Inox / Stainless Steel

In many countries the term "Inox" is used very often in everyday life as a designation for stainless steel and it even appears in our very own company name. Hence, we would like to take the opportunity to define the material designation "Inox" a little more precisely and bring this topic a little closer to the customer who is interested.

What is Inox / stainless steel?

The term “Inox” is a collective, colloquial term for a steel based material developed over 100 years ago, which has high resistance values against corrosion and acids, and it represents a number of chrome-nickel steels (stainless steel) to which other elements are also added.

More than 100 different grades of stainless steel are currently available for a wide range of applications and requirements.

Inox and stainless steel stand practically the same material

The material names “Inox” and “Stainless Steel” therefore stand for the same material group and should not be seen as different materials.

A suitable grade of stainless steel can then be selected for each individual application.

Designations of stainless steel / Inox

Other names or synonyms for stainless steel / inox are:

- Stainless steel
- Stainless
- Inox steel
- Nirosta
- Chrome steel
- Chrome nickel steel
- VA
- V2A
- V4A

Stainless steel / Inox and its properties

In contrast to regular steel/mild steel or other materials such as aluminum, all stainless steels have one common property:

They form an oxide layer/passive layer to protect against corrosion and media containing chloride.

In addition, inox / stainless steel tends towards surface hardening and has high strength and hardness.

Inox stainless steels are also very easy to weld and can be shaped in a variety of ways, for example by bending, deep drawing, fluid forming, pattern rolling etc.

Furthermore, and unlike steel or aluminum surfaces for example, stainless steel has excellent polishing properties and offers numerous other options of treatment and finishing.

Inox is an extremely hygienic material and is currently used more and more in this regard, not only in the food industry, medical and pharmaceutical technology, sanitary and swimming pool construction but in many other areas as well where people come in contact with the surface and a greater hygiene is required.

Thanks to its pleasant, haptic quality and lively, highly attractive appearance, stainless steel / inox is the ideal material for industry as well as for architecture and design. Both the austenitic and ferritic steel grades of the different material numbers meet an endless number of functional and visual requirements.

Thus, in contrast to regular steel, Inox stainless steel creates a great added value and increases the exclusivity of every architectural project or product due to its long service life.

Inox also scores top marks for environmental friendliness and sustainability and is 100 % recyclable at the end of its life cycle.

Possible applications of stainless steel / Inox

The applications of stainless steel / inox are just as diverse as its properties and possible uses.

Hence the material can be used in the fields of

Architectural in general
Façades
Shop fitting
Elevators
Escalators
Yacht- and shipbuilding
Container-, plant- and machine-building
Appliance and electrical industry
Medical and pharmaceutical technology
Aerospace
Art objects

and be fabricated for all those above purposes in a wide variety of processes.

Laser cutting, water jet cutting, bevelling, bending, roll forming, deep drawing, perforating, punching, embossing, pattern rolling, fluid forming and many other fabricating processes can be carried out using the material Inox without any problems.

As a proven expert for metal surfaces, mirrorINOX has many years of experience and extensive know-how in treating and finishing the material stainless steel / inox to give it fascinating surfaces through mirror polishing, grinding, glass bead blasting, PVD/TiN-coating, nanoINOX® AFP/ETC, pattern rolling, fluid forming and other processes.

Together with competent expert partners, mirrorINOX supports the customer with advice and action on questions also relating to the further fabrication and project realization.