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Siemens to Supply Three Slab Casters for Shougang’s New Tangshan Steelworks

08/26/2008 - Siemens VAI Metals Technologies will supply three new continuous-casting machines for Shougang Group’s new Tangshan Shougang Baoye Iron and Steel facility, including a caster capable of casting ultra-thick slabs of up to 400 millimeters.

Shougang Group Co., China, has awarded Siemens VAI Metals Technologies projects for the supply of three new continuous-casting machines, including a caster capable of casting ultra-thick slabs of up to 400 millimeters. The casters will be installed at the new facility of Tangshan Shougang Baoye Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. and will be successively started up beginning in September 2009.
 
Tangshan Shougang Baoye Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. (Shougang Baoye), currently under construction in Tangshan City in the Hebei Province, is the result of Shougang Group’s effort to relocate the liquid phase of its iron and steel production to sites outside of the Beijing region. Shougang is moving away from Beijing in response to environmental concerns as well as to increase its overall steel output. The new steel works will be capable of producing approximately 4.2 million tonnes of a wide range of carbon and low-alloyed steel grades.
 
Siemens VAI’s scope of supply for the three new slab casters at Shougang Baoye includes detail engineering for core systems and equipment, basic engineering for the run-out area and maintenance facilities, and the basic and process automation systems. Siemens VAI will also equip the casters with a wide range of technology packages, including an automatic mold-level control, early breakout detection and quick-changing of worn copper plates in the mold. The scope of supply also includes online adjustment of mold-oscillation parameters, flexible and online adjustment of the slab width and thickness, dynamic secondary cooling and strand-thickness reduction in the area of final strand solidification to improve internal steel quality.
 
Siemens VAI will also supply special parts and components for the tundish and strand-guidance equipment, package units such as the mold-powder feeder, marking machine and roll-gap checker, and spare parts for one year of operation. Advisory services for local manufacturing, erection, start-up and commissioning will also be provided in addition to training for operating personnel.
 
Continuous Casting Machine No. 1 (CCM-1) is designed to cast up to a total of 1.4 million tonnes of steel that will be directly fed into the facility’s plate mill. Slab thicknesses will range from 250 to 400 millimeters, and widths will range from 1600 to 2400 millimeters. The casting-bow radius will be eleven meters and the metallurgical length 45 meters. The vertical length of this caster will be extended by one meter, as compared to the conventional Siemens VAI design, in order to facilitate the removal of steel inclusions and thus improve the cast steel quality.
 
CCM-1 will be additionally equipped with a three-dimensional spray system for optimized cooling of slabs of different widths, as well as with I STAR Revolver rollers, which require only a minimum of spray water cooling as compared to conventional rollers, thus reducing the risk of slab-surface overcooling.
 
CCM-2 will produce slabs with thicknesses from 220 to 300 millimeters and widths from 1600 to 2500 millimeters. CCM-2’s casting-bow radius will be ten meters and the metallurgical length 34.5 meters. CCM-3, with a casting bow radius of nine meters and a metallurgical length of 34.5 meters, will cast slabs at thicknesses between 230 and 250 millimeters and at widths varying between 1600 and 2150 millimeters.
 
The orders follow an earlier order from the Shougang Group for the supply of a 400-millimeter-thick slab caster at Qinhuangdao ShouQin Metals Material Co. Ltd., and the completion of two twin-strand slab casters that were installed by Siemens VAI at the Qianan site and went into operation in December 2006 and January 2007, respectively.
 
The Shougang Group, one of the leading steel producers in China, produced more than 12.4 million tonnes of finished steel products in 2007, including high-quality wire and bar, heavy plates, hot- and cold-rolled strip and sheets, as well as galvanized products, which are primarily sold to the domestic market.
 
The Siemens Industry Sector (Erlangen, Germany) is a leading supplier of production, transportation and building systems. The Sector comprises six Divisions: Building Technologies, Industry Automation, Industry Solutions, Mobility, Drive Technologies and Osram. In fiscal 2007 (ended September 30), Siemens Industry generated sales of approximately EUR40 billion (pro forma, unconsolidated) with around 209,000 employees worldwide.
 
With the business activities of Siemens VAI Metal Technologies (Linz, Austria), Siemens Water Technologies (Warrendale, Pa.), and Industry Technologies (Erlangen, Germany), the Siemens Industry Solutions Division (Erlangen, Germany) is one of the world's leading solution and service providers for industrial and infrastructure facilities. Using its own products, systems and process technologies, Industry Solutions develops and builds plants for end customers, commissions them and provides support during their entire life cycle.