Sti may june 2014

May/June 2014 – Vol.38 No.4 – www.steeltimesint.com

PROCESS CONTROL STRUCTURAL STEEL GERDAU PROFILE

STEEL TIMES INTERNATIONAL – May/June 2014

– Vol.38 No.4

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH AIST’S RON ASHBURN

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CONTENTS MAY/JUNE 2014

4 Leader

May/June 2014 – Vol.38 No.4 – www.steeltimesint.com

PROCESS CONTROL STRUCTURAL STEEL GERDAU PROFILE

Front cover image courtesy of Midrex.

(Pictured) Direct reduced iron in the forms of Hot Briquetted Iron (HBI) and cold DRI (CDRI). Midrex® Plants made 80% of the world’s HBI produced in 2013 and represent more than 60% of the world’s DRI produced annually.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH AIST’S RON ASHBURN

EDITORIAL Editor Matthew Moggridge Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855151 matthewmoggridge@quartzltd.com

17

6 News 10 USA update Dumping disputes and dodgy weather 12 Latin America update Ternium: poised for success in Mexico 14 India update India’s transitional phase 17 AISTECH 2014 Technology is the key

Consultant Editor Dr. Tim Smith PhD, CEng, MIM Production Editor Annie Baker

SALES International Sales Manager Paul Rossage paulrossage@quartzltd.com Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855116 Area Sales Manager Anne Considine anneconsidine@quartzltd.com Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855139

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Sales Director Ken Clark kenclark@quartzltd.com Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855117

Process control 21 Robotics and continuous casting 26 Compact side guide gap position control for a hot strip mill 31 Data acquisition and the EAF Structural steel 34 Modest improvements expected 36 Marked improvements on the way

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42 Perspectives Shining a light on the steel industry

44 History Preserved Bessemer converters May/June 2014

4

LEADER

“Fairness is what we’re looking for.�

Matthew Moggridge Editor matthewmoggridge@quartzltd.com

There’s one thing that a lot of people say about the Americans after visiting their great country and that is the generally positive attitude they have. And let’s face it, there’s a lot to be positive about: a big country, a variety of climates, some amazing scenery and the ability to drive for days without falling into the sea.

I’ve been in the USA attending AISTech 2014 in Indianapolis, an annual gettogether of the American steel industry.

Great things were discussed, awards were presented, one posthumously, and there were tours of steel mills thrown in for good measure.

American steelmakers, while admitting that many challenges lay ahead, are champing at the bit, eager to find solutions to various serious issues that are affecting their livelihood.

On the ‘aluminum’ versus steel battle, US Steel’s Doug Matthews told a packed auditorium at AISTech’s Town Hall Forum that ‘we’ll aggressively pursue solutions in terms of lightweighting’ while admitting that the industry had been ‘a little lethargic to respond to that threat’. Nucor’s John Farris said that this year and last the order books

were up despite a sluggish construction market and, on anti-dumping, he urged the American steel industry to be politically engaged and sort it out. “How can scrap be bought here, produced elsewhere and then sold back at cheaper prices?� he asked.

Anti dumping has hit the industry hard.

So hard that CMC’s Tracy Porter claimed he had never seen a more vicious attack on the American economy, adding that ‘we’ve allowed this to happen’. American steel, said Porter, was both green and low cost and while ArcelorMittal’s Mike Rippey agreed, he said that the industry was not vocal enough about it, prompting Tracy to say it was up to the American steel industry to educate the legislators ‘about issues important to us’.

America is the land of the free, my taxi driver Sam told me as we headed downtown along East Washington Street. It’s no surprise, therefore, that Americans believe in free trade. However, as Porter argued, there’s a big difference between free and fair trade. “Fairness is what we’re looking for,� he said. “We don’t want to close our markets.� Here’s hoping they don’t.

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6 NEWS IN BRIEF Turkish steelmaker orders SMS Meer rolling mill A special bar quality rolling mill for the production of surface-quenched and tempered rebars, straight bars, wire rod and bar in coils, has been ordered by Karabük Demir Celik (Kardemir) of Turkey. The supplier is the German company SMS Meer.

With commissioning scheduled for Q1 2015, the mill’s phase one capacity will be 700kt per annum and will double in capacity to 1.4Mt/yr on phase two completion.

Stoilensky appointments Yuri Larin has been appointed general director of Stoilensky, a leading producer of iron ore. Sergei Napolskikh has been made deputy general director (production and technology).

Mr Larin is NLMK’s group vice president (technology development and operational efficiency) and is a member of the NLMK board.

Mr Napolskikh was previously managing director of Kachkanarsky GOK, Russia’s biggest ferro-vanadic ore producer, and (from 2006 to 2010) chief engineer and managing director of Vysokogorsk Mining and Beneficiation Plant.

New steels from NLMK Russian steelmaker NLMK used the 18th International MiningWorld Russia Exhibition for the Mining and Processing of Metals and Minerals, held in Moscow last month, as the launch pad for a range of new premium steel products.

Quard steel, which is a thick plate, low-alloy, abrasion-resistant product, and Quend steel, a highstrength structural steel, are both designed for use in the manufacture of construction and mining equipment and machinery.

ArcelorMittal wins GM award American car manufacturer General Motors has named ArcelorMittal as GM Supplier of the Year.

The world’s largest steel company also picked up the prestigious Overdrive Award at a special ceremony in Detroit in March.

The award has only been presented to 68 suppliers, all of whom have exceeded GM’s expectations in terms of innovation, delivering quality products and services on time and creating outstanding value.

For more steel industry news and features, visit www.steeltimesint.com

May/June 2014

INDUSTRY NEWS

Siemens and Mitsubishi announce metals JV A UK-based joint venture has been announced between Siemens and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

The two companies want to cooperate in the field of metallurgy and have formed a 'globally operating complete provider' for plants, products and services for the iron, steel and aluminium industries.

The joint venture addresses challenging market conditions and high price pressures in the global metals industry, claims Siemens.

The plan is for both companies – major players in the metals market – to combine their strengths and establish 'a powerful and globally well-positioned' new business opportunity, according to an announcement on Siemens' website.

MHI will hold a 51% share in the

new venture while Siemens will take a 49% stake. The new business will go live in January 2015.

“Siemens and MHI ideally complement one another with regard to their product portfolios, production know-how and geographical spread,” Siemens said, explaining how the new JV will employ 9,000 people and focus solely on the iron, steel and aluminium industries.

“The bundling of competencies will result in a powerful joint venture that is better able to compensate for market fluctuations,” said Siemens.

The move by these two key German and Japanese businesses also reflects the fact that the steel market has shifted to Asia where over 50% of world steel

production now takes place. With this in mind and drawing upon the centres of competence of both parties in Europe and Asia respectively, the new joint venture will have a solid regional basis.

“While the technology strengths of Siemens Metals Technologies lie in particular in iron and steel production, casting, automation, environmental technologies and lifecycle services, MHI’s technology competence is primarily focused on hot and cold rolling, processing as well as production expertise,” claims Siemens. “By combining both portfolios, the joint venture can offer its customers the entire value chain in iron, steel and aluminium production, from technologies for processing raw materials to surface finishing at the end of the production process.”

Steelmaker of the Year announced AISTech’s 2014 Steelmaker of the Year went to Mark D Millet, president and chief executive officer of Steel Dynamics Inc. The award, which was presented at the AISTech President's Breakfast on 6 May, recognises leading global steel industry figures who have made notable contributions to the industry.

Mr Millet, an Englishman, is in good company as past award

winners have included steel luminaires Lakshmi Mittal, John J Ferriola and Ken Iverson.

Millet who also picked up the AIST's William T Hogan SJ Lecture Award for his Making Money in the Steel Industry is Not a Mystery paper, which he presented shortly after accepting his Steelmaker of the Year title.

“It is both gratifying and humbling to receive such an award

when it is at the discretion of one’s peers. In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell highlights that success is more often than not born of a discrete, unique opportunity. I have been blessed, since my life has been full of opportunity, from a wonderful family, to wonderful friends and partners, and a fulfilling career,” Millet said, in what had been an emotionally charged morning.

Posthumous award for Kent D Peaslee Mary Peaslee, wife of the late Kent D Peaslee, accepted a posthumous AIST Distinguished Member and Fellow Award on behalf of her late husband, a former AIST president and a faculty member of the Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, Mo, USA. Receiving the same award was Thomas W Goettge, a former (now retired) vice president of the United States Steel Corporation.

Mary Peaslee told attendees at AISTech’s President’s Awards Breakfast in Indianapolis earlier this

month that Kent would have been so honoured to receive the award.

“He loved his time with AIST and all the people he got to work with. He especially enjoyed his students, and I’m so proud that 28 students from Missouri University of Science and Technology are at AISTech this year,” she said, adding, “Kent loved what he did, loved his students, and loved the industry.”

Mr Peaslee died suddenly in May 2013. His two sons were also present at the awards breakfast. www.steeltimesint.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

Tata targets oil and gas Tata Steel’s production facility in South Yorkshire, United Kingdom, is producing an enhanced version of the company’s existing 4145H modified alloy steel grade designed for the downhole tool and completion equipment sector and used predominantly by the oil and gas industry.

The enhanced version of the product combines high strength with high toughness, according to

Tata Steel’s Houston-based oil and gas sales manager, Mike Jeglic, who says that sizes of up to 12in diameter are now available as a result of customer demand for greater size variety.

According to Jeglic, the new variant of the company’s alloy steel grade offers customers the chance to rationalise their stock profiles and use the new product in more challenging operating conditions.

Other developments from Tata’s UK-based oil and gas team include the introduction of imperial size rollings and the launch of oil and gas grades in sizes less than three inches long with improved central soundness guarantees across the product portfolio.

Tata Steel exhibited recently at the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston, Texas (5-8 May).

New furnace boosts capacity from 24Mt to 50Mt. India’s largest blast furnace can be found at SAIL’s Rourkela facility; it has a volume of 4,060 cubic metres.

The Indian steel giant has also recently announced a 14% yearon-year rise in sales of steel products.

Steel Authority of India (SAIL) claims that its hot metal capacity will rise to 19Mt by end-September 2014 following start-up of the company’s new blast furnace at its Burnpur steelmaking facility..

Capacity at the plant is currently14Mt/yr.

The new furnace will be

commissioned in August, according to SAIL chairman CS Verma, who said that first heat from the new converter at SAIL’s Rourkela steel plant took place on 10 May. As part of its Vision 2025, SAIL is planning and investing with a view to ramping up steel production

Q1revenues are down

Hot metal treatment plant goes live

Russian steelmaker Severstal has blamed lower realised prices and sales volumes at its Russian Steel and Resources division as well as softer demand and temporary production interruptions for its Q1 revenue fall.

Revenues fell 9.5% year-on-year from US$3.322 billion in Q1 2013 to $3.007 billion in 2014.

CEO Alexey Mordashov said that Severstal had delivered 'another resilient set of results in what was a challenging quarter', adding that there was still room for further improvements, particularly where customer care and product quality were concerned. He said that the company would continue to focus on improving its health and safety record.

Mordashov said that conditions remain challenging and anticipates higher steel prices across key markets. He said Q2 would see the completion of the Balakovo long products minimill.

“This will better position Severstal to delivery on opportunities afforded by real estate and infrastructure growth in southern Russia,” he said. www.steeltimesint.com

A hot metal treatment plant at Kobe Steel’s Kakogawa Works in western Japan is now operational, according to the company.

The plant was constructed to improve the production system at Kakogawa in order to expand sales of high value-added steel products with a view to increasing cost competitiveness, the company said.

Hot metal treatment plants are designed to remove impurities, such as sulfur and phosphorus, from molten iron.

Kobe Steel’s special steel wire rod and bar, automotive highstrength steel sheet and steel plate for the energy sector all require a high degree of cleanliness, highlighting the importance of the new hot metal treatment plant.

The plant features two Kanbara reactors for desulfurisation and

one dephosphorisation furnace.

The Kanbara reactor uses a stirring method to desulfurise molten iron.

An impeller stirs the molten iron and the agitation removes the sulfur, Kobe Steel explained.

The new reactor and furnace, plus existing equipment at the Kakogawa Works, enable most of the molten ore to undergo hot metal treatment and allows Kobe Steel to increase production of its high-end range of products.

The new plant is claimed to increase reaction efficiency during desulfurisation and dephosphorisation, thereby reducing consumption of auxiliary materials for refining and improving yield. “The new facility will enable Kakogawa to save approximately 6 billion yen annually,” claims Kobe.

New hot-metal treatment plant (Kakogawa Works)

NEWS IN BRIEF 7 US Steel subsidiary engaged in Southern Iraq An alliance has been formed between North American Western Asia Holdings (NAWAH), US Steel Tubular Products (a subsidiary of US Steel) and MRC Global with the sole objective of supplying oil well equipment to Iraq.

The idea is to supply a number of oil and gas companies engaged in developing oil and gas fields in the country.

The consortium will provide an initial inventory of oil well equipment and expand Iraq’s in-country supply of the same materials as and when oil well demand increases.

The first shipment of oil well material arrived in Iraq in early May.

SMS Mevac supplies China and Taiwan SMS Mevac of Germany has been active in Taiwan and China and recently announced two new contracts.

In Taiwan the company commissioned a 270-tonne twin ladle furnace in Kaoshing for the China Steel Corporation. The furnace has an annual capacity of 1.94Mt and was installed in the company’s No.2 BOF steelmaking plant. The combined capacity of Kaoshing’s BOF steelmaking plants 1 and 2 is approximately 10Mt per year, says SMS. In Taiyuan, China – in conjunction with SMS Siemag Technology (Beijing) – SMS Mevac has commissioned an 80 tonne RH Top plant for the refining of a range of high quality steel grades with low levels of hydrogen.

Mexican and Indian companies join forces PMP Grupo of Mexico and Preet Machines of India have formed a commercial alliance to boost the construction of micro mills for the recycling and transformation of scrap iron from the USA, Mexico, Canada and countries in Latin America.

The deal was announced at the recent AISTech convention and exposition in Indianapolis, USA (May 5-9) where the two companies outlined the installation of MicroSteel Meltshop Technology facilities capable of generating between $6 to $8 million per 100kt of scrap iron.

For expansion of these stories and other news visit www.steeltimesint.com May/June 2014

8 INDUSTRY NEWS

Moffat says things are looking good

New decoiler boosts Tata efficiency levels A large, heavy gauge decoiler will be commissioned by Tata Steel’s service centre in Maastricht in the Netherlands by the end of the year.

The decoiler will be installed at Tata’s Feijen facility and will be capable of decoiling and cutting to length hot-rolled coil of up to 25mm thick and 2,600mm wide.

Jens Lauber, managing director of Tata Steel’s mainland Europe distribution business, said there has been increasing demand for premium high strength sheet. “In practice, this means they want increased thicknesses, improved flatness quality and sheet that’s been processed from coils made of higher-strength steels,” he said.

Volumes at Feijen will remain roughly the same because older decoilers will be dismantled, but the overall decoiling service will be more efficient and will, according to Lauber, form part of a highquality distribution service for the European heavy gauge market.

Tata Steel’s distribution and service centres make up the second largest distribution and service network in Europe, in terms of regional coverage.

Logistics arm sold by global steel giant ArcelorMittal has sold its 78% stake in ATIC Services SA, a European port handing and logistics company, to Netherlandsbased HES Beheer NV. The deal, part of the steel giant’s strategy of divesting noncore assets, means that HES, which already owned 22% of the business, now has 100% ownership.

There is strong synergy between ATIC and HES as the former’s strength in coal industry logistics matches well with HES’ expertise in stevedoring, storage and processing services for dry and liquid bulk products – including raw materials for the steel industry.

May/June 2014

The economy of the European Union is ‘well on track’ for recovery both this year and in 2015, according to the EU’s Q2-2014 outlook.

The report’s findings prompted EUROFER director-general Gordon Moffat to say that 'the mood of negativism is clearly fading'. He said that economic conditions were stabilising and that the shortterm visibility of domestic markets had also improved.

“The private sector looks more willing to invest again, particularly if credit conditions would ease further,” Moffat added. He said that international investors returning to the EU was good news for downstream steel users.

