Woodings Ships Three New Hydraulic Distributor Tops to BaoGang Steel
02/25/2013 - Woodings Industrial has completed and shipped three new hydraulic distributor tops to BaoGang Steel Group — China's largest steel manufacturer in the northwest area — for use on the company’s two new high-capacity blast furnaces.
Woodings Industrial has completed and shipped three new hydraulic distributor tops to BaoGang Steel Group — China's largest steel manufacturer in the northwest area — for use on the company’s two new high-capacity blast furnaces.
The Woodings tops will be used on the new #1and #2 blast furnaces that BaoGang is adding to its Baotou City facility in Inner Mongolia. The third top supplied by Woodings will be a spare.
The first hydraulic distributor will be operating by the fall of 2013, while the second unit will begin operation roughly six months later.
BaoGang has been using the hydraulic distributor technology on its six existing furnaces at the Baotou City facility with reliable, predictable output. The two new blast furnaces will each have a working volume of 4,150 cubic meters of hot metal, bringing BaoGang's total output at this facility to approximately 20 million tonnes of steel per year.
The Woodings hydraulic distributor is the next generation replacement for traditional bell-less tops. The hydraulic distributor is interchangeable with existing bell-less tops gearboxes, making the upgrade to this new technology a simple retrofit.
The hydraulic distributor provides more precise, repeatable burden distribution resulting in more predictable operations. Hydraulic cylinders replace the traditional mechanical function for tilting the revolving chute. Rotation of the chute is accomplished with a simple gearbox and electric motor, which eliminates all complex tilt drives and gear reducers. There are fewer moving components, so the unit functions with greater reliability and longevity. The benefits of this system include:
• Better furnace reliability
• Increased furnace top pressure
• More consistent operation
• Less maintenance
• Increased fuel savings
• Improved gas and heat protection
BaoGang, one of the largest steel producers in China, produces hot and cold rolled strip, heavy plate, seamless pipe, heavy rail, large scale shaped beam, bar and wire rod.
The only hot metal equipment supplier offering design, engineering, manufacturing and service from one source, Woodings Industrial Corp. is the oldest continuous family-operated business in North America's steel industry. A worldwide leader in the manufacture of metals industry equipment, Woodings uses the most current technologies to design, engineer and manufacture an extensive line of traditional and not-so-traditional hot metal equipment, such as tap hole drills, clay guns, blast furnace top hydraulic charging units, tuyere stocks, blast furnace valves, hydraulic distributors and specialty products for continuous casters. Woodings is the exclusive supplier of Grabe overlay components in North America and has plants at its headquarters in Mars and Harmony, Pa., along with offices in Detroit, Mich. and Gary, Ind.
