SMS Meer to Supply 4th Large-Diameter Pipe Mill in China
09/17/2007 - SMS Meer will supply a large-diameter pipe mill equipped for the patented JCOE process that will produce large-diameter longitudinal SAW steel pipes for Zhongyou BSS Petropipe.
Zhongyou BSS Petropipe Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of the Baoji Petroleum Steel Pipe Co. Ltd., China, has placed an order with SMS Meer, Germany, for the supply of a large-diameter pipe mill.
The new 150,000 tonne/year mill will employ SMS Meer’s JCOE® process and will be the most modern of its kind in China. It will be used to produce longitudinal SAW steel pipes with diameters from 508 to 1422 mm and wall thicknesses up to 40 mm in lengths up to a maximum of 12.2 meters and material grades up to X100. The plant is to be built in the Qinhuangdao special economic zone near Beijing
SMS Meer’s scope of supply includes key machines for the plant, such as the plate edge miller, technological components of the crimping press, the JCO® pipe-forming press, hydraulically adjustable tack-welding machine, and a mechanical expander.
Pipes from the new facility will be employed in pipeline construction, and therefore must meet all the relevant API standards. They are intended for use in pipelines transporting oil and gas from Chinese rigs in the northeast of the country to the major cities in the east and southeast.
On the JCO pipe-forming press, plate which has been milled and crimped at the edges is gradually guided over its whole length onto the forming tool by means of manipulators. This results in an open-seam pipe with parallel longitudinal edges offering optimum preconditions for pipe welding. The JCO pipe forming press designed as a short-stroke version operates with a maximum press force of 65 MN The process is also highly suitable for the production of small-diameter pipes with large wall thicknesses, making it possible to also serve the market segment for offshore pipelines.
This will be the first application in China of tack welding with hydraulically adjustable roller beams. In a roller cage, the 80- to 150-mm wide gap between the two longitudinal edges of the open-seam pipe is continuously
adjusted and tack welded under inert gas. This tack weld serves as a weld pool backing during the subsequent submerged arc welding (SAW) process.
The roller beams of the roller cage are individually positioned servohydraulically and can also be readjusted under load, if necessary, so that the pipe longitudinal edges are brought optimally together.
The new plant and is scheduled to go into production in summer 2008.
SMS group is, under the holding SMS GmbH, a group of companies internationally active in plant construction and mechanical engineering for the steel and nonferrous metals industry. It essentially consists of the two Business Areas SMS Demag and SMS Meer, which jointly form SMS metallurgy. In 2006, some 9000 employees worldwide generated a turnover of about EUR 2.8 billion.