While EUROFER’s Economic

Committee report talked of recovery, it stressed that risks remained in the shape of delays in the implementation of reforms, not forgetting the current strength of the Euro and longer-term low inflation.

The report highlighted financial market turmoil in several emerging economies – namely Brazil, India, Indonesia, Turkey and South Africa – which have led to capital outflows and overnight currency crunches. EUROFER believes that monetary action to stabilise the situation will slow these economies.

The situation in the Ukraine, said EUROFER, will damage the EU economy because of Europe’s trade ties with Russia.

The global economic context is more uncertain and could jeopardise 'the expected recovery of the industrialised economies', according to EUROFER. EUROFER expects the European steel market to have a slow and fragile recovery in terms of demand over the next two years.

Moffat said that EUROFER was concerned about imports from third world countries into Europe.

“Steel trade data show imports remaining at a high level in Q12014, attracted by the strong Euro and uptrend in demand,” he explained, adding that 'this threatens to distort market conditions in the EU, which are already extremely difficult for EU steel producers’.

Encouraging signs for US exports US steel exports in March surged 15% to more than 1Mt, but are still below levels recorded a year earlier, claims the American Institute for International Steel.

Canada, the USA’s chief export market, boosted its total in March by more than 17% compared with February, and Mexico (which accounts for one third of US exports) imported more than 14%.

Exports to the EU grew by 12% but represent less than 3% of the total.

Total US steel exports were down 5.5% over the same period

last year and this can be attributed to significant drops in imported product from the USA’s smaller trading partners. There was, for instance, a 25% year-on-year decline in exports to EU countries.

The USA is, however, witnessing strong export growth in Venezuela, China and Brazil compared with 2013 and while those nations account for just 3.6% of US exports, that percentage is still over twice as large than a year ago. In fact, year-to-date exports to these countries have increased

significantly (by a factor of five in Venezuela) despite a 9.5% drop in total exports for the first three months of the year.

With a lot of the problems being weather-related and logistical issues, the strong recovery in steel exports to Canada and Mexico is a good sign, adding to the growing popularity of US steel in developing nations. If the uncertainty surrounding Ukraine continues, the AIIS believes this trend could accelerate if tighter sanctions are imposed on Russia.

Record production for Rio Tinto Rio Tinto’s Pilbara integrated iron ore mine in Australia has reached a run rate of 290Mt/yr – two months ahead of schedule.

“Early completion of the expansion has added significant value to the Pilbara operations, with continued ramp-up of the system contributing to the record first quarter production achieved this year,” the mining giant claims, adding that the achievement ‘underlines the world-class status of Rio Tinto’s Western Australian iron ore operations’.

Rio Tinto completed its infrastructure modernisation at

Pilbara last September (2013) four months ahead of schedule and $400m under budget.

For Andrew Harding, Rio Tinto’s iron ore CEO, this is a significant milestone that adds real value to the business as it means that more iron ore can be moved through the Pilbara at low cost.

“We are now focused on the next phase of our expansion towards 360Mt/yr.

The infrastructure is on schedule for completion in a little over 12 months and, from a base run rate of 290Mt/yr, we have a rapid, lowcost pathway to increase mine www.steeltimesint.com

production capacity by more than 60Mt/yr between now and 2017.”

INDUSTRY NEWS

March world crude production up 2.7% World crude steel production for March 2014 was up 2.7% compared with March 2013, according to figures released by worldsteel.

The March 2014 figure of 141Mt is the total crude steel production figure for the 65 countries reporting to worldsteel.

In the first three months of 2014, Asia produced 274Mt of crude steel, an increase of 2.6% over the first quarter of 2013. The EU produced 43.8Mt of crude steel in the first quarter of 2014, up by 6.7% compared to the same quarter of 2013. North America’s crude steel production in the first three months of 2014 was 29.9Mt, an increase of 0.8% compared to the first quarter of 2013. The CIS produced 26.3Mt of

crude steel in the first three months of 2014, a decrease of 2.8% over the same months of 2013.

China’s crude steel production for March 2014 was 70.3Mt, up by 2.2% compared to March 2013. Elsewhere in Asia, Japan produced 9.7Mt of crude steel in March 2014, an increase of 2.9% over March 2013. South Korea’s crude steel production was 6.1Mt in March 2014, up by 8% on March 2013.

Germany produced 4Mt of crude steel in March 2014, an increase of 6.1% compared to March 2013. Italy produced 2.4Mt of crude steel, up by 8% compared to March 2013. France’s crude steel production was 1.4 Mt, an increase of 4.1% on March 2013.

Spain produced 1.3Mt of crude steel, up by 4.1% compared to March 2013.

Turkey’s crude steel production for March 2014 was 2.8Mt, down by -4.3% on March 2013.

In March 2014, Russia produced 6Mt of crude steel, an increase of 1.3% compared to March the previous year. Ukraine’s production was 2.7Mt in March 2014, down by -7.7% on March 2013.

The US produced 7.4Mt of crude steel in March 2014, up by 0.9% on March 2013.

The crude steel capacity utilisation ratio for the 65 countries in March 2014 was 79%, 0.4 percentage points lower than March 2013. Compared to February 2014, it is 1.4 percentage points higher.

For a full country by country listing visit: www.worldsteel.org/statistics/crude-steel-production.html

Global stainless steel output reaches all-time high

A report by UK-based MEPS states that worldwide total crude stainless steel output in 2013 reached an all-time high of 38.13Mt, exceeding the last peak achieved the previous year by 7.8%.

According to MEPS, global stainless steel production will grow by a further 3.6% this year and will reach a new record of 39.5Mt. MEPS’ Stainless Steel Review claims that global outturn in 2013 was higher than previously forecast. However, production in www.steeltimesint.com

the EU, South Korea and Taiwan was lower than in 2012. US and Japanese output began to trend upwards but remained ‘significantly below peak pre-crisis figures of 2006’.

Production in China and other developing nations is expanding at a faster pace than in established stainless steelmaking countries.

Chinese output climbed quicker than predicted, to almost 19Mt last year. While the rate of growth is expected to slow this year, the forecast outturn of 19.75Mt

represents exactly half of all global production.

Output in countries in the “others” category is predicted to increase by over 6% in 2014 to reach 3.825Mt. “While there are signs of economic recovery in the EU, producers in this region have lost market share globally,” claims MEPS. “Output in 2013 was down by 4% year-on-year, at less than 7.2Mt and a moderate recovery, to 7.3Mt, is anticipated this year.

US production grew by more than earlier forecasts, to just over 2Mt in 2013, but the outturn this year is expected to remain at a similar level.

Japanese stainless steelmaking showed modest annual growth of 1.2% in 2013. A stronger upturn is predicted in 2014, to achieve a total of 3.3Mt – up 4% on the previous year.

South Korean output is expected to turn around, with a 3% year-onyear increase this year following a small drop in 2013.

Taiwanese production decreased by 25kt last year, compared with the previous 12-month period. The outturn in 2014 is forecast to be closer to the 2012 figure.

Source: MEPS Stainless Steel Review

DIARY OF EVENTS 9 June 02 - 03 Steel Markets Europe Berlin, Germany Organised by Platts Debating all that matters for today’s steel producers, traders, distributors and end users. www.platts.com 03 - 06 Metallurgy Litmash Expocentre, Moscow, Russia An international trade fair for metallurgy, machinery, plant technology and products. www.metallurgy-tube-russia.com 04 - 05 9th Asian Stainless Steel Conference Ritz Carlton, Hong Kong A conference bringing together leading players in the Asian stainless steel market.

Organised by Metal Bulletin. www.metalbulletin.com 16-18 The 15th Guangzhou International Metal & Metallurgy Exhibition Guangzhou, China Organised by Guangzhou Julang Exhibition Design Co. Ltd. www.julang.com.cn 23-26 8th European

Continuous Casting Conference Graz, Austria Organised by the Austrian Society for Metallurgy and Materials www.eccc2014.org

August 29-31 7th China International Metal Recycling Conference Beijing, China Organised by CISA and MC-CCPIT www.mcchina.org.cn

September 4-7 10th Minerals, Metals, Metallurgy and Materials 2014 New Delhi, India Organised by International Trade and Exhibitions India www.iter.in 10-12 12th China International Coking Technology and Coke Market Congress Organised by CISA and MC-CCPIT www.mcchina.org.cn For more information on steel industry events, visit www.steeltimesint.com

May/June 2014

10 USA UPDATE

Dumping disputes and dodgy weather The US administration has come out in support of the domestic steel industry in an international trade dispute with Mexico and Turkey over anti-dumping. By Manik Mehta THE implication of this preliminary decision recently announced by the US Department of Commerce is that supplies from both Mexico and Turkey will be subject to duties with immediate effect. However, a final determination is expected to be made in the summer. But the US will, meanwhile, stop distribution at national borders if a cash bond or deposit is not posted. The US authorities will also retroactively levy duties, ranging from 10% to 66% in the case of Mexican suppliers and about 2% in the case of Turkish companies, for up to 90 days prior to the preliminary ruling because the violations were of a “serious nature”.

Obviously concerned that the escalating dispute could harm their interests, Mexican companies have called on the United States to refrain from unnecessary trade disputes with Mexico; after all, they argue, US steel companies still held the largest market share.

The International Trade Administration within the Department of Commerce initiated an enquiry last autumn upon complaints filed by US steel producers.

These included the Rebar Trade Action Coalition and some of its members such as Byer Steel Group Inc, the Cascade Steel Rolling Mills Inc, Nucor Corp, Gerdau Ameristeel US Inc and Commercial Metals Co. The US administration, facing a still wobbly economy and a painfully slow recovery, with outraged trade unions clamouring for safeguarding jobs against the backdrop of an ever-shrinking manufacturing base in the country did not show any hesitation in taking up the complaint of the steel industry.

The complaint gained added political support as 31 senators, both Republicans and Democrats, recently sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker, urging “full US enforcement” of trade laws in order to protect steel industry jobs in the United States, involving at least 10,000 workers. US lawmakers have been saying that rebar supplies from Turkey and Mexico had sharply risen, nearly doubling from 2011 to 2013; imports from Turkey had reached the value of $381 million in 2013 while Mexico had shipped these products valued at $182 million.

Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), one of the signatories of the letter to the Department of Commerce, described the preliminary ruling as “good news” for thousands of steel workers in his state, and urged the administration to “stand up for American manufactured goods”.

Rebar is a sensitive item for workers in the US steel industry, which produces nearly 7Mt of this item per annum, and provides jobs to over 10,000 workers across 30 states. But the Department of Commerce, to keep things in perspective, also observed that while Turkey officially provides energy subsidies to its rebar industry, the subsidy, according to the preliminary examination, was of “minimal value”.

In the case of Mexico, the ITC enquiry found that that country’s rebar exports to the United States had been higher than its combined rebar exports to the rest of the world from 2010 to 2012, and that, furthermore, its exports to the US would continue to grow at prices lower than those of US producers. These findings were

interpreted as a “strong endorsement” of the US steelmakers’ complaint that Mexican and Turkish rebar is being dumped at artificially low prices in the US market, causing injury to US producers who had, so far, played by the rules.

Besides Mexico and Turkey, South Korea is also facing heat from the US steel industry. Mario Longhi, US Steel president and CEO, had earlier joined other steel industry executives to urge Congress to take action against illegal dumping of Oil Country Tubular Goods (OCTG) by South Korea and others who threatened US jobs, infrastructure and national security.

Testifying before the Congressional Steel Caucus, Longhi emphasised that the issue of fair trade is a “matter of utmost importance to our employees, our company, our industry and our country”.

US Steel is the nation’s largest producer of tubular products.

“OCTG products are… integral to the building and maintenance of our nation’s critical infrastructure and must meet the highest safety and quality standards,”

* USA correspondent May/June 2014

www.steeltimesint.com

USA UPDATE 11

Longhi said while highlighting the importance of tubular goods products to the country’s energy infrastructure. He went on to state that “the evidence in this case clearly shows that OCTG products are being illegally dumped in what remains the most open and attractive market in the world, at prices below fair value and in ways designed to circumvent our trade laws.”

“We are disappointed that the Department of Commerce … failed to recognise and punish illegal South Korean dumping … The government’s meaningful investigative work is typically performed during the final phase of the case – and that phase is now underway,” Longhi said, warning of “dire consequences” that lie in wait for the US steel industry and for jobs of thousands of middle-class workers if swift action was not taken against the dumping practice.

In its initial review of the complaint, the Commerce Department did not find evidence that South Korean suppliers had been undercutting their US rivals by selling products for less than the cost of production.

Undeterred by the initial reaction of the Commerce Department, the US companies allege that the lack of punitive duties

against South Korean firms is hurting them because South Korea is by far the biggest exporter among the group of tube suppliers, shipping $818 million worth of steel tubes used in oil production to the US in 2013. American steel producers are asking the Obama administration to take a closer look at potential dumping by South Korea before the Commerce Department issues its final ruling on July 14 this year.

US Steel is under tremendous pressure to turn itself around following losses amounting to $2.1 billion in 2013; Longhi has embarked on a massive cost-cutting exercise to return to profitability.

Dumping was not the only cause of frayed tempers among steel industry leaders in recent weeks. Many steel suppliers were hampered by inclement weather in the past few weeks when extreme temperatures were recorded in some parts of the country.

US Steel Corp had to shut down its plant in Gary, Indiana, because of iron-ore supplies not arriving in time due to bad weather conditions.

US and Canadian coast guard personnel worked hard to clear the pathways for vessels bringing in raw materials through the frozen Great Lakes causing a major shipping problem, resulting in a weeklong

closure of the Gary steel plant. Ships that are designed to break ice encountered ice as thick as two to three feet; in some parts, wind and wave played considerable havoc.

But the Gary plant was able to resume limited operations after receiving a shipment of iron ore from a company mill near Detroit, which was sending one additional load, according to company sources.

Some of the ships arriving with iron ore from mines in northern Minnesota took two weeks across Lake Superior which, under normal circumstances, would be a mere three-day journey. But as the polar vortex intensified, many companies were on tenterhooks, concerned whether their supplies would last them and result in major disruptions.

The Gary plant, which has an annual capacity of 7.5Mt of steel, supplies the construction and automobile industries.

The plant was able to resume production at one of the mill’s three furnaces after receiving a shipment.

The plant had been able to operate from its old stock for some time before the ice started to affect production. This was the severest winter for many years and steel companies have learnt that they should have contingency plans in place.

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May/June 2014

12 LATIN AMERICA UPDATE

Ternium: poised for success in Mexico Ternium Mexico is well-positioned to serve the country’s burgeoning automotive market, says Germano Mendes de Paula*

MEXICO experienced a disappointing performance throughout 2013, as GDP enlarged only 1.1%, while steel consumption plummeted by 9%. Part of this can be attributed to the the wait-andsee strategy employed by business, lower public spending in the first year of the new administration and lagging construction activity. For this and the coming years, however, the macro and sectorial perspectives are fairly optimistic, which is beneficial for companies like Ternium, which has recently launched two new flat steel rolling mills.

On a macro level, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is predicting that Mexican GDP will expand 3% in 2014 and 3.5% in 2015. However, investment as a proportion of GDP will be roughly 22%. In addition, the inflation rate (for consumers) is expected to increase from 3.8% in 2013 to 4% in 2014 and then reduce to 3.5% in 2015.

The unemployment rate will decline from 4.9% last year to 4.5% and 4.3% in 2014 and 2015 respectively.

Mexican automotive production climbed from 1.5M units in 2004 to 2.9M units last year while car exports jumped from 1.1M to 2.4M units, amplifying the export ratio from 73% to 83%. Mexico’s car export ranking improved from ninth place in 2007 to fourth currently – behind Germany, Japan and South Korea. The consultancy firm EY (formerly Ernst & Young) believes that Mexico will reach second place and forecasts that the country’s automotive production will exceed 3M units in 2014, reaching 3.8M by 2018.

