Yorkshire Profiles provides precision laser cutting and fabrication services for a range of high-strength and abrasion-resistant steels, including Hardox®, Strenx® (formerly Weldox) and XAR® 400.
These specialist steels are designed for applications where conventional mild steel may not provide sufficient strength, wear resistance or service life.
Our modern fibre laser cutting equipment allows us to manufacture accurate components from these materials for customers working in construction, agriculture, materials handling, transport, machinery and other demanding industries.
Hardox® Wear Plate
Hardox® is SSAB’s range of abrasion-resistant wear steel, designed for applications where components are subjected to repeated impact, abrasion and heavy wear.
Unlike a simple surface treatment, the hardness and mechanical properties of Hardox are engineered through the plate, providing excellent wear resistance alongside useful toughness.
Depending on the particular grade, Hardox can also be cut, formed and welded, allowing it to be used for complete fabricated components rather than simply as a protective surface.
Typical applications include:
- Excavator and loader buckets
- Tipper bodies
- Skip and container components
- Wear plates and liners
- Agricultural machinery
- Quarrying and mining equipment
- Recycling machinery
- Material handling equipment
- Heavy-duty fabricated components
Different Hardox grades offer different combinations of hardness, toughness and fabrication characteristics, so material selection should be based on the intended application.
Strenx® – Formerly Weldox
Weldox is now known as Strenx®.
SSAB incorporated the former Weldox range into its Strenx high-strength structural steel family in 2015. The Weldox name is still commonly used within engineering and fabrication, particularly on older drawings and specifications, which is why we continue to recognise and work with both names.
Unlike Hardox, which is primarily designed to resist wear and abrasion, Strenx is a high-strength structural steel.
Its high yield strength allows designers to manufacture components capable of carrying significant loads while potentially using thinner sections than would be required with conventional structural steel.
This can help reduce the overall weight of fabricated structures without sacrificing the required mechanical strength.
Typical applications include:
- Lifting equipment
- Cranes and access equipment
- Vehicle chassis and frames
- Transport equipment
- Agricultural machinery
- Load-bearing structures
- Heavy engineering equipment
- High-strength fabricated components
The Strenx range is available in numerous strength grades, with current products covering yield strengths from approximately 600 MPa to 1,300 MPa.
If an existing drawing specifies Weldox, we can help identify and source an appropriate current material grade where required.
XAR® 400
XAR® 400 is an abrasion-resistant steel designed for components subjected to high levels of mechanical wear.
The 400 designation refers to its nominal hardness class, making it particularly suitable for applications where conventional structural steels would wear excessively quickly.
Typical applications include:
- Wear plates
- Buckets and excavator components
- Tipper bodies
- Chutes and hoppers
- Recycling equipment
- Quarrying machinery
- Agricultural equipment
- Material handling systems
Like Hardox, XAR 400 combines high hardness with properties that allow it to be processed into fabricated components when appropriate manufacturing procedures are followed.
Wear-Resistant vs High-Strength Steel
Although materials such as Hardox, Strenx and XAR are often grouped together, they are designed to solve different engineering problems.
Hardox and XAR are primarily selected for wear and abrasion resistance. They are commonly used where a component is continually exposed to materials such as stone, aggregate, scrap, soil or other abrasive products.
Strenx, formerly Weldox, is primarily a high-strength structural steel. It is selected where high load-bearing capability is required and where reducing component thickness or overall structure weight may offer an advantage.
Choosing the correct material therefore depends on whether the principal requirement is wear resistance, structural strength or a combination of the two.
Laser Cutting High-Strength and Wear-Resistant Steel
Our fibre laser cutting systems allow us to manufacture accurate components from specialist high-strength and abrasion-resistant steels.
These materials require greater consideration than standard mild steel, particularly where component geometry, thickness, subsequent forming or welding processes are involved.
Yorkshire Profiles can support projects requiring:
- Fibre laser cutting
- CNC folding and press braking
- Drilling and tapping
- Welding
- Fabrication
- Assembly
This allows us to manufacture anything from individual laser-cut wear plates through to more complex fabricated assemblies.
We can source Hardox®, Strenx® and XAR® grades, along with equivalent or alternative high-strength and abrasion-resistant steels depending on your specification and availability.
If you require laser cutting or fabrication of Hardox, Strenx, Weldox, XAR 400 or another high-strength steel:
