AIST Steel Intern Scholarship

Robert D. Emery

This summer, I worked for Cleveland-Cliffs Burns Harbor, Burns Harbor, Ind., USA, location as an associate mechanical engineering intern in steel producing at the continuous casters. As a fully integrated mill, Burns Harbor has the capability to convert raw materials into finished steel products, so the continuous operation of the casters is essential to supply downstream processes with steel slabs and to keep the rest of the mill operational. After I completed safety training, I met my managers, who briefed me on the projects I would be working on as well as introduce me to an electrical engineering intern with whom I would work throughout the internship.

The first project I worked on was updating the general arrangement and detail drawings for the 8-inch bow idler rolls. The existing drawings were outdated and did not accurately represent the rolls that are in use at the caster. I inspected the rolls in storage as well as the bearings used on the rolls. I also saw the rolls being produced in the machine shop and took measurements using various micrometers. After converting existing surface finish information to the American standards, I created a sketch of the rolls with their proper features and dimensions. A draftsman then created AutoCAD drawings of my sketches and updated the repository.

For my second project, I designed a new clamp pad for the starter bar lifting device heads. These devices are used to allow cranes to move the starter bar heads into position to start casting. Securing the head in place involves tightening the clamp screw, a difficult task to properly apply enough pressure to prevent the head from slipping back and misaligning the clamp pad, putting the weight of the starter bar head on the small set screws holding the pad to the screw and causing them to fail in shear. I designed a new clamp pad with room for set screws featuring a larger, rounded head to act as a key and increase the amount of stress the part can take.

The last individual project I took part in was to design a protective box for the transportation and storage of caster turret bearings. This project was a good, start-to-finish example of the engineering design process. Turret bearings are very large and expensive; they must be shipped offsite for refurbishment and are difficult to transport and store due to their size. The wooden boxes currently used offer no protection against the elements and are prone to breaking during transport by crane. I met with my mentor and a contractor and brainstormed initial concepts and formulated a design for a steel box. The final design was sent to a fabricator to be produced and a safe lifting procedure will be drafted based on the load ratings of each lift point on the new box.

In addition to my three individual projects, I had the opportunity to work on a cooperative project with the electrical engineering intern in my department. We were tasked with replacing a broken fluid level switch with a transmitter that could be used to automatically shut down the system if the hydraulic fluid in a tank got too high or too low. The maintenance hydraulic system of which the tank was a part served both casters, so any failure would cause a bottleneck in steel production. I worked with a draftsman to create new and up-to-date general arrangement of the tank and system, as the existing ones hadn’t been updated since installation. The electrical engineering intern found an appropriate transmitter, but it did not fit in the spot of the broken switch, so I designed an adapter to allow it to fit where it would be used. Ordering a custom transmitter would have taken considerable time, so adapting one to fit was the most cost-effective solution. Once the adapter is manufactured using my detail drawing, the new transmitter can be put into service and linked to the automation system designed by my coworker.

In addition to my projects, I learned about ISO codes and performed fluid cleanliness tests on hydraulic systems, learned to read and use micrometers, participated in Lock Out, Tag Out safety procedures and enjoyed spending time with the other interns outside of work.

Overall, I found this internship experience to be very enjoyable, educational, and rewarding. I learned about the steel industry and the work that engineers must do to keep the casters running. I also had the opportunity to tour other departments of the plant and expand my knowledge of the entire steelmaking process, the variety of jobs each department offers, and where my role fits into the process. This internship provided me with the field experience I desired and given the privilege, I would most certainly work with the knowledgeable and experienced Cleveland- Cliffs Burns Harbor steel producing team in the future.