Slabs

Mexico

Argentina

2,320

2,890

It is worth noting two peculiarities about Ternium. While the company is formally based in Luxembourg, it is controlled by the Italian-Argentinian conglomerate Techint, which has a 62% stake. As Tenaris was also part of Techint, the latter effectively has an additional 11% share in Ternium. While its industrial base started in Argentina, Mexico plays host today to its largest operational base. Ternium entered the Mexican steel industry in 2005 having acquired Hylsamex. Two years later, it purchased Grupo Imsa.

Other

Total

30

5,210

25

Billets

1,640

160

1,800

Rebar & wire rod

1,080

180

1,260

HRC

6,000

2,780

8,780

CRC

2,480

1,840

4,320

150

150

Tinplate Hot dip galvanized

1,440

Electro-galvanized Pre-painted Service center

610

420

120

2,470 120

660

110

180

950

3,750

1,790

1,230

6,770

Table 1: Rated capacity of Ternium’s equipment (Mt/yr)

Ternium has 11 steel plants in Mexico (three of which are fully integrated) and a total installed capacity of 7.1Mt/yr of hot rolled products. Table 1 shows the rated capacity of the major equipment owned by Ternium. Some 56% of the enterprise’s semis capacity installed in Mexico, and the respective figures for rebar and wire rod and hot rolled coil are 86% and 68%.

Except for tinplate and electro-galvanised steel sheet, Mexico is the most relevant location for the remaining products.

Ternium Mexico is short of slabs. Of the 2.8Mt purchased from third parties annually, some 1.2Mt is bought from ArcelorMittal Lázaro Cardenas and the balance from other international suppliers.

Ternium plans to expand marginally intercompany slab supply (by 0.5Mt from Argentina to Mexico), but there will still be a shortage unless it engages in mergers or acquisitions or approves a brown/greenfield expansion.

Regarding forward vertical integration, one of its main competitive advantages are 11 distribution centres located in Mexico, which allow it to maintain a significant market share and reduce logistics costs.

Ternium owns 100% of Las Encinas mine (2.1Mt/yr concentration capacity) and it is a shareholder in a 50:50 joint venture Peña Colorada with ArcelorMittal (4.5Mt/yr concentration capacity). The combined installed concentration capacity of both mines was 4.4Mt in December 2012 (considering only Ternium’s attributable production), of which Ternium Mexico uses roughly 3.9Mt for its own consumption.

In August 2013, the company

20 15 10 5 0

2008

2010

2012

2014

2016

2018

Fig 1: Ternium Mexico’s recent EBITDA and forecast

* Latin America correspondent, professor in economics, Federal University of Uberlândia, Brazil. E-mail: germano@ufu.br May/June 2014

www.steeltimesint.com

LATIN AMERICA UPDATE 13

announced a MoU with Tecpetrol and Tenaris to jointly build and operate a natural gas-fired combined cycle electric power plant in Mexico. A new company, Techgen, was created to develop the project, 48% owned by Ternium, 30% by Tecpetrol, and 22% by Tenaris. Techgen’s power capacity should reach 850-900MW, of which 78% will be purchased by Ternium and 22% by Tenaris. The total investment is $1bn and will likely be commissioned late in 2016.

Ternium’s net sales in 2013 were $8.5bn, 1% lower than 2012. Mexico generated business equivalent to 50.2% of steel sales, followed by 35% in Argentina (and Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay) and 14.8% in other nations. According to a recent report unveiled by Credit Suisse, the Mexican share will be around the 52%53% plateau from now until 2018.

Pesqueria and Tenigal Looking again at Table 1, Ternium Mexico

has considerable installed capacity for flat carbon steel products. It has focused on the high-end market, especially in the automotive industry, and this strategy has been reinforced by two fresh projects: PesquerĂ­a and Tenigal, which required

investments of $700M and $350M respectively. The first one, owned 100% by Ternium, is a cold rolling facility in Monterrey City. The plant has a 1.5Mt/yr capacity and was commissioned in September 2013. The most recent production figures available indicate a successful ramp-up, as it operated at approximately half of this nominal capacity in February.

Pesquería is focused on high-end products, which fits well with the company’s strategy of trying to achieve higher levels of differentiation through an increased participation in these markets.

Credit Suisse summarises that “the rationale behind this strategy is mainly supported by (i) the fact that this is a fastgrowing segment in LatAm, which currently imports most of the products to meet demand in the region, and (ii) the higher margins of the segment as a result of products with more added value�.

Tenigalis is a 51:49 joint venture between Ternium and Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp (NSSMC). This is a 400kt/yr hot-dip galvanised mill located on the PesquerĂ­a site. It started-up in July 2013 and is understood to be operating almost at full capacity. Not surprisingly, this

new facility serves the Mexican automobile market, targeting new customers with high-grade, high-quality galvanised automotive steel sheets.

Pesquería and Tenigal intends to import to a large extent. In 2013, Mexican apparent consumption of cold rolled coil totalled 3.28Mt, of which 609kt referred to imports, implying an 18.6% import penetration ratio. For flat-coated steel products, the figures were 2.80Mt, 1.24Mt and 44.5%. Thus, the relatively smooth ramp-up can be associated – at least partially – to import substitution rather than a need to gain market share against other local producers.

PesquerĂ­a and Tenigal allow Ternium Mexico to expand sales by enhancing the product mix. The improvement derived from these investments will help the company to improve its financial performance. The EBITDA margin, which has already enlarged from 15.0% in 2012 to 17.4% in 2013 is expected to achieve 18.9% this year and the following ones (Fig 1) according to Credit Suisse. Ternium Mexico is well positioned to benefit from the recovery of the Mexican steel market in general, and the expansion of the auto steel sheet segment in particular.

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May/June 2014

14 INDIA UPDATE

India’s transitional phase

Picture courtesy of Morgue.com

Weak demand from consumer industries coupled with cuts in infrastructure spending continue to hamper growth.

By Dilip Kumar Jha*

THE Indian steel industry is passing through a transitional phase as consumer industries in India experience a slowdown.

Deferred investment plans for infrastructure development and a slowdown in the construction sector, white goods and automotive, hit India’s steel industry hard.

Promises by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to invest $1 trillion on infrastructure have given hope to steel companies looking for a turnaround in their fortunes, but they will have to wait for at least one year for the funds to be released.

A new government will assume office at the end of June and will present its Union Budget by July at the earliest. The budget will cover the period from August 2014 to March 2015. The current government presented an interim budget for the period February to May 2014, but fresh infrastructure investment is unlikely to come on stream before the end of 2014.

As a result, the steel industry in India is unlikely to be on track before early 2015.

Construction, capital goods and automotive together account for around 80% of domestic steel consumption and are facing challenging times this year.

Sharp cut in infrastructure spending

Steel demand growth has been declining over the last three years due to a sharp cut in infrastructure investment. The housing and construction sectors – which account for around half of India’s steel demand – have been slowing down and the automotive sector’s domestic sales volume has shown negative growth. With key domestic steel demand sectors witnessing

negative growth, overall steel demand in India grew by just 0.7% year-on-year between April 2013 and February 2014.

India’s steel consumption stood at 67.3Mt between April 2013 and February 2014 against 66.8Mt during the same period last year. However, steel production during the period increased by 4% year-on-year to 77.3Mt and this resulted in a decline in imports (down by 31%). Taking advantage of the weaker rupee during the year, India’s steel exports jumped 8.1% between April 2013 and February 2014.

In September last year, India’s major producers raised their selling prices in Company

Yet again, consumers abstained from passing fresh orders to steel mills due to sluggish demand in the housing and infrastructure sectors and Indian steel mills decided to cut prices. The strengthening of the rupee against the dollar and a slide in global steel prices reduced domestic discounts and import prices.

Further price revisions will depend upon whether or not the construction industry and automotive sector improve. This is unlikely given the backdrop of a deepening economic crisis, claims Jayanta Roy, an analyst with Icra Ratings.

Roy believes domestic demand growth

2010-11 Sales Profit

Sales

2011-12

Tata Steel Ltd

1159.5

88.4

1309.8

49.5

1318.4

JSW Steel Ltd

238.6

16.6

341.2

5.6

380.9

9.3

Steel Authority of India (SAIL)

426.7

49.1

458.8

36.1

444.0

22.9

Jindal Steel & Power

131.1

38.2

180.9

40.2

195.5

29.5

Bhushan Steel Ltd

69.1

10.1

99.1

10.2

106.7

9.1

Profit

2012-13 Sales Profit (73.6)

Table 1: Financial performance of major Indian steel companies (INR billion)

order to pass on high raw material costs.

Consumer industries, however, were unable to absorb the price hike so steel mills started discounting to attract customers. Prior to this, companies were unable to raise prices due to subdued domestic demand and cheaper imports.

With the sharp depreciation of the rupee and an increase in global steel prices, the threat of cheaper imports has lessened.

In January, steel companies raised prices by $15 to $20/ metric tonne to pass on increased costs caused by an iron ore price recovery and higher transportation costs.

for 2014 will be around 3% to 4% against the 5%-6% year-on-year growth expected by major players and worldsteel.

Further appreciation of the rupee would put pressure on steel prices as exports would reduce and pressure from imports would rise. A dip in international prices would mean lower domestic prices as India has turned into a net exporter.

Slowdown in consumer sector

Construction industry growth eased to 2.8% during Q2 2013 from 4.4% the previous quarter. Construction activity

*India correspondent in Kolkata May/June 2014

www.steeltimesint.com

INDIA UPDATE 15

improved to 4.3% in Q3 2013, but companies continued to face a challenging operating environment amid deteriorating macroeconomic conditions.

On an aggregate basis – both private and government sectors – new projects announced in value terms peaked in 2009 and have been on a declining trend ever since.

New projects for FY 2013 (April 2012 – March 2013) witnessed around 53% yearon-year ‘de-growth’ and private sector capital expenditure has been declining since Q1 2011.

Capital goods sector

Capital goods output grew by 15.9% yearon-year in July 2013, but shrank by 2% and 6.7% in August and September 2013 respectively before recovering to 2.3% in October 2013. Overall, capital goods output improved by 2% during Q3 2013.

There was a 2.6% growth in output over the same period.

Weak investment confidence, feeble domestic and uneven external demand stunted capacity expansion while ongoing issues related to various clearances restrained infrastructure growth.

Sticky interest rates and high leverage

www.steeltimesint.com

levels hampered the raising of fresh debt to fund new projects. Capital goods output growth is likely to remain muted as investment sentiment is unlikely to revive anytime soon.

margins. There has been a significant improvement in gross contributions from secondary producers, although scrap prices have witnessed an uptrend in previous quarters.

Auto sector

Moderate quarterly increase

Negative growth due to weak demand blighted the automotive sector. The domestic two-wheeler industry witnessed year-on-year growth of 5.8% between AprNov 2013 and this was largely attributable to the motorcycle segment, which grew by 3% year-on-year. The scooter segment posted a 18.7% year-on-year expansion during the same period.

Demand for medium and heavy commercial vehicles continues to weaken.

Truck sales have been weak, demand for buses contracted throughout 2012 and the light commercial vehicles segment has witnessed slowing demand.

The consolidated operating income of the industry – a universe of seven large Indian steel companies together accounting for over 40% of domestic capacity – showed a moderate increase during the quarter.

Industry operating profits have grown at a slower rate, reducing operating margins, which declined quarter-on-quarter from 20.4% in Q2 2013 to 19.83% in Q3 2013.

Net profitability improved because of lower foreign exchange losses, but net margins remained depressed.

Raw material price decline helps steel producers

Softened raw material prices are expected to improve profitability for steelmakers despite an increase in domestic iron ore prices. A further decline in coking coal prices in Q1 2014 could further improve

Conclusion

The near-term outlook on the profitability of Indian steelmakers has improved due to softening raw material prices (as a result of lower demand from China).

Lower raw materials prices will help neutralize low volume growth. Steel demand remains subdued and weakened global steel prices continue to pose a threat for Indian producers.

May/June 2014

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AISTECH 2014 17

Technology is the key

AISTech 2014 attracted 7,000 people from 44 countries in early May to Indianapolis.

Ron Ashburn, executive director of the Association for Iron & Steel Technology (AIST) talks exclusively to Steel Times International following a successful AISTech 2014, the global steel industry’s premier technology event’ held this year in Indianapolis, USA. Next year’s event will be in Cleveland, Ohio.

THE AIST brings together engineers and plant personnel from the mills, supplier companies and academic institutions to address specific technologies associated with the steel industry. It is not bounded by national borders and works to fulfil an apolitical mission to advance steel manufacturing technology wherever needed, according to Ashburn. The AIST organises more than 200 events per year in 11 countries. “Our vision for AIST is to be a global leader in networking, education and sustainability programmes for iron and steel technology,” Ashburn says.

Membership of the AIST continues to grow and is currently trending 6% above last year.

Participation on the organisation’s technology committees is growing too, and its local chapters continue to hold meetings and events throughout the year.

“One development we are excited about is the recently-announced TC Graham Fund for Innovation in Steel Application,” says Ashburn. The fund was established with a US$100,000 donation to AIST from Tom Graham Sr, the now-retired former president of Jones & Laughlin Steel, United States Steel and Armco. “The fund will be used to sponsor a contest to recognise innovative applications for steel that lead to the development of new markets, with an annual cash prize of $20,000 to the winning entrant,” Ashburn explained.

Another important initiative is the AIST Process Benchmarker (APB) which is a new benchmarking tool for steel producers.

“We’re staying busy enrolling subscribers and training personnel on its use,” Ashburn said, adding that the APB is a www.steeltimesint.com

secure online service for tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) between companies. “It provides a formal platform for comparative technical benchmarking to identify opportunities for improvement specific to individual plants, with the overarching goal to advance sustainable steel manufacturing,” he said.

1. What is your view on the current state of the global steel industry?

Overcapacity has become a real burden for the global steel industry. By some accounts, global capacity exceeded consumption in 2013 by 590Mmt. With such looming excess, it will take the concerted effort of governments around

the world to ensure fair trading laws are rigorously enforced, otherwise the number of trade cases will continue to spiral upward. From 2009 to 2012, the number of anti-dumping cases filed in the steel industry more than tripled, from 18 to 56.

Litigating trade cases is a necessary evil, but I could certainly think of more productive uses for our industry’s time and resources.

Despite this heavy burden, there are bright spots – such as North America’s rebounding automotive market and its evolving energy market in addition to other regional niche markets around the world – that are giving the industry hope.

2. “Aluminium will always outperform steel on a weight basis; and on the stiffness issue alone it will carry the day,” said Alcoa’s chief technology officer Ray Kilmer speaking about aluminium usage within the global automotive industry. Where do you stand on the aluminium versus steel argument?

With the continued evolution of advanced high-strength steels, aluminium can no longer claim victory on weight alone. And it certainly can’t claim it on strength-to-weight ratio or stiffness, let alone weldability, or the ability to connect parts. More importantly, when looking at the overall life cycle assessment, from raw materials (bauxite versus iron ore) to manufacturing (aluminium versus steel), through the useful product life to the endof-life recycling, steel will always win with respect to energy intensity and climate impact. It’s important to adopt a big May/June 2014

18 AISTECH 2014

picture mentality; otherwise we’re truly being near-sighted.

3. “While there will be increased aluminium penetration, vehicles will continue to be predominantly steel,” said Ducker Worldwide’s Dick Schultz. Is he right or wrong?

He is right. In addition to attributes such as style, performance and reliability, one thing all consumers want in a vehicle is safety, with respect to crash-resistance. For that reason alone, consumers will have a preference for advanced high strength steels over other materials they rightfully perceive to be of lesser strength.

4. “Within the next 15 years or so there could be a nearly even split between steel, aluminium and carbon fibre content in the average North American produced light vehicle.” So said Jay Baron, president of the Centre for Automotive Research. Who is closer to the truth in your opinion – Dick or Jay?

Taking into account the long-term sustainability (cost and environmental impact), the embodied energy of steel will be favourable when compared to aluminium and carbon fibre. While it’s true that vehicles of today and in the future will be multi-material in design, we believe steel will continue to be the material of choice because of its competitive edge on strength, price and environmental impact.

