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Primetals Completes Capacity-Boosting Project at Aperam Mill

According to Primetals, the project increased the speed and capacity of the processing line at Aperam’s Genk mill, partly by installing new drive technology.

For the upgrade, Primetals Technologies supplied new electrical equipment, including an automation package and the line’s motors and drives. More specifically, Primetals provided 30 main drives for the entry section, the pinch rolls, the bridle rolls and the exit section.

Also, 99 geared motors were installed throughout the line, including on the strip conveyors, the furnace, the pickling plant, and the paper winders and unwinders.

Primetals said it improved the line’s strip tension control and strip stabilization by modifying the plant layout. The strip looper was decoupled, and new components were installed upstream of the furnace entryway as well as at the pickling section entryway. Additionally, the plant was outfitted with a new strip tension measuring system, necessary for strip tension control.

The project, which occurred during a routine end-of-year break, took 3.5 weeks to complete. Primetals was responsible for the engineering, equipment supply, construction and commissioning.

The line was returned to service in mid-January. The Genk mill makes coiled AISI 300 and 400 in weights up to 45 metric tons.