WHAT IS IT?
Cold Rolled Coil (CRC) is a flat steel product produced by rolling Hot Rolled Coil (HRC) at room temperature through a cold reduction mill. The cold working process reduces thickness by 50–90% and significantly improves surface finish, dimensional accuracy, and mechanical properties versus HRC.
PRODUCTION PROCESS
HRC → Pickling (hydrochloric or sulphuric acid removes mill scale) → Cold Rolling Mill (reduces thickness at room temperature) → Annealing (restores ductility lost from work hardening) → Temper Rolling (light pass for flatness and surface) → CRC Coil
CRC vs HRC
Surface: CRC is smooth and bright; HRC has rough mill-scale surface
Thickness: CRC goes as thin as 0.3mm; HRC minimum ~1.5mm
Tolerances: CRC is tighter — critical for stamping precision parts
Ductility: CRC (after annealing) is more formable
Cost: CRC is premium — additional processing steps
GRADES
DC01/SPCC: Commercial quality — general forming and drawing
DC03/SPCD: Drawing quality — deep drawn parts
DC04/SPCE: Deep drawing quality — car door panels
DC05/DC06: Extra deep drawing (IF steel) — most demanding automotive stampings
HS (High Strength) grades: HSLA, DP, TRIP steels for automotive lightweighting
KEY USES
Automotive body panels (doors, bonnets, roofs, hoods)
Appliances (washing machines, fridges, ovens — 'white goods')
Substrate for galvanised steel (GI/GL) and Galvalume (AZ)
Electrical steel (motor laminations, transformer cores — specialised grade)
Cans and packaging (tin mill products)
Furniture and shelving
Construction (ceiling tiles, partitions)
TRADE CORRIDORS
Major exporters: China, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, India
Major buyers: Southeast Asia, Middle East, USA, Europe
Tetra relevance: South Korea (POSCO, Hyundai Steel) and China → SEA corridor. Premium product vs HRC.
PRICING BASIS
Trades at a premium to HRC — typically $80–150/MT above HRC CFR equivalent. Platts TSI CRC assessments. Tracks HRC as base cost.
SPECIFICATIONS (DC01/SPCC)
Thickness: 0.4–3.0mm (typical commercial)
Width: 600–1,850mm
Yield strength: 280 MPa max (to maintain formability)
Tensile strength: 270–410 MPa
Elongation: min 28%
Surface finish: No.1 (matte) or No.2 (bright) finish