5. It is always claimed that aluminium is the ‘greener’ metal when compared to steel. What’s the AIST’s view?

Since 1980, our industry in North America has reduced energy consumption by 50% per ton of steel produced. We’ve reduced raw material consumption by 21%, and we now save more than one billion tons of CO2 emissions annually when compared to just three decades ago.

As we look to the future, the technological success-story for steel gets even better.

May/June 2014

When assessing attributes such as embodied energy, recyclability without degradation, carbon footprint and overall affordability, steel is indeed the best choice for a truly green and sustainable future, especially when compared to other material substitutes like aluminium, magnesium, titanium and carbon-fibre composites.

As an industry, we continue to develop higher-strength, lighter-weight steels with greater formability. These new steel grades can be applied to diverse manufacturing applications as a lower-cost solution to other materials. It’s important to point out that these advances are independent of life cycle assessment.

Once life-cycle assessment methodology is adopted by purchasers and governmental regulators, the story for steel gets even better.

Technology will enable the use of steel to leverage our natural resources for energy independence. It will enable the use of steel to achieve improved fuel consumption for automobiles, and it will enable the use of steel to promote manufacturing for generating economic wealth.

The advancement of steel technology is the very basis for the existence of the AIST. 6. “…any hint of doubt when it comes to predictions of climate doom is evidence of greed, stupidity, moral turpitude or psychological derangement.” Bret Stephens writing in The Wall Street Journal recently suggested that this view is often that of left-leaning politicians. Is he right or wrong?

As we are all citizens of the same planet, we should work together in making sure we are good stewards of our environment.

Manufacturing steel is energy-intensive and, like many other industries, we emit CO2 in the process. Anything we can do to lessen our footprint to benefit society should be a key strategy for our industry.

To that end, it is important that our governments provide a regulatory

environment that balances ideals with science and reality, and one that acknowledges manufacturing’s positive impact on GDP and economic growth.

7. In fact, talking of ‘green issues’ and emissions control, how is the steel industry performing in this respect?

Modern steelmaking technology will result in CO2 emissions, as carbon in multiple forms is one of our main inputs.

The steel industry has made significant improvements in CO2 emissions, with the US sector performing well ahead of the Kyoto Protocol. Since 1990, the US steel industry has voluntarily reduced the amount of CO2 released per ton of steel produced by 33% and energy intensity per ton of steel by 28% — that’s impressive.

When compared to other materials used extensively in manufacturing, steel continues to lead the way.

8. Speaking at the recent Metal Bulletin Steel Success Strategies in Istanbul, Adrian Bodea of MTAG asked, “Which breakthrough technologies will have a revolutionary impact and will it be something that is ‘one size fits all’ or a number of different technologies?

What does the AIST think?

There will be lots of new and exciting breakthrough technologies, but none of them will completely replace what we do now. There will still be blast furnaces for the foreseeable future, and there will be continued growth of both BOF and EAF steelmaking process routes, as both offer unique benefits for end-market applications.

I was with Adrian Bodea on that panel, and we debated the potential for applying breakthrough technologies relative to energy efficiency, environmental impact, new alloys, and overall process and quality improvements.

His question ultimately covers a lot of ground, but the common ground we share is that new technologies must be ecofriendly. In other words, we have to strive for sustainable profitability.

Steel manufacturing is not uniform in terms of energy consumption, so it makes sense to apply energy efficient solutions to the areas of highest energy use, which is melting and the recovery of heat from any effluent gas from the melting operation.

Adrian is definitely at the leading edge of evaluating energy efficient solutions, as he is looking at technologies with “green significance” such as microwave melting, electron beam melting and laser-induced plasma melting.

The use of natural gas to supplant coke and even electricity could also play an interesting role. The major OEMs to our industry are working on exciting new technologies. www.steeltimesint.com

AISTECH 2014 19

9. Are technology suppliers providing energy efficient and sustainable production systems?

Our industry has made great strides, much of which is directly attributable to the OEMs and other technology suppliers.

Only the largest, and typically, integrated companies pursue the classic R&D approach, while most others operate only with continuous improvement strategies that are often initiated by the vendor community. I do sense a change in that trend as more steel producers begin to understand the merit of R&D. There are new alternate ironmaking technologies being deployed, most of which are collaborative efforts between steel producers and industry suppliers. At the end of the day, the industry continues to work to develop technology to improve efficiency and reduce emissions.

The new generation of advanced highstrength steels have mainly evolved from thermal mechanical rolling with unique cooling technologies that re-engineer the steel’s microstructure and its resulting mechanical properties. It takes specialised equipment with sophisticated controls and automation to roll these grades, and the partnerships between producer and supplier have made these grades a reality.

10. How quickly has the steel industry responded to ‘green politics’ in terms of making the production process more environmentally friendly and are they succeeding or fighting a losing battle?

The steel industry is doing a good job making inroads to being more environmentally responsible. The US industry has reduced its CO2 emissions by 33% since 1990. That said, some of the goals set by national and regional governments around the world in regard to carbon footprint reductions are going to be very difficult, if not impossible, for the industry to reach with conventional technology. It really is important to strike a balance between ideals, science and reality, otherwise these regions will simply export their manufacturing advantage to other countries with lower environmental barriers. This idealism will have the opposite of its intended effect, by increasing production in regions with less environmental protection and increasing pollution per ton of steel produced.

11. China dominates global crude steel production and is accountable for almost half of total production. How should the industry react to this situation?

China’s industry needs to seriously assess the challenge of balancing profitability and employability as no company can be sustained without being profitable. www.steeltimesint.com

Sam Stoner of Spinworks International Corporation, won a pick-up truck in a prize draw at AISTech 2014

12. Where do you see most innovation in terms of production technologies – primary, secondary or more downstream?

Most of the energy and environmental impact occurs on the primary side. Melting steel typically has a low thermal efficiency.

As a result, most technological innovation resolved around process improvements and equipment design that reduce energy consumption and provide heat and energy recovery in addition to fume control.

Downstream production and rolling processes rely on yield improvements, as well as manipulating the microstructure of steel alloys to achieve the desired properties for an expanding array of applications.

13. How optimistic are you for the global steel industry going forward and what challenges face global producers in the short-to-medium term?

Overcapacity is an issue for global steelmakers. China is going to be challenged to manage production, consumption and profitability. The political situations in Russia and Ukraine are impacting OEM contracts, as well as the supply of natural gas to Europe, which is of vital importance.

Another challenge is unpredictable weather. In the past, heavy rains have disrupted the flow of iron ore from Australia. This year’s winter in North America was one of the coldest in 50 years.

The heavy ice has shortened the shipping season and continues to hamper raw materials delivery to regional mills.

Another issue facing many producers is the skills gap. AIST is working to help solve this problem through the AIST Foundation’s array of grant and scholarship programmes. We also recently launched a campaign to grow young professionals’ participation in AIST, offering the first year of membership for free, as well as new events specifically for young professionals.

We have a big challenge ahead, much of

which is attributable to our hiring practices 20-30 years ago. The lack of experienced “40-somethings” could derail this industry’s leadership as the prior generation moves on to retirement.

14. How vibrant is the US steel production equipment market and what kind of global market share is enjoyed

by American companies?

Most production equipment suppliers are multi-domestic; they are truly global companies, so it’s difficult to separate national orientation. That said, the US production equipment market is stronger today than it has been in the last five years.

15. If you possessed a superpower, how would you use it to improve the global steel industry?

I would ensure that no ton of steel could be produced unless it had a purchase contract with a fair profit based on its actual cost of production as delivered to the purchaser.

16. The AIST is based in the USA, but what’s your opinion of the current state of the US steel industry?

Although AIST’s programs are in 11 countries, the majority of our members are in North America so a healthy industry in this region is important to our association.

The fundamentals of the American steel industry are strong. US manufacturers are among the lowest-cost producers in the world. With the burgeoning natural gas industry offering market opportunities on both the supply and demand side, the industry is well-positioned to further increase its competitiveness. The North American automotive industry is healthy, offering further potential for domestic steelmakers. Additionally, there is an urgency to rebuild infrastructure, so we see opportunities for steel in the important non-residential construction markets as well.

May/June 2014

PROCESS CONTROL 21

Robotics and continuous casting The SIMETAL LiquiRob is a prototype of modern applied mechatronics for the harsh environment of the steel industry. This article concentrates on experiences acquired over the past decade from the installation of several robotic applications in different areas of continuous casting machines. It will show the evolution from the initial concept through the first implementation up to the present and offer a glimpse of planned developments and future directions, describing the evolution in the technology from the first installation to the present. By Juergen Meisel1, Simon Pfeil2, Roger Scheidegger3, Manfred Hügel4, Gerald Prinz5, Andreas Priesner6 IN 2004 Siemens Metals Technologies began to investigate robotic solutions for continuous casting lines.

Several applications were found – for example, marking robots in the run-out area – but there were no robotic solutions on the casting floor. The goal during the development of SIMETAL LiquiRob was to improve safety and increase operational performance and quality.

The various manual tasks around the casting platform were analysed and a concept with three independent robots performing the most dangerous tasks was generated (Fig 1). After finalising the concept, the first feasibility tests were conducted in the laboratory (Fig 2) and the first experiences were obtained with the robot equipment.

During the laboratory tests, the individual functions were tested and reliable tools developed. The challenge was to design the entire system to withstand the tough conditions of the steelmaking area. In 2007 the first industrial application of the SIMETAL LiquiRob was launched at the casting platform of continuous casting machine 2-3 at POSCO Gwangyang in South Korea (Fig 3). In order to extend the operating area of the robot, an additional axis was installed. At POSCO the robot fulfills tasks like: • Temperature measurement in the tundish; • Taking steel samples from the tundish; • Powder feeding to the tundish.

At POSCO, LiquiRob proved that the system was designed well enough to function in such a harsh environment.

However, there were lessons learned from this first installation, and several equipment parts were revised to improve their performance.

In 2008 the LiquiRob system was installed on continuous casting machine

Fig 1 Initial plant layout

Fig 2 LiquiRob during laboratory tests

Fig 3 LiquiRob during temperature measurement at POSCO Gwangyang (2007)

number 3 at Usiminas Cubatão in Brazil. It was installed for the first time at the ladle operator platform (LOP) for temperature measurement and steel sampling (Fig 4).

Very little space was needed for the implementation of the system.

LiquiRob’s ability to withstand harsh conditions was demonstrated with its installation at the EAF (electric arc furnace) of SAM Neuves Maisons – RIVA Group (France) in 2010 (Fig 5).

The same concept that was used with continuous casting machines was employed, enabling the system to be started up in just nine days.

In 2010 LiquiRob also found its way to a converter steel plant. It was installed at two BOF plants (Fig 6) at ThyssenKrupp

CSA (Brazil), where the system is operating sub-lance probes (T, TSC, and TSO probes).

To avoid time-consuming measurement errors, the system can recognise defective probes and sort them.

In 2011 LiquiRob was installed at continuous casting machine number 5 at Voestalpine Stahl GmbH Linz (Austria). In this installation, hydrogen measurement and ladle oxygen lancing (Fig 7) were performed for the first time.

Other tasks the system fulfills include temperature measurement and steel sampling in the tundish. To effectively decrease the required maintenance effort and increase the availability of the overall system, sensor-free probe magazines were used for the first time.

1 Head of Robotics, Siemens Metals Technologies GmbH, 4031 Linz, Austria. 2 Robotics and machine vision, Siemens Metals Technologies GmbH, 4031 Linz, Austria. 3 Layout and engineering, Siemens Metals Technologies GmbH, 4031 Linz, Austria. 4 Automation and software design, Siemens Metals Technologies GmbH, 4031 Linz, Austria. 5 Robotics and automation, Siemens Metals Technologies GmbH, 4031 Linz, Austria. 6 Robotics and automation, Siemens Metals Technologies GmbH, 4031 Linz, Austria. www.steeltimesint.com

May/June 2014

22

PROCESS CONTROL

Fig 4 LiquiRob installed at LOP (Usiminas CubatĂŁo CCM3)

Fig 6 (below) LiquiRob for BOF

The next advance was realised with the installation of two LiquiRobs at continuous casting machine number 7 at Voestalpine Stahl GmbH in Linz.

The first robot works in the ladle area and performs tasks such as connecting the slide-gate cylinder, argon, and electric plugs. The second robot is installed at the LOP and performs tasks such as tundish temperature measurement, tundish steel sampling, shroud manipulation, tundish powder dosing, and ladle oxygen lancing.

To allow for varying ladle positions, it proved indispensable to introduce a detection system (Fig 8) for ensuring the highest accuracy in each and every cycle.

This system was installed during the upgrade of the existing shroud manipulator to a fully automatic system at continuous casting machine number 6 at Voestalpine Stahl GmbH, Linz.

Thanks to this first on-site installation of the newly developed system (Fig 9), valuable knowledge was acquired that was applied directly to the CCM7 project.

Challenges and solutions

Fig 5 (above) LiquiRob for EAF

During the realisation of several projects over the past 10 years, Siemens Metals Technologies has acquired the experience and know-how necessary to successfully implement the LiquiRob system (Fig 10).

What are the success factors?

Fig 7 (right) LiquiRob during ladle oxygen lancing

Fig 8 Camera system

Fig 9 Target plate on ladle

Milestones

1st EAF

2 LiquiRob on casting platform

1st BOF

Case study

1st installation on LOP Oxygen lancing 1st installation

SEN exchange concept Shroud manipulation concept

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

May/June 2014

Fig 10 LiquiRob milestones over one decade

For the successful integration of a LiquiRob System, familiarity with the robot is essential; equally important is an understanding of the process, the layout, and the automation landscape.

The first step is to analyse the current plant layout to find the best site for installation and to determine the modifications required.

While the layout is being evaluated, the safety and operational concept must also be designed, and here it is important to understand the overall complexity of the continuous casting process. Mechatronical expertise is crucial in order to take the next steps in designing the special mechanical tools used by the robot and to seamlessly integrate the system into the existing machinery.

With a solid background of experience with standard robot systems, Siemens Metals Technologies brings the full range of expertise required (Fig 11).

There have been continuous improvements to the LiquiRob system in recent years. The basic concept, which dates from 2004, is still roughly the same, and the set-up, from 2007 for example, is still in use, but the system has been improved in terms of user-friendliness and maintenance.

Here are a few examples of how the LiquiRob’s function and design have been improved over the past several years. www.steeltimesint.com

Connecting the international steel market Steel Times International magazine S S Steel Times International is the key publication for the steel market, reporting oon iron and steel making issues from all corners of the globe.

F Features include • global news • technical articles • company profiles

• case studies • country profiles • regional economic briefings

• statistics • conference reports • event listings

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PROCESS CONTROL

Siemens VAI Simetal LiquiRob Metals applications

Solid company background Spare parts and services Quality control Project management System integration Mechatronical knowhow Software toolbox

Fig 11 (left) Requirements for implementation

Special mechanical tools Standard robot system

Standard robot system

Fig 12 (right) Sensor- and actor-free magazine

Fig 13 (left) Fence-free environment

Fig 14 (right) SEN exchange in Lab

Fig 15 Shroud manipulation

Powder dosing

A special powder bunker and filing system with scales was installed during the implementation of the first installation. An automation system was necessary to accomplish this simple function.

On the last project, the same function was realised with only a simple steel structure (bunker) and two different shovels (to define the volume of powder) resulting in less maintenance and easier operation.

Magazine for probes

At the beginning of the development process, a fully automated magazine was used. Today a sensor- and actor-free probe magazine (Fig 12) is used. The automation is now part of the LiquiRob and the logic is no longer part of the magazine. This decreases the maintenance effort and increases the availability of the system.

Current developments

After developing solutions for the ladle area and the tundish area, the next step is to realise a LiquiRob system on the casting platform that can, for example, perform an automatic SEN exchange during casting.

The difficulty with this type of installation May/June 2014

Fig 16 Shroud manipulation in lab

is the limited space on the casting platform and the fact that operators still need access to the platform and mould area. Our safety concept for this operation entails a fencefree installation (Fig 13) of the LiquiRob, which leaves the entire area accessible to the operators.

