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Ford Specialists Inspect Production at MMK
10/13/2011 - A team from the Ford Motor Co. conducted an independent audit at Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works to evaluate the process of rolled products manufacturing. The audit involved almost every division of the plant, including the oxygen converter, the color-coating line, as well as mills No. 5, 10, and 11.
Specialists from the Ford Motor Co. conducted an independent audit at Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) to evaluate the process of rolled products manufacturing. The audit involved almost every division of the plant, including the oxygen converter, the color-coating line, as well as mills No. 5, 10, and 11, which are all involved in production of rolled products for the automotive industry.
MMK presented its production capacities and samples of finished products. The Ford team learned about the repair process peculiarities, personnel training methods, input materials and finished product quality control systems operated at MMK.
MMK says that upon the completion of the audit, the inspectors noted that MMK is potentially prepared to act as a certified supplier to Ford Motor Co. Among MMK’s strong points, the inspectors noted the completion and commissioning of the first phase of the Mill 2000 cold rolling complex that is to be equipped with an automated coil inspection unit. The auditors have supported the statistical methods of SPC control that are being introduced at MMK to assess the quality of technologies used at the plant’s key production lines.
The independent audit is part of an MMK program aimed at gaining acceptance of the company’s rolled products by Russian and international automakers, as well as by manufacturers of household appliances.
According to Boris Dubrovsky, MMK CEO, “One of MMK’s strategic goals is to become the leading supplier of steel products to the Russian automotive industry.” MMK has been steadily increasing shipments to domestic automakers. In the first half of 2011, the share of sales to the automotive industry has increased to reach 7.3% of the total MMK shipments to the domestic market. The total sales to Russian automotive factories in the first six months reached 262,000 tonnes, demonstrating a 35% increase over the same period in 2010 and exceeding the volume shipped in the full year of 2009.
Increasing sales of steel products to automakers is a result of the commissioning of MMK’s new Mill 2000 cold rolling complex. The first phase of it, mostly intended for production of high-quality automotive sheet, was launched in July 2011 and has a capacity of 2.0 million tonnes per year. Commissioning of the second phase of Mill 2000 is scheduled for 2012.
MMK is among the world's largest steel producers and is one of the leaders of Russia's steel industry. The company's operations in Russia include a large steel-producing complex encompassing the entire production chain, from preparation of iron ore to downstream processing of rolled steel. MMK turns out a broad range of steel products with a predominant share of higher-value-added products. In 2010, the company produced 11.4 million tonnes of crude steel and 10.4 million tonnes of commercial steel products.
