The World Steel Association (worldsteel) today announced the new World Champions of the 17th steelChallenge. Penglong HAN from HBIS HANSTEEL in China won in the industry category and Jae-Seong CHOI from Dong-A University in South Korea won in the student category.
The World Championship of the 17th steelChallenge took place on 18 April 2023 in Vienna, Austria. After a few years of social distancing guidelines from health authorities around the world that prevented worldsteel from hosting the World Championship in person, it was time to return to tradition and end this learning experience with a face-to-face session.
The best players of the Regional Championship from the industry and student categories competed for the global title. The task was to produce a specific engineering steel grade at the lowest cost using steeluniversity’s electric arc furnace and secondary steelmaking courses in a combined simulation. To reflect the steel industry’s commitment to reducing the footprint from its operations, there were carbon footprint requirements for the steel grade.
Jorge Muract, Director, steeluniversity for worldsteel, said, “steelChallenge-17 is an exciting event that challenges students and industry apprentices to test their steelmaking skills and knowledge. This learning experience is an excellent opportunity for people to showcase their talent and creativity and network with industry leaders from around the world. We look forward to seeing the next generation of steel industry leaders succeeding in the innovation and sustainability of this industry”.
The 2023 World Champion in the student category, Jae-Seong CHOI said, “I am extremely honoured to be named the winner of the steelChallenge World Championship in the student category. Taking part in this competition has been an incredible learning experience and I am grateful for the opportunity to test my knowledge and skills against other talented students from around the world. I look forward to applying what I have learnt to my future career in the steel industry and am excited to be a part of this dynamic and innovative field”.
Penglong HAN, the World Champion in the industry category for 2023, said, “I’m very proud and happy to have won the World Championship! Taking part in this competition has been a valuable learning experience, challenging us to think creatively and explore new approaches to steelmaking. We believe that continuous learning and innovation are key to driving progress in the industry and we look forward to applying what we have learnt to our work in the future”.
The Regional Champions receive the following prizes:
- Certificates for completing the electric arc furnace and secondary steelmaking courses
- Certificate for being Regional Champion
- €500
- Travel allowance to take part in the World Championship in Vienna, Austria
- iPad to run the steelmaking integrated simulator
- Recognition by worldsteel and steeluniversity
- Faculty advisors of the student champions also received a travel allowance to observe the World Championship in Vienna, Austria, and a steeluniversity certificate of appreciation.
Additionally, the World Champions receive the following prizes:
- €500
- World Champion certificate
- steelChallenge-17 trophy
All registered participants received access to the electric arc furnace and secondary steelmaking courses, including e-learning, 3D interactive models and simulators. Registered participants completing the courses received completion certificates. Also, participants successfully completing a simulation run during steelChallenge-17 received a competition certificate.
The World Championship Finalists were:
| Student category |
| Participant |
Affiliation |
Region/Country |
| Gašper KREK |
University of Ljubljana |
Europe and Africa / Slovenia |
| Henry SHINJI JOUTI |
Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA) |
Americas / Brazil |
| Ashutosh PANDA |
Shavak Nanavati Technical Institute |
Asia – West / India |
| Haiqing LIU |
Chongqing University of Science and Technology |
Asia – North / China |
| Yu-Wei GUO |
National Chung Hsing University |
Asia – East and Oceania / Taiwan, China |
| Jae-Seong CHOI |
Dong-A University |
Asia – East and Oceania / Korea, South |
| Industry category |
| Participant |
Affiliation |
Region/Country |
| Stefano Augusto DAVI FEITOZA |
Independent Consultant |
Americas / Brazil |
| Subhadeep BAKSHI |
Tata Steel |
Asia – West / India |
| Penglong HAN |
HBIS HANSTEEL |
Asia – North / China |
| Kwanhyeong KIM |
POSCO Holdings |
Asia – East and Oceania / Korea, South |
More information on steelChallenge is available on the steeluniversity website.
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Notes
- steeluniversity is the education and training programme of the World Steel Association, delivering education and training to current and future employees of steel companies and related businesses.
- steelChallenge-17 was sponsored at the ‘Steel’ level by HBIS Group and POSCO. Gerdau and JSW were ‘Gold’ level sponsors. Emirates Steel, KOSA, Tata Steel Ltd., Ternium and Tenaris were ‘Silver’ level sponsors. JFE Steel, Material Processing Instituye and RWTH Aachen Univeristy were ‘Bronze’ level sponsors.
- The World Steel Association (worldsteel) is one of the largest and most dynamic industry associations in the world, with members in every major steel-producing country. worldsteel represents steel producers, national and regional steel industry associations, and steel research institutes. Members represent around 85% of global steel production.