Shroud manipulation

Shroud manipulators on the market have some disadvantages: in the event of an emergency, for example, the permanent connection between the ladle and the manipulator presents a potential safety risk where turning is concerned. Furthermore, the manipulator can only perform one task – shroud manipulation.

The new shroud manipulation concept (Fig 15) works seamlessly with the LiquiRob. If positioned on the LOP, it can also perform other tasks like T&P manipulation and oxygen lancing or, depending on the layout of the machine, it can be installed next to the ladle turret.

Shroud manipulation works using simple mechanics and can be installed on almost any type of slide-gate cylinder system.

With a simple bayonet lock system (Fig 16), the LiquiRob can connect and disconnect the shroud to the nozzle; and

since there is no permanent connection to the nozzle, relative movements that increase the wear on the refractories do not occur.

Conclusions and outlook

Continuous improvement and development of the LiquiRob system has enhanced its safety and it has become virtually maintenance-free.

In the future, even more robots will be installed in various areas of the steelmaking process. It is important to create a collaboration between human operators and robots, and many of the necessary technologies are already available in other areas of robotics.

It is only a matter of time before these systems can be used in the harsh environment of a continuous casting plant.

References [1] Wimmer, F. et al.: “A major step ahead in caster safety with extensive use of robotics in continuous casting technology”; CCR’04; June 14-15, 2004; Linz, Austria [2] Penn, J. et al.: “LiquiRob – A new answer for caster safety”; CCC’08; May 26-27, 2008; Linz, Austria [3] Hirschmanner, M. et al: “LiquiRob - Improved safety and systematic procedures on the casting floor using advanced robotics”; ECCC’11; June 27 - July 1, 2011; Dusseldorf, Germany

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26

PROCESS CONTROL

Compact side guide gap position control for a hot strip mill

Variable voltage, variable frequency digital drives for position control of side guides on a hot strip mill enable closed loop control and improves the setting tolerance to +/-10mm compared to +/-35mm. By Shaktiveer Singh*, I Banerjee*, RR Choudhary*,Ayan Goswami*, B N Ghosh, B K Prasad*, D Sarkar**, K Venkata Ramanna** & K N Rao*** A PRECISE guide gap position control system for the hot transfer bar of the crop shear and finishing stands of the Rourkela Steel Plant’s (RSP) hot strip mill in India, has been designed, developed and implemented successfully in-house by the technical personnel of the Steel Authority of India.

The system consists of seven variable voltage, variable frequency (VVVF) drives along with drive panels, inverter duty squirrel cage induction motors, incremental encoders and a PLC system for the finishing stand guide motors (F1-F6) and the crop shear guide motor.

The side guide gap position control system is now achieving a guide gap tolerance from the strip edge at each stand of +/-10mm or better compared to +/35mm previously. A significant reduction in tail chewing has resulted as well as a decrease in delay due to electrical faults in the finishing mill. The number of cobbles in the finishing mill due to improper guide operation has also been reduced.

Rourkela hot strip mill

The hot strip mill at RSP produces hot strip of widths varying from 725mm to 1550mm in thicknesses ranging from 1.9mm to 12.5mm. The size tolerance on the width is 0 to +10mm and on the thickness Âą0.10mm. Hot slab is supplied from one of two walking beam reheating

furnaces. The mill consists of three 2-high continuous roughing stands followed by a delay table and coil box. On leaving the coil box a crop shear prepares the head for entry to the finishing stands which consist of six 4-high stands, followed by a run-out table and coiler. The layout of the HSM is shown in Fig 1.

Prior to modification, the side guides of the finishing stands were adjusted by push buttons operating a relay logic and driven by three-phase 415 V, 180 L frame,10kW AC slip ring induction motors.

The side guide for the crop shear was driven by a squirrel cage induction motor.

In this former system, the operator controlling the guides was only able to achieve a guide gap (measured from the strip centre) within a wide tolerance of -40 to +40mm. It was very difficult, during high-speed rolling, to open and close the

Fig 1 Layout of hot strip mill at Rourkela Steel Plant, India

Walking beam reheat furnaces 2x225t/hr

R0/V0 Descaler unit

guides manually for the required bar width.

Present day rolling requires that the side guide of each finishing stand should be sufficiently open when the head of the hot steel bar enters each stand and then immediately re positioned to a tolerance of -10 and +10mm measured from the mill centre line.

By doing this, the head of the transfer bar avoids impacting the stand guides while entering the finishing mill. Also during rolling, due to these tight tolerance side guides, there is no risk of the strip wandering sideways, which results in strip wobbling and telescoping of the formed coil laps.

In the new system, encoders are connected to all the guide motors to determine the movement of the guides and set the gap.

Stand

R1

Stand

Coil box

R2

Stand

Delay table

3700KWx6 Thickness Crop gauge F1 F4 F3 shear F2 F5 F6 Coilers

R2 stand Synchronous motor DC motor 6250kWx1 Ro: 3000kWx2 2470 kWx2 Vo: 1000kWx2 R1 stand DC motor 3800 kWx2 2470 kWx2

*Authors are with RDCIS (Research & Development Centre for Iron & Steel), Steel Authority of India Ltd, Ranchi, India. **Authors are with Rourkela Steel Plant, Steel Authority of India Ltd, Rourkela, India. ***Author is with Central Marketing Organisation, Steel Authority of India Ltd, Vizag, India.

May/June 2014

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PROCESS CONTROL

S-7 300 PLC

Encoder cable

F6

F3

F4

F5

F2

F1

Profibus network Splitters

Drives Crop shear and F1F6 side guides

For all stands Power cable

Encoder Splitter signal

Ct net used between drive to drive Side guide Inverter grade Squirrel cage Induction motors Encoders connected at NDE of motors Closed loop speed/position control VVVF drive for position control and braking Automatic guide control based on planned width

Profibus cable Encoder cable Power cable

Fig 2 Block diagram of automatic compact side guide gap position control system

PLC panel S7 300

Push buttons Profibus at speed cabin Drive panels

Motor control panel Display at speed cabin (actual gap)

Side guide motor (placed near guide)

HMI and drive prog terminal Ethernet

Fig 3 Automatic compact side guide gap position control system

The block diagram of the new side guide control system is shown in Fig 2 and the schematic of the control scheme is shown in Fig 3.

Major components

The main components of the new system are as follows: New motor installed at sited

Encoder

Coupling

Fig 4 Installations of encoders with coupling on non-drive end of motor shaft

Previous system

In the previous system, the speed of guide travel was 19.16mm/sec. No braking existed and the maximum distance of the guide from the centre-line was 855mm measured on each side. The parameters of the side guide motors for each finishing stand were: Voltage grade – LT; Motor – AC; kW-10; Type KS 180 L8; rpm – 780; Frame – 180 L8; Stator voltage – 415 V; Stator current – 24.5A; Category – slip ring induction.

The limitation of the old system was that the desired gap could not be adjusted by the operator. The only command for ‘guide open’ and ‘guide closed’ worked on contactor logic and it was very difficult to stop the guide motors at the desired position due to the absence of a braking system.

New guide control

Following modification, encoders mounted on the drive motors are now used to calculate the guide gap. The two side guides on opposite sides of each stand are mechanically coupled using a common shaft driven by the motor through a gearbox arrangement.

The modified system implemented consists of a Variable Voltage Variable Frequency (VVVF) digital drive system using new three-phase squirrel cage induction motors that receive speed feedback from incremental encoders mounted on the non-drive end of these motors. The May/June 2014

existing control desks have been retained for the new system. In the new scheme, if the planned slab width is, say, 1250mm, the guides of all the finishing stands will initially be opened at 1325mm. As soon as the head of the hot transfer bar bites the F1 stand (indicated by the F1 roll force), the guide gap is reduced to 1270mm. This procedure is repeated in turn as the transfer bar proceeds through each of the stands of the finishing mill.

The following activities were carried out to implement the new system: Replacement of existing three-phase AC slip ring type side guide motors by threephase AC squirrel cage motors with VVVF -based digital drives and regenerative braking for each finishing stand F1-F6; Provision of a VVVF digital drive for the existing three-phase AC squirrel cage induction motor for the crop shear guide; Interfacing of these digital drives with the entry guide S7-300 PLC using a profibus interface card to communicate with the existing mill PLCs network; Use of encoders with position feedback; Automatic guide position control based on planned coil width data set at the PLC by the operator, which is available in the mill PLCs network; Development of software for position control; Human Machine Interface for process monitoring.

VVVF digital drive

A micro-processor-based digital VVVF drive regulator complete with associated interface cards and suitable for a 15kW inverter motor for the finishing stands and crop shear guide drive was installed. The drive includes: overload of 150% for 60 seconds; protection from over-voltage and over-current; phase loss protection; phase imbalance protection, and power wiring fault features. The drive has a speed dependent current limit and input frequency of 50Hz +/-5%. Features include closed loop flux vector control, standard inbuilt input/output (IO) modules and communication capability on various protocols such as profibus and Ethernet.

Since the application is based on the speed of motor connectivity with the encoder signal it is processed by including an encoder feedback box in its design. The drive is capable of working at ambient temperatures of up to 50˚C. A line choke of appropriate rating at the input and a Sine filter at the output has been considered. Drive panels have a door mounted LCD screen to display program/ monitor drive parameters and at the same time can be connected through a PC loaded with the necessary drive software for programming and monitoring purposes. The drive has been selected to work in position control mode and it communicates with a Siemens S7-300 PLC (Processor 314) through an Ethernet and profibus network protocol.

Squirrel cage induction motor

Seven, three-phase, 415V, 8 poles, 11kW, 180 L frame size, inverter duty TEFC www.steeltimesint.com

PROCESS CONTROL 29

squirrel cage induction motors for the finishing stands’ guides and one threephase 415 V, 6 pole,132 M, 5.5kW squirrel cage induction motor for the crop shear guide make up the drive system. The motor shaft is extended at the non-drive end to mount an encoder. The motors have the following features:

Motor winding: Copper; Degree of protection: IP-55; Cooling: IC – 411; Max ambient temperature: 50˚C; Insulation - F class (minimum); Duty cycle – S4.

Incremental encoder

Optical incremental hollow shaft type encoders with a resolution of 1024 parts per revolution (PPR) with cable and connector outputs are used.

Matching the diameter of the encoder housing and the shaft diameter, the encoders are mounted on the extended non-drive end (NDE) shaft of the motors.

The maximum safe operating temperature for encoders is +100˚C and the protection class is IP 65.

There are three types of cable: power cable; encoder cable; and profibus cable are connected to the encoders. An existing CT net and Ethernet cable can also be used for drive and PC communication. The new squirrel cage induction motors and encoders with couplings are shown in Fig 4.

Trials were conducted to ensure: That the encoders mounted at the NDE of the motors would give the correct signal for the number of shaft rotations;

The reliability of the profibus communication between the Siemens PLC module and the drive profibus module.

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The reliability of Ethernet communication between the drive Ethernet module, Siemens PLC and programming terminal and CT – net communication between drives and programming terminal.

That the drive position loop was able to take control action.

A new link was created in the PLC software for all the drives, all of which were equipped with inter-connected profibus modules and finally connected to the PLC profibus module through a profibus cable. Ethernet communication was made between the drive and programming terminal since it was observed that the CT-net communication, which had been introduced earlier, was not very reliable because of its long distance.

Results

The system was installed during weekly shutdowns of the mill from October 2011 to March 2012. The new system was stabilised after a series of tuning adjustments to the drive parameters as well as the hardware, especially the encoder settings and dynamic breaking connections. The introduction of the new control system results in: Precise speed control of side guide motors;

Application of electrical braking as required for accurate guide positioning;

OPEN and CLOSE operation of the guides automatically for the required transfer bar width;

Faster response of the system due to digital drive regulation;

Achieving desired guide gap from the

strip edge within the desired +/-10mm as compared to +/-35mm previously;

A significant reduction in tail chewing;

Decrease in electrical delays due to faults by 10 hours per annum.

The system has been in continuous operation since March 2012.

Online and historical data logging is possible with the new drive programming software. The HMI package which uses WinCC-based SCADA will prove extremely useful in the future for diagnosis of faults that are otherwise not easy to trace.

It is recommended to introduce such a system in other similar areas in the mills and plants of SAIL where guide operation is imprecise.

Acknowledgments

The task force is grateful for the continuous encouragement and support from the management of the Rourkela Steel Plant and the Research & Development Centre for Iron & Steel in implementing the compact side guide gap position control system. Thanks also go to all departments of the Hot Strip Mill, RSP, for their easy adaptability to the new system.

Literature [1] Proceedings of SPIE – Vol 2101

Measurement Technology and Intelligent Instruments. Sept 1993, pp 606-609, held at China.

[2] Literature of Qualimatrix International, Measurement system for Hot Strip Mill [3] AC Induction motor fundamentals by Rakesh Parekh, Microchip Technology Inc. [4] Incremental encoders by Baumer Hubner

May/June 2014

PROCESS CONTROL

31

A wide variety of data acquisition software and logging devices are now available for almost any purpose. Thanks to new technology we can record and monitor variables and trends of extreme complex behaviour with outstanding accuracy, providing us with insight we’ve never had before.

By Alfonso Martinez*

Data acquisition and the EAF

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As an example we will refer to one customer with a ConSteel EAF who had made several furnace upgrades in the past few years, including the addition of new burners, increasing the chemical energy and thus improving the foamy slag practice with carbon injection. Despite improvements, electrical energy was overlooked due to the fear of making negative changes to this key area.

The power profiles and regulation were left with no adjustments since the original EAF start-up. It was deemed too expensive to call for a specialist and with the current economic situation and budget cuts other

MVA MVAR MW VA P.F.

Ac

Electrical and chemical energy working together

areas were considered of greater importance. However, technical specialist support from regulation and EAF optimisation engineers can bring vast rewards and must always be considered after changes to the furnace.

With new burners and the increase of chemical presence in the furnace, efficient numbers can – and in our example have – been achieved. Power On times were decreased and refractory wear was only suffering a slightly reduced lifespan, holding up well due to the improved foaming slag practice. With the already positive outcome nobody considered the huge benefits that a change on the electrical side of the system could make, especially when programmed to

Maximum power

THE steel industry – and in particular electric steelmaking – has evolved into the digital era where most electric arc furnaces (EAFs) use PLCs and other external logging devices, but they output too much information up to the point where it becomes overwhelming and time consuming, filtering through masses of data resulting in a loss of time that should be focused on information that can and should be used to make positive changes.

Being able to record history through logs at the furnace is crucial and it will improve the ongoing operation with companies being able to troubleshoot problems more easily by recognising the changes that occur in the operation. This can be heatby-heat, daily or by monthly log reports. To accomplish this we need to have a clear idea of where to focus our attention.

Efficient current usage

Current KA

Arc length increases Arc length decreases

It is crucial to evaluate the power curve operation real data before and after doing any profile change. Theoretical data can be used as a baseline, but actual real data is what systems like ArChecker provide and what enables benefical changes

encompass and complement new improvements. Evidence shows that electrical and chemical energy need to march to the same beat to give the highest efficiency. The reasoning is simple: when you increase chemical energy, adding burners, each stage of the melting process will be reduced in duration (bore-in, melting and refining) especially the early stages, which will become much shorter, so it is essential to use different arc-lengths throughout the heat. With a good foamy slag practice in place, it is a perfect time to test longer arcs based on arc-stability.

Data acquisition system

After discussing the history of the furnace systems and the company’s expectations with the operators, supervisors and managers, UKCG went on to connect the ArChecker, a data acquisition system designed to record, log and retrieve particular variables from the electrical system that can help us recognise how we can make positive improvements to the operation.

The ArChecker by UKCG is a state-of-theart metering system that can be connected either on the primary or secondary side along with the regulator. The meter provides five-times-per-second power flow measurements, they each come with a NIST-trace Accuracy Certificate and they capture 256-samples-per-cycle disturbances. It has an Ethernet-based remote communication with standard emails and web pages that are suitable for EAF and LMF furnace systems. ArChecker

* Technical services director, UKCG Technical Services LLC www.steeltimesint.com

May/June 2014

32

PROCESS CONTROL

can log, trend and report a tailor-made set of variables for each EAF and LMF application. The system can be portable or fixed and is easy to connect utilising noninvasive and low-risk clamps to avoid opening current circuits and eliminating any need to stop furnace operation during monitoring.

