NLMK Expands Production of Premium Quality Cold Rolled Steel
11/06/2014 - NLMK Group has begun hot-testing of eight new bell-type annealing furnace stands at its rolling operations at the Lipetsk site.
At the same time, an additional 15 new stands are being installed, with hot-testing planned to begin in the second half of 2015.
Bell-type furnaces are used to thermally treat low-carbon steel after cold rolling. The new equipment, which replaces obsolete furnaces, employs high convection hydrogen annealing technology to ensure superior durability, ductility and other mechanical properties when compared to low convection nitrogen annealing.
Widening the use of this technology will enable the company to increase production of cold-rolled steel with premium quality surface finishing by 30%, as well as tripling production of rolled steel with top-of-the-line, first group finishing.
The total cost of the two construction stages (23 new bell-type furnace stands) is approximately RUB 1.2 billion.
Konstantin Lagutin, NLMK Group’s vice president for investment projects, said: “The primary goal of the project is to expand production of premium-quality cold-rolled steel products with superior quality of surface finish. Key consumers of such products are automotive companies, white goods manufacturers, and manufacturers of containers for the chemical industry. By improving product quality the company addresses one of the main goals set out in Strategy 2017 — to grow NLMK’s presence in high value-added product markets.”
Bell-type furnaces are used to thermally treat low-carbon steel after cold rolling. The new equipment, which replaces obsolete furnaces, employs high convection hydrogen annealing technology to ensure superior durability, ductility and other mechanical properties when compared to low convection nitrogen annealing.
Widening the use of this technology will enable the company to increase production of cold-rolled steel with premium quality surface finishing by 30%, as well as tripling production of rolled steel with top-of-the-line, first group finishing.
The total cost of the two construction stages (23 new bell-type furnace stands) is approximately RUB 1.2 billion.
Konstantin Lagutin, NLMK Group’s vice president for investment projects, said: “The primary goal of the project is to expand production of premium-quality cold-rolled steel products with superior quality of surface finish. Key consumers of such products are automotive companies, white goods manufacturers, and manufacturers of containers for the chemical industry. By improving product quality the company addresses one of the main goals set out in Strategy 2017 — to grow NLMK’s presence in high value-added product markets.”
