For decades, alloys were treated as fixed inputs. One specification. One melting furnace. One way of doing things. In this Gold Nugget, Fabian Niklas and Staffan Zetterström challenge that thinking and explain why alloys have quietly become one of the most powerful strategic tools in the foundry industry.
This conversation is not about chemical limits or phase diagrams. It is about margins, differentiation, supply risk, sustainability pressure, and long-term positioning.
Alloys are no longer a back-office engineering decision. They sit right in the middle of business strategy. This episode also marks the start of Goldcasting’s alloy focus for 2026. Not as a trend watch, but as a reality check for anyone who wants to stay relevant in the coming years.
Key Topics
✅ Why the era of one alloy, one product is endingHow OEM requirements, sustainability targets, and scrap availability are forcing a wider and more flexible alloy landscape.
✅ Alloy strategy as a competitive moatWhy do foundries that master alloy flexibility raise entry barriers and reduce price-based competition?
✅ Scrap as the real bottleneckWhy access to the right scrap streams may become more valuable than access to primary metal, and why this shifts power in the value chain.
✅ Gigacastings and the myth of extreme propertiesA critical look at elongation targets, real crash performance, and why simpler alloys may already be good enough in many applications.
✅ Trade politics and regulatory pressureFrom tariffs to CBAM and geopolitical tensions, why alloy sourcing is becoming a political and financial issue, not just a technical one.
✅ Special alloys and quiet opportunitiesWhy the most attractive business is often not the biggest volumes, but the applications where knowledge, alloy design, and problem-solving matter.
Alloys are not about metallurgy alone; they are about positioning
One theme runs through the entire episode: deliberate alloy selection. Designing processes around them. Understanding scrap flows. And using metallurgy as a lever to defend margins instead of eroding them.
The industry is moving away from standard alloys, passive supplier roles, and lowest price logic. In their place come specialization, flexibility, and foundries willing to invest in understanding alloys as a strategic asset.
This episode also sets the stage for upcoming interviews with experts across recycling, sustainability, primary aluminum, scrap markets, special alloys, and future applications.
If you have questions, technical or uncomfortable, send them in. They will shape the conversations ahead.
See you in the Podcast,Fabian and Staffan