With the aid of this type of system, and an experienced technician, we can begin to create daily, weekly and monthly heat reports to monitor and evaluate the electrical system and its variations and finding possible opportunities for improvements whether on-site or remotely.

Real power curve

The power curve is a graph that shows the relationship between the average current and the average active power (MW) in the furnace. Only by means of this curve can we easily determine if the furnace operation is running efficiently.

The power curve changes depending on the transformer tap and the reactor tap combination being used. If the current surpasses the peak limit and is found to be running over the curve then electrode consumption (I2T) will be higher with lower power (MW) resulting in an inefficient use of real power and poor temperature pick-up.

The important factor is to determine whether the actual performance is running within the efficient side of the power curve and to see if new parameters (changes) can reduce electrode consumption.

Power, Tap and ArcStability (full heat) Bad SF

Medium SF Good SF

During this visit the Stability Factor (SF) helped us determine where we should use the longer arcs and when to use the shorter arcs along with when the heat starts to reach the refining stage

Tap Position

May/June 2014

Power

Used

Current

KVA

1

22,000

945

650

3,1976

2

22,000

945

630

32,991

36,000

3

22,000

945

610

34,073

36,000

New Profile

4

22,000

945

590

35,228

36,000

New Profile

5

22,000

945

570

36,464

36,000

6

22,000

945

550

37,790

36,000

7

22,000

945

530

39,216

36,000

8

22,000

945

510

40,754

36,000

9

22,000

908

490

40,754

34,588

10

22,000

871

470

40,754

33,176

11

22,000

834

450

40,754

31,765

12

22,000

797

430

40,754

30,353

36,000

Old Profile Old Profile

Table 1 Effect of transformer power tap position on operating conditions Electrode

+ Extra ~ 1”

Tap

Tip wear Slag room

Estimated arc length

Monitor and use of arc-stability

Electrode consumption was monitored with the electrical indicator I2H (square current through time) and also I2H/mWh

Secondary

Current

Trending current, voltage and arc-length per phase helps define an actual power profile determining the set point for each separate stage of the heat. We can create histograms for each stage – bore-in, melting and refining – to evaluate if the regulator is controlling its set-point correctly and use these for fine-tuning the regulator.

Evaluate electrode consumption I2H.

Primary Voltage

Currents, voltages and arc-length during the heat

Trending and evaluating arc-stability is vital not only to redefine the power profile, but to make good use of longer arcs and higher taps. Stability here was used to implement new automatic logic for earlier bucket charging.

Furthermore, arc-stability and kWh/ton are combined to control the fluxes injection, such as carbon and lime, during the refining stage to improve foamy slag practice and make sure the arc is submerged and covered properly.

ArcStability

MW

Tap

Electrode consumption (kg/ton) based on customer data

6 and 8

22.12

7

23.13

6

24.13

5

25.13

4

26.14

3

27.14

2

28.15

Cost Savings on electrode consumption after a month with new profile

Steel at full sill level

Tap number

Arc length (cms)

8

Yearly savings based on 500,000 tons

1.8 kg/ton

0%

4

1.38 - 1.35 kg/ton

25%

3 and 4

1.30 – 1.20 kg/ton

28%

to indicate a more precise and comparable indicator. This is a main area of concentration for many steel works.

Monitor over-current events

On this operation the over-current protections were set up very basically with

necessity levels low due to ConSteel’s continuous pre-heat scrap addition and the high liquid heel operation.

However, since the original set-up, operations had decided to combine bucket charges together with continuous scrap yet the cave-in protection was set for a slow www.steeltimesint.com

PROCESS CONTROL 33

reaction and it was actually reacting too late to the cold scrap, allowing high currents to occur, tripping the 50/51 relay on a frequent basis.

It is extremely important to have these events monitored and adjusted to each furnace’s conditions not only for electrode breakage protection, but to avoid high current peaks, which can affect the life expectancy of the power system; the transformer, switches, power cables, reactor, substation and more.

Transformer and furnace operation

Here the power profile was set for a very short arc because of the lack of foamy slag practice before the burners and carbon injectors were introduced. The actual tap used was Tap 8 combined with Tap 6 (see Table 1).

Tests were performed over a period of heats with varying tap combinations while monitoring the stability factor and refractory wear. This balance is vital to ensure cost savings from the changes.

Finally we recommended a change to the operation, which involved the use of taps 4 and 3 as opposed to 8 and 6 which increased voltage and dramatically changed the operation to a much longer arc.

www.steeltimesint.com

Results

Reduction in electrode consumption.

Real Power (MW) obtained with voltage is better for electrode consumption.

For example: With Tap 3 @ 30KA we can get 30mW (uses more voltage) With Tap 8 @ 38KA we can get 30mW (uses less voltage).

Higher voltage and less current

Current and electrode consumption are exponentially related by the formula I2T, meaning that the more electric current we use during the melting stages, the electrode consumption will be exponentially higher.

In theory the idea of furnace efficiency is to run with higher voltage and less current, as long as the furnace, transformers and power lines are capable of supporting longer arcs.

Arc length

Arc length is the common measure of distance (length) between the tip of the electrode to the steel.

Most regulators or electrode controllers can be programmed to determine this by use of a power profile or a set-point

whereby it knows what stage during a heat to utilise a long, medium or short arc with each having significant benefits to operation.

In addition to electrode savings, productivity was increased and reached record levels due to a faster input of electrical energy.

Conclusion

The ability to record history and logs per heat, day and month empowers us to improve the ongoing operation and troubleshoot problems at the EAF (LF).

It is essential to consider all variables when making positive changes and to adjust and continually improve electrical profiles to work in harmony with new improvements and maximise the benefits of progressive change.

Empowering your data acquisition system is not only about being able to record thousands of variables and other important information; it is also about knowing which variables determine whether or not you are making a positive difference to the operation.

UKCG’s technical service focus is EAF optimisation and regulation support as they provide our customers with cost savings and the highest rewards.

May/June 2014

34 STRUCTURAL STEEL

Modest improvements expected Despite an expected acceleration in demand later this year, the slow-to-recover non-residential construction sector has kept US structural steel shipments about a third below its 2006 peak and there is little hope that it will return to those levels before 2016 or 2017. By Myra Pinkham* “WHILE there is no reason that we won’t see an acceleration of improvement through the year, especially the steady increase in non-residential construction project activity since the middle of 2013, we aren’t expecting a ‘hockey stick’ increase either; and any increases are coming off of a low base,” said Marlene Owen, director of investor relations for Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI), of Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Even with its major end-use market continuing to show lacklustre growth, US demand for such heavy structural steel products as wide flange beams has seen double-digit growth rates ever since domestic shipments plummeted to 3.7Mst in 2009 from a peak of 8Mst in 2006, Christopher Plummer, managing director of Metal Strategies Inc, observes.

“But volumes continue to be about a third off from the peak and could take another two to three years to reach more normalised levels,” he maintains.

This comes on a backdrop of a nonresidential construction market that has been largely declining ever since the economic downturn.

“It has been a fairly disappointing recovery for non-residential construction,” Kermit Baker, chief economist for the Washington-based American Institute of Architects (AIA) declares.

“We are still in the early innings of the recovery,” after losing about 35% of the market during the economic downturn.

And although it appeared as if it was starting to improve in 2012, when a slight improvement (5% to 8% by most estimates) was seen, the market backtracked slightly again last year.

Robust year expected

Public sector constraints

There are, however, indications that 2014 will be a robust year for at least private non-residential construction, according to Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) although he admits that there are still concerns about public works construction. “Overall we expect high single-digit increases – close to 10% – in the value put in place this year compared with a 0.5% decline in 2013.

Robert Murray, chief economist with McGraw Hill Construction placed the value of non-residential building starts at about $172 billion in 2013, which, while up from recessionary lows of $159 billion, remains well below the $243 billion level in 2008 and the 2006 peak of $340 billion. “We are expecting another 9% gain to $187 billion this year and further gains going forward,” he says. “It is going in the right direction, but it just isn’t doing it very quickly,” John Anton, manager of IHS’ steel service, declares. He says it is encouraging that the rate of growth is expected to accelerate, possibly to 16% or more yearon-year in 2015, resulting in a return to “near-peak” levels by 2017. This growth will, however, vary widely sector by sector.

Led by hotels and retail stores, Baker says that the commercial/industrial building sector, which includes office buildings, manufacturing facilities and a number of other sub-categories, will see the largest gains in construction spending, with the institutional building sector seeing lower year-on-year gains. “Meanwhile we are keeping our fingers crossed that public works construction remains flat in 2014,” AGC’s Simonson says.

Murray says the institutional/public works sector in general has been held back by the fiscal health of state and local governments, which depend on tax receipts to fund these construction projects. However, it has been even more of a shaky recovery for surface transportation (such as roads and bridges) and waterways infrastructure construction.

Charles Bradford, principal and metals analyst for New York-based Bradford Research, explains that funding of the sorely needed surface transportation, has actually been hampered by the US government’s push for greater fuel efficiency. The more efficient the car, the less money that is going to the Highway Trust Fund, which is totally funded by the federal gasoline tax, which hasn’t been raised since 1993, he said. According to Bradford, the insolvency of the highway trust fund and the inability of Congress to find an alternative funding method resulted in the current highway bill, which is set to expire later this year, being too short-term (only two years in duration) for municipalities to commit to infrastructure construction programmes, which take many years to go from the planning to the construction phase.

Likewise, Simonson says Congress’ inability to come to an agreement on the Water Resources Development Act has held up public funding of the nation’s port infrastructure projects.

The largest increase in non-residential building, according to Plummer, has come from manufacturing facilities, which, he maintains, remained a star performer, even during the economic downturn. In

* American correspondent May/June 2014

www.steeltimesint.com

STRUCTURAL STEEL 35

general, US manufacturing activity has been up, with industrial production rising just under 3% year-on-year, according to the latest data from the US Federal Reserve.

Automotive success

Manufacturing construction was exceptionally strong last year, Simonson says, largely on the back of numerous new facilities being built or expanded in the energy sector. This is not just for new oil country tubular goods (OCTG) pipe mills, which have been numerous, but also for petrochemical production facilities, terminals to export liquefied natural gas and companies providing drilling and pumping support equipment. He says there has also been a big increase in automotive and auto parts production and assembly plants.

Murray says that while not seeing nearly the same growth rate as last year (about 37%), it will still be a contributor to elemental growth, rising about 7% yearon-year in 2014.

The value of commercial building starts has also been up in recent years, but even after four years of double digit gains (14% in 2011, 13% in 2012, 18% in 2013 and 17% in 2014) it will remain 26% below peak levels.

Meanwhile publicly financed institutional construction declined every year through 2013 after peaking in 2008, Murray says, predicting that even this sector could see a 4% year-on-year increase this year.

Good news for steel demand

These increases in construction project activity have led to increased optimism about steel demand.

“We’ve ended the year with a stronger backlog than we’ve had in quite a while,” said Joseph Stratman, Nucor Corp’s executive vice president of beam and plate products, during the company’s Q4 earnings conference call. One service centre executive said it was not just because of the usual restocking activity, but rather a combination of the increase in projects released to fabricators, and attempts to beat out expected rising beam prices.

Nevertheless most distributors say they continue to be careful to buy what they need to meet their customer requirements and not much more. “We have no plans to do any significant restocking unless mill lead times extend out,” one service centre executive said, adding that to date, mill lead times continue to hold fairly steady.

That continues to be the case even with the $20 per short ton base price hike, announced in early March by Nucor and Nucor-Yamato Steel Co and almost immediately followed by both SDI and Gerdau Long Steel North America. www.steeltimesint.com

Shipments

Exports Exports %

Imports Consumption % Change Import %

2013

6,147

1,112

18.1%

572

5,607

18.8%

2012

5,546

1,308

23.6%

482

4,720

1.1%

10.2% 10.2%

2011

5,324

1,168

21.9%

512

4,668

17.8%

11.0%

2010

4,278

838

19.6%

522

3,962

10.5%

13.2%

2009

3,727

514

13.8%

371

3,584

-41.5%

10.4%

2006

8,009

857

10.7%

1,039

8,191

11.8%

12.7%

(Peak Year)

Table 1. U.S. Heavy structural steel market (000 tons excluding piling) Nucor

3,700

Gerdau

1,400

Steel Dynamics

1,500

Table 2. Major heavy structural shapes capacity (000 tons, excluding bantam beams, including piling) 2014F

4.5%

2013

-1.2%

2012

5.0%

2011

-3.2%

2010

-17.2%

2009

-4.5%

2008

11.5%

2007

13.8%

2006

14.6%

Table 3. U.S. Non-residential construction annual growth rate (%)

This appears to be further evidence of US beam and other long product producers decoupling their spot pricing from the month-by-month gyrations of the ferrous scrap market. US ferrous metal prices fell another $20 per long ton in March after declining $30 per long ton in February, due to lower scrap exports to Turkey.

Recently, according to Anton, the mills have been looking to reflect quarterly and annual movement in their spot market pricing as opposed to month-by-month ups and downs.

In fact, Owen says that in addition to the expected pickup in demand, the mills’ recent price increase reflects a general strengthening of scrap and transportation costs.

Weather issues

There is no question that worse than usual wintry conditions everywhere east of the Rocky Mountains affected everyone in the supply chain, and had a negative impact upon structural steel shipment volumes from December through March.

“Nevertheless the beam market should improve as we get into the spring,” says Mark Breckheimer, president of the heavy carbon group of Kloeckner Metals Corporation, and could actually result in pent up beam demand. “Just how much, is hard to quantify,” he says.

Given that service centre inventories remain fairly lean – between two and twoand-a-half months by most estimates – there could be a temporary tightening of supply as the building season picks up, says Anton.

Beam imports have been fairly subdued

compared with other steel products and are generally expected to remain so, even if, as anticipated, the mills’ price increase is largely, if not entirely, accepted by the marketplace, given expectations that increased non-residential construction activity will result in further increases in structural steel demand.

According to preliminary US Census Bureau data, February’s heavy structural shapes imports were 13.7% lower than those in February 2013. “Given that the United States has been a net exporter of structural steel products since 2008, I expect that they will stay sideways,” Anton says.

Cautious optimism

Plummer observes that while the major structural steel mills continue to operate at relatively low rates – from low 60s to mid70s percentage rates – they have been improving and are likely to improve further.

Last year, he observed, domestic mill beam shipments were up 11%. With nonresidential construction recovering by a meaningful rate for the first time since the recession, he says a similar or better growth rate is possible this year.

“We are cautiously optimistic, barring uncontrollable macroeconomic events, that we will see gradual improvement in 2014 and 2015 as the US economy continues to improve and we further dig ourselves out from the negative impacts of the 2008-09 recession,” Owen says.

Breckheimer says the story is similar for US structural steel distributors. “There isn’t a boom coming, but we should at least see a modest improvement in business compared with last year,” he said.

May/June 2014

36 STRUCTURAL STEEL

Marked improvements on the way All steel frame structures and structural components placed on the market within the European Union (EU) as of 1 July 2014 will be required to carry a CE mark. Mark Wilkinson* explains what this means for steel frame manufacturers and component fabricators.

FROM 1st July 2014 CE marking for steel structures and structural components becomes mandatory in the UK, under the Construction Products Regulation (CPR).

After this date it will be a criminal offence to supply a steel frame or structural steel component without a CE mark to the EU. CE marking for structural steel products requires manufacturers and fabricators to not only consider the performance of the product, but also to take into account its end-use.

To apply the CE mark, manufacturers, contractors and fabricators need to demonstrate compliance to BS EN 1090, Part 1 Execution of Steel Structures and Aluminium Structures and Part 2 Technical Requirements for Steel Structures. This means that every component of a steel frame must meet stringent requirements.

In order to be in compliance with EN 1090, fabricators must also only use CE marked sections, bolts and welding materials. Designers will need to identify the Execution Class of the product, as defined in the standard. Execution Class is determined by the potential risk to loss of human life if the component or structure had to fail.

