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Siemens to Upgrade Tandem Cold Rolling Mill for CSN
06/18/2008 - Siemens VAI Metals Technologies will modernize Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional’s five-stand tandem cold rolling mill No. 3 in Volta Redonda.
Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN), Brazil, has awarded Siemens VAI Metals Technologies a contract to modernize its five-stand tandem cold rolling mill No. 3 in Volta Redonda.
CSN’s aim for the project is to further improve product quality and increase output. As part of the same project, Siemens will also replace the automation system, renew the drive and process equipment, and modify the rolling stands, infeed and outfeed areas, and the emulsion cooling systems.
CSN’s main production site is located in the city of Volta Redonda in the federal state of Rio de Janeiro. Here, the five-stand tandem rolling mill No. 3 has been operating since 1982 and, with a nominal annual capacity of 1.6 million tonnes, is the most productive plant of its kind owned by CSN. Modernization will improve product quality and boost plant availability, and the increased level of automation will also help to enhance productivity.
Siemens will modernize the drive controllers, the entire automation system, technological control systems, and the operator control system. The new equipment, which will be based on the Siroll CM concept for cold rolling mills, will feature a thickness-control system based on the advanced mass flow concept and new process models, which enable fully automatic adjustment of the rolling line to the different operating modes. Simplified operator control, integrated diagnostic systems and fully automatic rolling sequences are designed to increase the productivity of the facility.
Siemens also will carry out extensive renovation work on the mechanical equipment. This includes new hydraulic cylinders for all rolling stands, including servo valve stands, modification of the mounting parts on the work rolls and on the roll-changing system to facilitate automatic roll changes, and modifications to the infeed and outfeed areas. This will enable optimization of strip movement and further improvements in strip surface quality. Comprehensive modernization of the emulsion plant rounds off the project.
The plant will be revamped as part of a scheduled shutdown in the second half of 2009. Pre-assembly and pre-commissioning of some of the functions will help to minimize non-productive time, and training will be conducted in the context of an expanded system test in situ. The project, which is being handled with the support of Siemens Brazil, follows Siemens’ recently completed changeover of the drive systems of tandem line No. 2 to digital controllers and thyristor supply units, as well as ongoing preventive and corrective maintenance work in the Volta Redonda Continuous Casting plants.
The modernized plant will start operating in the second half of 2009.
Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional has an annual crude steel capacity of 5.6 million tonnes and an annual rolled steel capacity of 5.1 million tonnes, making it the second-largest steel producer in Brazil. The company supplies a wide range of steel products, including slabs, hot and cold rolled strip as well as zinc-plated and tin-plated products. The main customers are the distribution, packaging, automotive and household-appliance industries as well as the building sector.
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.
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.
