OREANDA-NEWS. July 11, 2014. Complaints about floor noise in apartment complexes have been increasing rapidly, and disputes among neighbors are becoming more frequent. To solve floor noise, which has become a critical social issue, the government strengthened the floor thickness and floor impact noise standards and is planning to expand this to general housing complexes.

POSCO signed an MOU for `Steel Construction Materials Research Cooperation in field of floor noise and soundproofing applying high manganese steel,` at the POSCO Global R&D Center in Songdo, Incheon, with leading domestic construction specialist client companies in Korea including POSCO E&C (CEO Tae-hyun Hwang), Dong-A Steel Technology (President Sang-won Han), Yoochang (CEO Yong-seon Cho), Woojin (CEO Gye-hyeon Yoo), and S.I. Pan (CEO Eon-mo Ahn) for the development of the market of floor noise reducing high manganese steel.

With this MOU, POSCO established the cooperation system necessary to early commercialize floor structure systems for reducing floor noise, using high manganese steel. POSCO expects high manganese steel technology to be entered market, while client companies expects shared growth effects between POSCO and client companies, entering early new business fields.

The high manganese steel floor structure system was developed by the Steel Solution Center as part of solution marketing to apply POSCO`s unique high manganese steel, which is 10 times more dustproof than regular steel, to the floor structure system.

Floor impact soundproofing performance is divided into 4 grade levels. While existing products meet level 4 requirements, they are expected to meet requirements of level 2 or higher once POSCO`s high manganese steel products are applied. Lab tests on this technology resulted in reduced floor noise levels by 8? (60% reduction based on sound pressure) compared to existing products. When applying to apartment houses, it is expected to have effects of increasing floor slab thickness by more than 60? as well as reducing structural framework construction costs by more than 10%.

POSCO is currently manufacturing high manganese applied products for test, and will focus on developing and establishing a manufacturing standard by this coming September and aims to mass-produce within 2015.

Inhwan Jang, head of the Steel Business Division commented, ``With this MOU, POSCO will place its maximal efforts to form a space for client companies within the Steel Solution Center and steel construction material alliances to create a shared growth ecosystem with client companies.``

POSCO plans to develop various structural systems and assembly methods to improve the constructability and economic efficiency of high manganese steel applied products, and also provide continuous solutions in the sector of steel materials for floor noise and soundproofing to develop it as a shared growth model between POSCO-client companies.