Fabricators and contractors must also produce a Declaration of Performance (DoP) for the steel frame or component(s) as well as be in possession of a Factory Production Control (FPC) Certificate issued by a notified body, such as BM TRADA. Although placing significant requirements on manufacturers and fabricators, it is hoped that the introduction of the CPR will improve standards of construction across the sector, ensuring the safety, stability and durability of all new steel frame structures.

From 1st July 2014 CE marking for steel structures and structural components becomes mandatory in the UK

The FPC system must provide a permanent record of the manufacturer’s production process, with all the elements, requirements and provisions adopted by the manufacturer documented in a systematic manner in the form of written policies and procedures.

The FPC documentation ensures a common understanding of quality assurance and enables the achievement of the required product characteristic and the effective operation of the production control system.

The FPC system must define (but not be limited to):

Applying a FPC system

BS EN 1090-1: Requirements for Conformity Assessment of Structural Components explains that, since all structural steel is safety critical, manufacturing must take place within a documented and implemented FPC system that is certified by a notified body, such as BM TRADA.

a. Responsibility, authorities and interrelations of the personnel who manage, execute and verify activities affecting product conformity to requirements; b. Procedures related to FPC, necessary to demonstrate product conformity at the appropriate production stage; c. Principles of keeping and supervising records; d. Principles of training the personnel whose activities have an effect on

quality; e. Principles of handling of complaints; f. Principles of conducting corrective actions, aimed at the removal of disclosed non-conformities.

Steel frame building manufacturer and fabricator Minshall Construction is currently going through the CE marking process with BM TRADA. According to George Minshall, the FPC system is the hardest part of the process to get right.

Although Minshall Construction already had processes in place, Mr Minshall explained that achieving CE marking requires these processes to be formalised.

He explained that the company sources its steel from five or six major suppliers and stockholders and that ensuring the traceability of the steel is of the utmost importance under the new CE marking regime. “It is essential that we know where the steel came from and what it is going to be used for. The suppliers must send us the right material so that we can fabricate, knowing that the frame is built from appropriate CE marked products.

* BM TRADA commercial business development manager, building and product services.

May/June 2014

www.steeltimesint.com

STRUCTURAL STEEL 37 “Our suppliers must be able to provide CE marked components with all the relevant certificates and composition details,” he declared.

“What we now need from suppliers is traceability for every component. We have to be able to trace an order through the factory and out to our clients and also be able to trace back to the order number and despatch date from our suppliers.”

Specifications contracts

Orders inspections

PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

Stocklist storage instruction

• EXC1 – e.g. Agricultural buildings • EXC2 – e.g. Residential or commercial structures • EXC3 – e.g. Bridges • EXC4 – e.g. Special structures (long-span bridges etc)

5 2

3

Suitability Maintenance Calibration PRODUCTS

Health & safety Communications Training Competence

4

1. Identify the harmonised standards and directives that apply to your product 2. Identify/verify the product specific requirements 3. Identify whether you require a Notified Body to carry out a Conformity Assessment

Non-conformities and corrective actions Controls Feedback

Delivery notes

Audits Contracts

Manufacturing must take place within a certified Factory Production Control (FPC) system

BM TRADA requires manufacturers to provide a certificate that specifically states that the RWC is trained to these standards as proof of compliance.

For Execution Class 3 and 4, BM TRADA will accept as minimum, an International Welding Specialist (IWS), International Welding Technologist (IWT) or International Welding Engineer (IWE) qualification as recommended by the International Institute of Welding (IIW).

Safe design

The determination of the Execution Class of a structure should be undertaken by the designer and the owner of the construction works, taking national provisions into account.

The standard requires that for EXC2, 3 and 4, all welding must be controlled by a Responsible Welding Co-ordinator (RWC), with proven competence, in accordance with the requirements of EN 14731: Welding Co-ordination – Tasks and Responsibilities, and the relevant part of EN ISO 3834: Quality Requirements for Fusion Welding of Metallic Materials.

For manufacturers of Execution Class 2,

6

HUMAN RESOURCES

Meeting the technical requirements

However, documenting and implementing an FPC system is only part of the story. BS EN 1090-2: Technical Requirements for Steel Structures, outlines what is required to ensure steel frames meet adequate levels of mechanical resistance, stability, serviceability and durability.

The manufacturer/fabricator has to provide product technical documentation together with an EC Declaration of Performance (DoP). The DoP is a legal declaration, made by the manufacturer, that the product was manufactured in accordance with, and conforming to, the requirements of the harmonised standard (BS EN 1090-1).

The standard sets out four Execution Classes (EXCs), which are primarily based on the end use of the structure or component:

1

STOCK

BS EN 1090 requires design to be carried out to Eurocode.

If the manufacturer/distributor is responsible for, or takes any responsibility for design, then to comply with CE marking and EN 1090, they must have a design protocol in place as part of their documented procedures.

This design protocol must outline all the steps undertaken in relation to design from the time an enquiry is received to the time time when fabrication drawings are produced.

The protocol should include handling of design assumptions, design methods, design calculations including any use of

4. Test your product to check conformity 5. Draw up the Product Technical File 6. Affix the CE mark and prepare the Declaration of Performance

The five steps to CE marking

computer programs, and results of the calculations with demonstration of procedures for corrective actions to be taken in case of non-conformity.

Tony Faulkner of AJ Lowther & Son, another fabricator currently going through the CE marking process with BM TRADA, says the process is mainly about formalising systems already in place.

“The process has not been easy and has required us to put a few extra systems in place. However, the attitude of BM TRADA has helped make this as painless as possible.

“Following an initial gap analysis, BM TRADA was very helpful and offered some very good pointers to help us formalise our processes.”

Although recognising the work involved in putting the necessary processes in place, Mr Faulkner welcomed the introduction of the CPR as he believes it will improve standards throughout the steel manufacturing and fabrication industry.

“It has been a steep learning curve, but it will be worth it as it will force all companies to design and manufacture to the correct standards,” he declared.

ABOUT BM TRADA BM TRADA provides CE marking certification for structural steel to BS EN 1090-1. It aims to make the CE marking process as painless as possible by working closely with clients to ensure that they meet the requirements of the CPR and apply a CE mark ahead of the 1st July 2014 deadline.

It is a notified body and can offer testing and certification for CE marking products under the Construction Products Regulation (CPR).

www.steeltimesint.com

For further information...

BM TRADA has produced a technical information sheet on CE marking for structural steel to BS EN 1090-1. To obtain a copy or for further information contact Steve Russell on; tel: +44 (0) 1494 569667; email: : srussell@bmtrada.com; or visit www.bmtrada.com.

BM TRADA provides independent certification, testing, inspection, training and

technical services. It helps customers large and small to prove their business and product credentials and to improve performance and compliance.

With an international presence across many industry sectors, it offers a special focus and a long history of technical excellence in supply chain and product certification and testing, as well as technical services to the timber, building, fire and furniture industries.

May/June 2014

Germano Mendes de Paula

LATIN AMERICAN STEEL A retrospective in 101 essays

AVAILABLE NOW!

REPRINTS FROM LATIN AMERICA UPDATES & CONFERENCES

www.steeltimesint.com

LONG PRODUCTS 39

Gerdau – Brazil’s international success story Gerdau’s North American Long Products Division has 16 mills across 14 states in the USA and two in Canada

Petersburg Mill, Petersburg, Virginia

Jacksonville Mill, Jacksonville, Florida

With a history of 113 years, Gerdau’s expansion beyond Brazil did not start until 1980, since when it has grown at an accelerating pace to operate 60 mills today and 148 downstream operations in 14 countries WITH a pedigree dating back to 1901 when João Gerdau along with his son, Hugo, set up a factory in Porto Alegre manufacturing nails, today Gerdau operates 60 steel mills, mainly in Latin and North America but also in Spain and India.

The company remains a family run publicly listed business, the present chairman is Jorge Gerdau Johannpeter, and the CEO, André B Gerdau Johannpeter. In total, six of the nine members of the board bear the family name.

Steel production commenced in 1948 with the construction of the Riograndense minimill, known as Usina Farrapos in, Porto Alegre (state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil) producing long products from scrap steel. In 1957, a second steel plant was started in the same location and, in 1967, a wire factory in São Paulo. 1969 saw the start of Gerdau’s acquisitions of other operations in Brazil. In 1980 the first expansion beyond the Brazilian border took place with the acquisition of the Laisa mill in Uruguay and in 1989 the company made its first acquisition in North America, Courtice Steel in Ontario, Canada.

Acquisitions continued in Canada, Chile and Argentina, as well as Brazil. In 1992, Gerdau entered the special steels market with the acquisition of Aços Finos Piratini in Brazil leading to the establishment of its special steels division Gerdau Aços Especiais SA. 1999 saw the first acquisition in the USA when Gerdau took a controlling interest in Ameristeel in Florida (a 100% Gerdau owned company since 2010).

Increasingly rapid growth has continued www.steeltimesint.com

during the present decade in the USA, Latin America and, in 2005, Gerdau made its first move into Europe taking a 40% share in the Spanish company, Sidenor a 700kt/y EAF based mill which also came with an 87% stake in special steel producer, Aços Villares in Brazil (100% owned from 2010). Expanding from the scrap based minimill concept, in 2009, Gerdau started mining ore at Várzea do Lopes (state of Minas Gerais, Brazil) and announced its intention to enter the flat steel sector.

The same year, it established itself in the Indian market setting up a production plant at Tadipatri, Andhra Pradesh, for special steels. In 2010, the company expanded ore production and increased its holdings in the USA, Colombia and Brazil.

In 2011, expansion plans are announced for the USA and Brazil and a common IT system to link all its plants throughout the world. In 2012 new investments in mining were announced to raise ore output to 18Mt/y by 2016 and the first export of ore took place. In 2013 it achieved its ambition to start producing flat products with the start-up of a steel plant and hot strip mill in Minas Gerais.

Today, in addition to its 60 mills, the company has 148 downstream operations, 62 scrap collection and processing facilities (including pig-iron production in mini blast furnaces), four iron ore mines, 135 retail facilities, three private ports and four power plants. Annual steelmaking capacity is now 25Mt and the company employs a workforce of over 45,000.

Gerdau in 2013

In 2013, net income for the Gerdau group grew 5% to R$39.9bn (US$16.98bn).

EBITDA (operating cash flow) increased 14.6% to R$4.8bn (US$2.043bn). CAPEX investments reached R$2.6bn (US$1.106).

Sales volume in 2013 remained static at 18.5Mt but output was reduced by 4.8% to 18.0Mt in order to release high stock levels.

In the final quarter 2013, net revenues increased 14.8% to R$10.3bn (US$4.384bn) compared to the same quarter 2012. EBITDA was R$1.4bn (US$595.9M) and net income R$492M (US$209.4M).

Deliveries increased 5.5% to 4.6Mt while production was 4.4Mt, an increase of 6.2% over the same period 2012.

During 2013, the company achieved important changes in its Brazilian operations including full integration of its long products producer within the division, Gerdau Aços Longos Brasil SA, the start of flat steel production at Minas Gerais and the expansion of mining activities there.

The capacity for special steels production was enhanced with investments in Brazil and USA and the opening of a new facility in India.

Sales

Sales in the Brazilian market (not including special steel plants) totalled 5.9Mt, 10.6% more than in 2012. This included sales of semi-finished products (slabs and billets) and sheet. Gerdau’s exports from Brazil reached, 1.4Mt but were 29.4% lower than 2012 because of lower demand in May/June 2014

40 LONG PRODUCTS

the international market and excess steel capacity globally.

reinforcing plant which started operations in 2013.

Capital Investments

Special steels

Most of the R$2.6bn (US$1.106bn) of capital investments during the year were for projects already underway.

The hot rolled coils mill Ouro Branco (White Gold) in Minas Gerais state, central east Brazil, was completed and started with an installed capacity of 800kt/y. In a second phase, a 1.1Mt/y plate mill is planned. Mining activities also located in Minas Gerais were expanded and a second concentrator for iron ore started operations in Miguel Burnier, bringing the company's iron ore production capacity to 11.5Mt/y. (Reserves of ore are now estimated at 6.3bnt >40% Fe content from a previous estimate of 2.9bnt).

In the speciality steel sector, a new mill was started in Pindamonhangaba, São Paulo state, Brazil.

Plants producing special steels operate in Brazil, North America, Europe and India.

Gerdau is a major supplier of these products to the automotive sector but it also supplies the oil and gas industries, wind energy, agriculture machinery, mining and others.

In Brazil, 3.2 million light vehicles were produced in 2012 in addition to heavy to medium trucks and buses. To meet this demand Gerdau started a new 500kt/y mill for special steel rounds at Pindamonhangaba in 2013 and expanded the capacity of its Mogi das Cruzes mill from 216kt/y to 276kt/y. An increase in light vehicle production of 4.5% and of trucks of 7% in 2013 is forecast by Brazil’s National Association of Vehicle Manufacturers (Anfavea).

In North America, an 18% growth in automotive output to 15.8 million units (light, medium and heavy) prompted Gerdau to commission an additional caster at Monroe (Michigan) as well as enhance the existing caster. Strong demand is forecast with a 4% growth anticipated in 2013.

In Europe, production of light vehicles fell 8% to 12.5 million units and that of medium and heavy vehicles fell 11% to 378000 units. However, Gerdau continued to invest in upgrades at its locations in Spain. This included the modernisation of its caster at the Basauri mill. Market recovery is expected to start in 2014.

In India, Gerdau started operating a small blast furnace of annual capacity 350kt/y of iron, a sinter plant and melt shop. A 200kt/y coking plant is planned for 2014.

In the same location, a 300kt/y rolling mill for special steels was started and a power generation plant using blast furnace off-gas. Two new inspection lines were also started in 2013.

Growth in light and heavy vehicle production is anticipated in India, in 2014.

Accelerated air cooling of wire rod

Brazil

In Brazil, Gerdau has 15 mills producing steel and rolled products, three downstream operations, 39 facilities to fabricate rebar products, five flat steel service centres, nine scrap collection and processing units and four iron ore mines. It also has 88 distribution branches, Comercial Gerdau.

In addition to the start-up of the hot strip mill Ouro Branco, the company plans to build a new melt shop at its very first mill, Riograndense in Sapucaia do Sul to increase capacity from 450kt/y to 650kt/y and is progressing with the installation of a new 600kt/y wire rod and rebar mill at Cosigua, due to start this year. Phase 2 will see capacity increased to 1.1Mt/y.

North America

Fabrication of rebar

In the USA, a new continuous caster was started at Monroe and in India a bar inspection line for special steels commenced operations, where also the modernisation of the steelworks took place.

In addition to this R$2.6bn in investment, construction of a new plant, Gerdau Corsa, in Mexico, to produce structural profiles in a joint venture with Aceros Corsa continues. The new unit is planned to start operating in 2015 with annual production capacity of 1Mt of steel and 700kt of rolled products.

Business divisions

Gerdau is the leading producer of long steel in the Americas and one of the leading suppliers of speciality long steel in the world.

The company has four business divisions: Brazil, Latin America (except Brazil), North America and special steels. Shipments in 2012 reached 18.6Mt of which 38% was within Brazil (excluding special steels), followed by 34% in N America, 14% to other Latin American countries and 14% for special steels.

May/June 2014

Investments in North American operations include replacing the continuous caster at the St Paul mill in Minnesota with a new 550kt/y facility (metric tonnes) for the production of special bar quality (SBQ) steels. This will begin operation in 2015.

A new reheating furnace was started at the Calvert City mill in Kentucky in January 2013. A scrap recycling company, Cycle Systems, was acquired in early 2013 to reduce the cost of raw materials for its US mills.

Latin America (except Brazil)

Gerdau’s mills in other Latin American countries face heavy pressures on raw material costs and have to compete with ever growing steel imports, particularly from China.

The main highlight in the region is the resumption of a project to build a structural shapes mill in Mexico in a joint venture with Mexican producer, Aceros Corsa.

