voestalpine Stahl, Linz, Austria
Production capacities of tandem cold mills using coil-to-coil operation are typically in the range of 600,000 to 800,000 tons per year. Today many of the existing batch mills are extended and modernized to continuous mode and new mills are installed for continuous operation from the very beginning. Depending on the product mix, production capacity of these continuous mills can reach 1.2 million tons per year or even more, and many quality parameters can be improved.
Our technological and process automation experience in 6-high and 4-high technology makes Siemens VAI a unique partner for your cold mill. Our goal with SIROLL CM is to deliver a solution that offers maximum added value for your production. Advanced mill stand actuators will bring the benefits of improved yield, user-friendly mill operation and high strip quality. Both 4-high and 6-high solution bring specific benefits, and our analysis of the customer’s overall requirements will define the best suitable technological solution. Our approach has been rewarded, for example, by top steel producers voestalpine Stahl (5-stand, 4-high, SIROLL Smartcrown®) and CORUS Staal (4-stand, 6-high), which have selected us to supply the latest tandem mills in Europe. Both companies are dedicated to producing AHSS (advanced high-strength steel grades).
Tangshan, China
In recent years, the most newly installed tandem cold mills have been continuous operation mills, which indicates that this type has displaced the traditional batch mill. The reason is clear: the productivity of a continuous mill is significantly higher (up to 40%) than a batch mill. One significant factor in this improvement was the development of laser welders. The weld seam produced by these laser welders and the modern control techniques allow minimum loss of time and material. As a result, later conversion of a batch mill into a continuous mill is a typical market trend of the early decade of this century. Generally, any existing non-continuous tandem mill of any line layout can be converted into a continuously operating mill with the use of suitable strip turning units, the right equipment and careful arrangement of all mill and logistic facilities.
Siemens VAI offers the following equipment for the continuous operation of your mill: