International Standards

Steel grades vary by country, and to assist with selection, we provide a comparison of foreign steel specifications for popular grades. For guidance on steel availability, applications, and heat treatment, contact us directly. If a required specification is not listed on our website, send us the details, including sizes and quantities, and we’ll respond promptly with assistance.

Steel grades differ from country to country, and for your help and guidance, we offer a comparison showing foreign steel specifications and standards of our most popular grades of steel specifications.Having identified the steel grade and product in terms of its standards reference and steel grade identification it is often necessary to establish its availability. Contact us for price and availability on any of our range of steel specifications. We can offer guidance on steel specifications, applications, and heat treatment procedures.If you do not find your required steel specification within our website, please e-mail your steel specification, giving details of the sizes and quantities required. We will reply as soon as possible.

Steel Grade Comparison and Assistance

Steel grades vary by country, and to assist with selection, we provide a comparison of foreign steel specifications for popular grades.

UNS Steel

The Unified Numbering System (UNS), established in 1974, standardizes metal and alloy numbering systems to eliminate duplication and inconsistencies. With 5,200 designations across 18 series, each UNS code consists of one letter and five digits, incorporating widely recognized commercial numbers. While UNS streamlines identification, it is not a specification and does not define properties like mechanical performance or heat treatment. For instance, AISI 1018 is designated as G10180 in the UNS system.

The UNS provides a method for correlating the metal and alloy numbering systems developed by various technical associations. It has been developed to avoid designating more than one number for the same metal or alloy and to avoid designating the same number for different metals or alloys, and it has been in use since 1974. Currently, there are 5,200 designations for metals and alloys. It should be noted that a UNS designation is not a specification because it does not establish requirements for properties such as mechanical properties and heat treatment.The UNS designates 18 series to identify metals and alloys. Each UNS designation consists of a single letter followed by five digits. To the greatest extent possible, commercially popular numbers are incorporated in the UNS system. For example, the UNS designation for AISI 1018 is G10180.

Unified Numbering System (UNS) for Metals and Alloys

The Unified Numbering System (UNS), established in 1974, standardizes metal and alloy numbering systems to eliminate duplication and inconsistencies.

ASTM Steel

ASTM steel specifications establish consensus-based standards for classifying, evaluating, and specifying the properties of various steels. Designated with a letter (A for ferrous materials) and a sequential number, these standards cover material, chemical, mechanical, and metallurgical properties for diverse applications. Widely adopted in the U.S., ASTM specifications often align with AISI practices and are frequently adopted by ASME with minimal modifications, ensuring consistency across industries.

ASTM specifications represent a consensus among producers, specifiers, fabricators, and users of steel mill products. ASTM’s designation system for metals consists of a letter (A for ferrous materials) followed by an arbitrary sequentially assigned number. These designations often apply to specific products, for example, A548 is applicable to cold-heading quality carbon steel wire for tapping or sheet metal screws.Steel standards are instrumental in classifying, evaluating, and specifying the material, chemical, mechanical, and metallurgical properties of the different types of steels, which are primarily used in the production of mechanical components, industrial parts, and construction elements. The most widely used standard specifications for steel products in the United States are those published by ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials).ASTM specifications represent a consensus among producers, specifiers, fabricators, and users of steel mill products. In many cases, the dimensions, tolerances, limits, and restrictions in the ASTM specifications are similar to or the same as the corresponding items in the standard practices contained in the AISI Steel Products Manuals.Many of the ASTM specifications have been adopted by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) with little or no modification; ASME uses the prefix S and the ASTM designation for these specifications. For example, ASME-SA213 and ASTM A 213 are identical.ASTM’s designation system for metals consists of a letter (A for ferrous materials) followed by an arbitrary sequentially assigned number. These designations often apply to specific products, for example A548 is applicable to cold-heading quality carbon steel wire for tapping or sheet metal screws. Metric ASTM standards have a suffix letter M.

ASTM Steel Specifications: A Standardized Approach

ASTM steel specifications establish consensus-based standards for classifying, evaluating, and specifying the properties of various steels.

AISI Steel

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) uses a four-digit system, shared with SAE, to designate the chemical composition of alloy and carbon steels. The first two digits represent the primary alloying element, while the last two indicate the carbon content. This standardized approach ensures consistency across AISI and SAE specifications, often using identical steel identification numbers.

A basic four-digit system is used by the SAE system to designate the chemical composition of alloy steels and carbon steels. There is a possibility that AISI grades are quoted as SAE grades and very often the same steel identification number is present in AISI/SAE standards. A four-digit number is usually given to the AISI alloy steels and carbon steels. The alloying element in the AISI specification is indicated by the first two digits and the amount of carbon is indicated by the last two digits.The chemical composition of alloy steels and carbon steels is further explained in the figure given below through a schematic representation of the AISI/SAE steel designation system.

AISI Material Grading System

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) uses a four-digit system, shared with SAE, to designate the chemical composition of alloy and carbon steels.

EN Steel

The EN range of steel specifications, introduced in 1941 as the War Emergency Numbering system, later became part of British Standard BS970. Initially comprising 58 grades, the system arranged steels sequentially by chemical composition, from low-carbon grades like EN1 to stainless steels like EN58.

In 1941, the EN range of steel specifications was first introduced as the War Emergency Numbering. This was also known as the British Standard Schedule BS970.The ‘Technical Advisory Committee’ of the ‘Special &amp; Alloy Steels Committee’, aided the British Standards Institute who then published 58 steel specifications (EN1 to EN58). According to the chemical composition, the different grades of steel were arranged sequentially starting with low carbon grades EN1, EN2, and EN3, working up to stainless steel grades EN56, EN57 and EN58. When further steel grades were developed, the BS970 EN range of steel specifications was revised in 1955 to add these additional grades.Unfortunately, the 1941 edition made no allowance for possible insertion of further steel grades. The British Standards Institution decided that to have applied for a high EN number would have divorced the grades completely from steels of similar types.Therefore numerous grades’ suffix letters were added (for example EN17 became EN17A, EN17B, and EN17C). The revision of the standard BS970 in 1955 increased the number of specifications to nearly 200.Many EN steel grades are now obsolete. The most common grades of supply are as follows;Carbon Steel Alloy Steel Spring Steel – EN3, EN14, EN43, EN6, EN16, EN16T, EN45, EN8, EN19, EN19T, EN47, EN9, EN24, EN24T, EN26, EN26V, EN26W and EN30B.

European Standard

The EN range of steel specifications, introduced in 1941 as the War Emergency Numbering system, later became part of British Standard BS970.

BS Steel

B.S. steel specifications cover a wide range of materials, including carbon and alloy steel plates, forgings for boilers and pressure vessels, high-strength low-alloy steels, and heat-treatable steels. They also encompass standards for steel pipes and tubes designed for various applications, including high-temperature service, fire protection, and refinery use.

This group of B.S. specifications covers carbon and alloy steel plates and forgings used in boilers and pressure vessels, high-strength low-alloy steels, heat-treatable steels, spring steels, sheets, and strips. This article also contains standards for various types of steel pipes which specify requirements for high-temperature service, ordinary use, and special applications such as fire protection use. Specifications for steel tubes list standard requirements for boiler and superheater tubes, general service tubes, steel tubes in refinery service, heat exchanger and condenser tubes, mechanical and structural tubing. Steel casting specifications call out the standard properties for pressure purposes. Standards for tool steels, stainless, heat-resisting and valve steels are also presented.The most common BS steel standards are listed below, but if you do not find the grade you require please contact our experienced sales team

Overview of B.S. Steel Specifications

B.S. steel specifications cover a wide range of materials, including carbon and alloy steel plates, forgings for boilers and pressure vessels, high-strength low-alloy steels, and heat-treatable steels.

DIN Standards

DIN Standards are developed at national, European, and international levels through a structured process involving diverse stakeholders, including manufacturers, consumers, businesses, and research institutes. Proposals for new standards can be submitted by anyone, and once accepted, the relevant committees manage the project. German interests are represented in European and international standardization bodies by experts from DIN committees. The standards are reviewed every five years to ensure they reflect the latest technological advancements, with revisions or withdrawals made as necessary.

DIN Standards are the results of work at the national, European, and/or international levels. Anyone can submit a proposal for a new standard. Once accepted, the standards project is carried out according to set rules of procedure by the relevant DIN Standards Committee, the relevant Technical Committee of the European standards organization CEN (CENELEC for electrotechnical standards), or the relevant committee at the international standards organization ISO (IEC for electrotechnical projects).All stakeholders can participate in this work, including manufacturers, consumers, businesses, research institutes, public authorities, and testing bodies. They send experts to represent their interests within DIN’s working bodies, which are overseen by some 70 standards committees, each of which is responsible for a specific subject area. For work at the European and international levels, the DIN standards committees send experts to represent German interests within CEN and ISO, respectively. DIN staff members coordinate the standardization process and are responsible for overall project management, ensuring the uniformity and consistency of the German standards collection.DIN Standards are reviewed at least every five years. If a standard no longer reflects the current state of technology, it is either revised or withdrawn.

DIN Standards: Framework and Process

DIN Standards are developed at national, European, and international levels through a structured process involving diverse stakeholders, including manufacturers, consumers, businesses, and research institutes.

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British Standards (BS) steel sets the benchmark for quality, consistency, and performance in the construction industry. Regulated by the British Standards Institution (BSI), BS steel ensures that materials used in construction projects meet rigorous standards for strength, durability, and safety.

The customer requirements are based on the expected use of the standard. The first consideration of any material standard is to make a supplier-independent specification of the material. Material from a certain grade must behave in a similar way regardless of the supplier. When the materials are heat-treated or subjected to various service conditions such as heat, cold or corrosive environments, the properties are affected. These effects depend on the chemical composition of the material. If the manufacturers are allowed to decide the composition of the material freely, unexpected differences in behavior between grades may occur.

Ensuring Material Consistency

National steel standards

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Material standards are essential to guarantee uniform behavior of materials across suppliers by specifying chemical composition. This approach aids designers in predicting performance and avoiding unexpected changes caused by supplier variations, ensuring reliable application in diverse service conditions.

The customer requirements are based on the expected use of the standard. The first consideration of any material standard is to make a supplier-independent specification of the material. Material from a certain grade must behave in a similar way regardless of the supplier. When the materials are heat-treated or subjected to various service conditions such as heat, cold or corrosive environments, the properties are affected. These effects depend on the chemical composition of the material. If the manufacturers are allowed to decide the composition of the material freely, unexpected differences in behavior between grades may occur. The addition or removal of a particular constituent would perhaps result in a different annealing temperature rending an unsatisfactory result or a component made from the material would start to behave differently in service. Either the material standard can specify the chemical composition or it has to be checked that the end result is the correct one by checking the microstructure. The first option is preferred since it gives the designer the possibility to predict other effects than just the material’s reaction to heat treatment. Checking the microstructure can be done either directly by a microscope or by checking a property related to the structure. The permitted ranges in the specification of the chemical composition must be carefully chosen to avoid sudden changes in material behavior. The TC who designs the standards must therefore have knowledge on the expected use.

Material Standards

Ensuring Consistency Through Material Standards

Material standards ensure consistent behavior across suppliers by specifying chemical composition, avoiding unexpected changes in performance under conditions like heat or corrosion.