The aim of the mill is to replace imports of structural steel. Due to start this year, rolling capacity is 700kt/y and steelmaking capacity 1Mt/y.

In Guatemala, Gerdau started a new factory to produce welded steel mesh for concrete reinforcement. In 2013 it also commissioned a rebar and light section mill with an annual capacity of 200kt/y.

In Venezuela, the company is upgrading its mill to increase capacity to meet growing domestic demand.

In Chile, it has built a fabricated

Stock inspection www.steeltimesint.com

Billet yard

LONG PRODUCTS

Sales by divisions

The Brazilian division accounted for the majority of sales (except special steels) in 2012 taking 36% by value equating to R$13.68bn (US$5.82bn). North America accounted for 32% of sales at R$12.16bn (US$5.17bn) and Latin America 13% equating to R$4.94bn (US$2.10bn).

Special steels accounted for 19% making R$7.22bn (US$3.17bn).

Employees

The Accident frequency rate has dropped steadily since 2010 from 2.31 to 1.06 in 2012 lost-time accidents per million hours worked. Investment in occupational health

Cooling bed for bar

www.steeltimesint.com

41

and safety has risen from R$49.1M (US$20.9M) in 2010 to R$92.7M (US$39.46M) in 2012.

Investment in training increased 15.8% to R$37.2M (US$15.83M) between 2011 and 2012 although average training hours per employee fell by one hour in 2012 to 52.4h.

Environment

Gerdau recycles some 15Mt of steel scrap each year making it the largest steel recycler in Latin America. The recycling of scrap via the electric arc furnace (EAF) reduces CO2 emissions by close to 70% compared to integrated steel production from ore.

The company has ISO 14001 certification for 48 of its plants (89% of the total). This includes an Environmental Management System (EMS) which is used to monitor the entire production cycle from collection of raw materials to disposal of waste products. The re-use of byproducts achieved 74.8% in 2012.

Water recycling rates across the group average 97%, one of the best in the world.

This saves over 2 trillion litres of water each year, sufficient to supply a population of 28 million for a year. The small amount not recycled is mainly due to evaporation.

A reduction in energy consumption of 2.4% is targeted for 2014 in its Brazilian operations. Over 1300 actions to save energy have been identified. The project is to be extended to other countries.

Gerdau uses natural gas in 94% of its plants worldwide.

Gerdau maintains green areas in all of its mills to improve air quality and increase biodiversity. Currently, of its 17,000 hectares of company property in Brazil, 3,000 hectares are preserved native forests.

Investments of R$8.5bn (US$3.62bn) are planned in the five-year period 2013 to 2017 in both steel and mining activities.

The company sees an increasingly positive outlook during this period with the gradual evolution of the economy in the USA and economic recovery in Brazil. www.gerdau.com

May/June 2014

42 PERSPECTIVES: DIALIGHT

Shining a light on the steel industry With sustainability and green issues front of mind for most steelmakers, Dialight’s Michael Schratz, VP of Marketing argues that LED lighting can help them achieve their energy efficiency goals

1. How are things going at Dialight? Is the steel industry keeping you busy?

Things are great at Dialight. Last year our lighting business segment grew by over 50%, and it now represents the largest of Dialight’s three segments.

Steel application opportunities have certainly helped contribute to this continued success. The demanding environments found within the steel industry are perfectly suited to Dialight’s rugged LED lighting. The launch of our new Vigilant LED High Bay at the beginning of the year is particularly exciting because of the total cost of ownership savings it offers the steel industry.

2. What is your view on the current state of the global steel industry?

The steel industry has continued to expand and evolve over time. In addition to dramatic increases in world crude steel production – the World Steel Association cites nearly an 89% increase in world crude steel production over the past 12 years (851 megatonnes in 2001 to 1,607 megatonnes in 2013) – there has also been a growing focus on sustainable steel.

3. In which sector of the steel industry does Dialight mostly conduct its business?

Dialight’s LED lighting solutions are designed to excel in the most demanding environments. This covers a variety of different sectors and applications, including primary producers, secondary producers and end-users of steel. Reliability is imperative for these users as frequent relamping is not practical since it often requires shutting down production in addition to diverting maintenance crews and dollars away from more productive tasks.

4. Where in the world are you busiest at present?

Dialight sells to end users globally either direct through our sales office and/or authorised sales representatives, or indirectly via our distributor network.

The Group is headquartered in the UK with May/June 2014

North American operations headquartered in Farmingdale, New Jersey. Our manufacturing facilities are located in Brazil, Denmark, Malaysia, Mexico, the UK and the US, and additional sales offices are located in Australia, Germany, Japan, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates.

5. Can you discuss any major steel contracts you are currently working on?

Current projects are being worked on around the world.

6. “Aluminium will always outperform steel on a weight basis; and on the stiffness issue alone it will carry the day,” said Alcoa’s chief technology officer Ray Kilmer speaking about aluminium usage within the global automotive industry. Where do you stand on the aluminium versus steel argument?

Both aluminium and steel have important applications in today’s world. Since producing both require a robust solution, Dialight can be found on both sides. One thing in common between both aluminium and steel production is the need and desire to do more with less, constantly improving efficiencies while restraints on resources grow.

7. It is always claimed that aluminium is the ‘greener’ metal when compared to steel. What’s your view?

The “greener” metal will certainly depend upon definitions. While aluminium and steel producers have made positive strides in becoming “green” there is still room for improvements on both sides.

As production continues to expand and further investment becomes mandatory, both aluminium and steel have the opportunity to capitalise on the latest LED lighting technology.

8. Where ‘green issues’ and emissions control are concerned, how is the steel industry performing in this respect?

The steel industry has made great strides

forward when it comes to sustainable production. According to the World Steel Association, not only has the amount of energy needed to produce a ton of steel been cut in half over the past 30 years, but steel is also the world’s most recycled material. Importantly, the steel industry has also seen a 21% reduction in the amount of raw materials needed for steel production. Through energy savings efforts like lighting retrofits, steel producers can build upon these sustainability gains.

9. In your dealings with steel producers, are you finding that they are looking to companies like Dialight to offer them solutions in terms of energy efficiency and sustainability? If so, what can you offer them?

Lighting upgrades are often the low hanging fruit when it comes to hitting sustainability targets. As an example, in certain applications it is possible to replace 400W traditional HID fixtures (which really use up to 480W of energy once the ballast is accounted for) with 172W LED fixtures.

Since LEDs deliver light much more efficiently, they can be angled precisely to direct the light exactly where it is needed and eliminate light wasted in illuminating the walls and ceiling. In some cases, fewer LEDs can be used to light the same area.

The energy savings potential grows even further as integrated controls are added to LEDs. Occupancy sensors can be added so the lights are only used when personnel are in the area and daylight harvesting sensors allow the fixtures to be automatically dimmed depending upon ambient light levels.

10. How quickly has the steel industry responded to ‘green politics’ in terms of making the production process more environmentally friendly and are they succeeding or fighting a losing battle?

The question of sustainability in the steel industry is often framed in an “either/or” manner.

Steel producers can either prioritise sustainability, sacrificing www.steeltimesint.com

PERSPECTIVES: DIALIGHT 43 profitability and production efficiencies or they can maximise profits at the expense of the environment. LED lighting solutions offer the best of both worlds. As the most efficient lighting technology on the market it offers tremendous energy savings and CO2 reduction. Meanwhile the energy and maintenance savings allow for quick paybacks and high returns on investment.

11. Where does Dialight lead the field in terms of steel production technology?

Dialight represents the industry leader for industrial and hazardous location lighting.

Over the years we have had numerous first-to-market successes, including: the first LED High Bay fixture for hazardous locations, the first full performance 10-year warranty for industrial and hazardous locations, and the first hazardous location fixture with integrated controls.

12. How do you view Dialight’s development over the short-tomedium term in relation to the global steel industry?

As the steel industry continues to expand and prioritise sustainability goals it will demand the latest LED technology has to offer. Dialight is well-positioned to take up this demand and continue to provide industry-leading, first-to-market solutions.

13. The Chinese still rely heavily upon Western steel production technology. What is Dialight’s experience of the Chinese steel industry?

monitoring technologies, which allow for centralised monitoring and management of fixtures at virtually any location via a web-based interface. For example, a single lighting maintenance manager could instantly see the remaining life span, adjust automatic timing and motion sensors or plan any required maintenance on every single fixture at every location throughout an entire company—all without leaving his or her desk. These are universal benefits that primary, secondary and more downstream companies will be able to utilise.

15. How optimistic are you for the global steel industry going forward and what challenges face global producers in the short-to-medium term?

Dialight is optimistic about the global steel industry’s growth. We expect renewed investment as the global economic recovery continues and producers recognise the symbiotic relationship between sustainability and profitability.

16. What exhibitions conferences will Dialight attending in 2014?

and be

Dialight recently attended the AISTech Conference and Exposition on May 4-7 in Indianapolis, Indiana. We also have plans to attend several local shows and electrical expos like ExpoElectrica in Mexico City.

17. Dialight is based in the USA, but what’s happening steel-wise in the country?

According to the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), US steel producers produced $75 billion worth of steel shipments in 2013 and was responsible for employing over 152,000 people. These are impressive figures that show the importance of the steel industry in the US. Also impressive are the sustainability statistics.

The AISI reports that in the EPA’s 2008 Sector Performance Report, the US steel sector was named as having the greatest reduction in air emissions among the nine different manufacturing sectors studied.

This highlights the steel industry’s commitment to sustainability.

18. Apart from strong coffee, what keeps you awake at night?

What keeps us awake is the excitement of offering the next industry first. Dialight lives on the cutting edge of LED technology, constantly improving our fixtures’ performance in the most demanding applications, overall energy efficiency measured in lumens per Watt, and warranted period.

19. If you possessed a superpower, how would you use it to improve the global steel industry?

Dialight’s superpower is providing the most energy efficient, the longest-lasting and the most intelligent lighting solutions.

While we are constantly working to refine and strengthen this superpower, we are happy to say that the foundation has already been set.

Dialight’s Asian operations are relatively new. We have had some notable successes within the Chinese industrial market and this represents another important growth area. Much effort has been spent building our brand and laying essential foundations towards sustainable and continued growth. Our early experiences in China show there is strong demand for top quality products.

14. Where do you see most innovation in terms of production technologies – primary, secondary or more downstream?

The future of LED lighting technology lies with the integration of intelligent controls.

LEDs can be equipped with a variety of control and monitoring tools to optimise usage, minimise energy consumption and further reduce operating costs. For example, because LEDs have instant-on capability that eliminates the lengthy warm-up period common with most conventional HID sources, LEDs can be paired with timers and occupancy sensors that turn the lights on only when needed, whereas HID fixtures are often left on all the time just to avoid the warm-up.

LEDs can also be networked via remote www.steeltimesint.com

May/June 2014

44 HISTORY

Preserved Bessemer converters Last year saw the centenary of the birth of Henry Bessemer, an entrepreneur inventor with 117 patents to his name. His Bessemer converter had a profound impact on world steel production By Tim Smith* A claim by a Sheffield museum, since corrected, that only three Bessemer converters survive today, prompted me to draw up a list of preserved Bessemer (and Thomas or Basic Bessemer) converters around the world. The total so far comes to 22; 10 in Sweden, seven in Germany, two in UK (including Bessemer’s pilot converter), and one each in Austria, USA and Canada.

I include details of each in the table below. Sadly, not all preserved converters have survived, a notable loss being the 25t Present location

Former company

unit at Iscor’s Pretoria works in South Africa, which was scrapped when the works closed in the 1990s.

The Bessemer process survived until 1981 in South Africa, Brazil, Argentina, India and Germany, but although a total of 12.8Mt of Bessemer steel was made that year, it accounted for only 0.2% of world production.

Bessemer steel production peaked in the UK as early as 1900 when 1.1Mt were produced. In Germany, peak production was reached much later in 1960 when Ceased operation

Nom heat size

Sweden: Information supplied by Yngve Axelsson of Jernkontoret Svartnäs

Stora Kopparbergs Bergslag

1875

?

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bessemerkonverter_vid_Svartn%C3%A4s_bruk.jpg Västanfors

Västanfors bruk

1897

2.5 ton

http://ekomuseum.se/en/besoksmalen/vastanforsomradet/ Tekniska museet, Stockholm

Västanfors bruk

1897

2.5 ton

http://www.kringla.nu/kringla/objekt?text=bessemerkonverter&sida=2&referens=tekm/object/TM3923 Långshyttan

Långshyttan

1931

4 ton

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bessemer_converter_L%C3%A5ngshyttan.jpg Iggesund (2 converters)

Iggesund bruk

1944

?

Hagfors (2 converters)

Uddeholms AB

1946

?

Sandvikens Jernverk

1946

4-5 ton

Högbo bruk

http://www.hogbobruk.se/hogbo-bruk/om-hogbo-bruk/galleri.html Forsbacka

Forsbacka bruk

1949

3.5-4.5 ton

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Forsbacka_bruk_02.jpg Germany: Information supplied by Olaf Schmidt LWL-Industriemuseum & Robert Laube LWL-Industriemuseum

Eisenwerke Rödinghausen, Menden

1915

Hattingen (2 Converters) Henrichshütte Bessemer works Eisenwerke Rödinghausen, Menden

1916

15 ton

1915/16

15 ton

?

?

Hattingen Unterwellenborn

Maxhütte Unterwellenborn

http://www.gasmaschinenzentrale.de/seite01.htm Dortmund DASA exhibition Dortmund Hoerde

?

?

?

Phoenix Ost steelworks

1964

?

12Mt was produced; the final blow was in 1977. Here, the Basic Bessemer or Thomas process dominated due to the use of high phosphorus basic iron. In the USA the peak of production was in 1906 when over 12Mt of Bessemer steel was made representing 55% of total output; production ended in the early 1960s. In the USA, Carnegie bought up the patent to the Thomas process to prevent it competing with the Acid Bessemers that he was using.

The Siemens Martin Open Hearth furnace (OH) was the main competitor to the Bessemer until the early 1950s when the basic oxygen converter (BOF) process was introduced. Open Hearth steelmaking dominated world production until 1970 after which the BOF took the lead. In 1974, 12.64Mt of Bessemer steel was made compared to 195.1Mt (29.6%) of OH steel, 339.9Mt (51.6%) by the BOF and 111.1Mt (16.9%) by the EAF. Today, a small amount of open hearth steel is still made, totalling 16.9Mt in 2012, but representing only 1.1% of global production. Most of this is made in Ukraine, Russia and India, but it is a modified form to the original Siemens Martin concept using twin hearths and oxygen lance blowing. In each of these countries it is being phased out.

I visited one preserved Open Hearth furnace, a small 8 ton unit at Munkfors in Sweden. Olaf Schmidt of the LWL museum informs me of a larger example at the Industriemuseum Brandenburg am der Havel in Germany. If you know of others, please let me know. tjsmith560@btinternet.com

http://www.route-industriekultur.de/themenrouten/06-dortmund-dreiklang-kohle-stahl-bier/phoenix-see.html Munich – German Museum

(sectioned converter)

?

?

http://www.deutsches-museum.de/ausstellungen/werkstoffe-produktion/metalle/ausstellung/ UK: Information from Tim Smith Kelham Island Museum, Sheffield Science Museum, London

BSC Workington

1974

25 ton

Bessemer’s pilot plant

1865

?

?

?

Austria: Information supplied by Robert Laube Hüttenberg, Carinthia, S Austria

?

North America: Information from Tim Smith Pittsburgh PENN Station Square

A M Byers Co

Smithsonian Institution, Washington DCKelly Converter(2) Dofasco, Hamilton, ON, Canada

1960s

10 ton(1)

1860s

?

?

?

Dofasco

Notes (1) Byers process to make synthetic wrought iron by addition of slag to decarburised metal (2) An unsuccessful tilting convertor http://smithsonianlegacies.si.edu/objectdescription.cfm?ID=164

* Consulting Editor to Steel Times International May/June 2014

4-5t converter from Sandvikens Jernverk , Sweden – the first location outside of the UK to use the process, which was in use until 1946. It is now located at Högbo bruk

www.steeltimesint.com

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