNS with enhanced blast and ballistic protection to cater to niche requirements of the Indian defence sector.
Abhyuday Jindal, vice chairman, Jindal Stainless Hisar Ltd, said, “We are extremely pleased with this development and we believe HNS will immensely benefit the Indian defence sector, going forward. We look forward to collaborate with Ministry of Defence to achieve greater efficacy of Indian armed forces and then take forward our capabilities.”
