Through the din of machinery and clouds of hissing steam, there is a rumbling sound. A slab of red-hot metal thunders along the line of rollers and water jets in the cavernous factory, to be transformed into a thin sheet before being rolled up tightly into a coil.

Steel produced at this sooty complex that sprawls along the south Wales coastline goes into everyday objects such as cars, dishwashers, coins and food tins. It is a source of local pride.

Workers and managers tell visitors how the hot strip mill, where slabs of steel made on the site are rolled, has recently broken production records. Productivity is up, they say, and a turnround plan on track. But there is a anxious look in their eyes. For they know their efforts may not be enough.