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In the steel industry, supply chain reliability is critical—and when lead times for refractory materials stretch to 3 months with forced inventory holdings, operational flexibility suffers.

Basic monolithics are unshaped, chemically basic refractory materials primarily composed of magnesia (MgO), dolomite, and spinel (MgAl₂O₄). Unlike shaped refractories such as bricks, monolithics are installed in-situ to form seamless linings after setting, drying, and firing.

Fulton, Missouri, USA – March 11, 2026 – HWI, a member of Calderys and a leading supplier of refractory products and services in the United States, today celebrated the official opening of its new lightweight monolithics production facility in Fulton, Missouri. The greenfield investment increases HWI’s lightweight monolithics production capacity and reinforces its commitment to reliable, innovative, and sustainable solutions for customers across the Americas.

Pittsburgh, PA, USA – March 10, 2026 – The Manufacturing Institute (MI)—the workforce development and education partner of the U.S. National Association of Manufacturers—announced that Michelle Fields, Gary, Indiana Plant Manager at HWI, a member of Calderys, has been recognized as a 2026 STEP Ahead Awards honoree. She is among 145 recipients to be honored.

The refractory industry faces a critical challenge: skilled installation supervisors are in short supply across Europe. Calderys is addressing this shortage head-on with the Supervisor Academy: a 18-month training program for refractory installation supervisors.

A new hot-gunning approach is improving furnace availability by increasing effective repair rates and cutting the number of maintenance interventions required in both Basic Oxygen Furnace and Electric Arc Furnace operations.