TPT November 2024

TUBE MILLS & ROLLFORMING LINES

Automatic steel tube and packing mill designed for the US solar industry

tubes for mechanical and structural applications. We saw a soaring demand from customers supplying

HENAN Yirui New Materials Technology Co Ltd, based in China, has taken over a new aluminium hot rolling mill from SMS group and put it into production. This final project milestone was sealed by issuing the FAC to SMS, after the new aluminium hot rolling mill was installed and commissioned to the satisfaction of Henan Yirui. Production started two months earlier than originally planned. The new hot strip mill is the centrepiece of a strategic expansion project that Henan Yirui, a subsidiary of the Henan Mingtai group, implemented at its site near the city of Gongyi, Henan Province, China. Henan Yirui relied on the expertise and experience of SMS, built up over many successful reference projects in the aluminium industry. The new mill is a solution developed by SMS for refurbishing and integrating components from an existing hot rolling LOCK Joint Tube has chosen Fives to supply a completely automatic tube mill to expand its capacity and meet the growing demand for renewable energy. Lock Joint Tube, a leading US steel tube manufacturer, is doubling production at its plant in Texas to provide solar tubes to key customers who are investing in the solar energy sector. Fives supplied a new OTO tube mill, equipped with the latest-generation technology that ensures the best performance for a wide range of applications. The global expansion of renewable energy is expected to increase by more than 440 gigawatts over the past 12 months – the largest increase in history, according to the International Energy Agency. Solar energy accounts for two-thirds of the projected increase in global renewable energy capacity. “Prior to the installation of the new tube mill, we could only produce small

Automatic tube mill at Lock Joint Tube

With the new OTO tube mill, we are doubling our original capacity with a single operator on the line. These results were possible because of Fives’ technologies and our successful co operation,” said Mark Richner, Temple plant manager at Lock Joint Tube. Increased productivity is ensured by Robopack, a fully automated packaging system developed by Fives. The system at Lock Joint Tube consists of a complex configuration, where three robots work synchronised to handle special tube lengths up to 15m. It offers greater flexibility and quality standards while providing consistent and safe operation.

mill, consisting of a reversing roughing mill and a single-stand reversing finishing mill, in a 1+4 tandem configuration. In addition to the reversing roughing mill, Henan Yirui now has a four-stand finishing mill at its disposal. SMS supplied the equipment, fluid systems and the X-Pact ® electrical equipment and process automation. All three new finishing mill stands feature cutting-edge CVC ® technology for superior strip quality. The mill exit area includes an innovative side-trimming shear, a down coiler unit and an offline strip surface inspection station. The new hot strip mill can produce trimmed strip up to 2,150mm wide. “Installation and commissioning times were significantly shortened thanks to the superior technology and the outstanding efforts, dedication and commitment of Henan Yirui and SMS support structures for solar trackers and invested in new technology. The OTO tube mill is automated from the entry line to packaging and flexible enough to produce tubes for all applications: solar, mechanical or structural,” said Michael Donnelly, corporate project manager at Lock Joint Tube. The tube mill doubled the production capacity up to 4,000 tons per month. It was fully operational in spring 2023 and has produced 3,000 tubes per day in both octagonal and square shapes. The automation is deeply integrated with the mechanics to achieve advanced and cost-effective results. “Automation was our priority because we wanted to increase safety, reduce heavy work and speed up production.

Fives www.fivesgroup.com

Aluminium hot rolling mill from SMS group for a four-stand finishing mill

group. The seamless integration of the second-hand equipment into the process automation of a highly advanced four stand tandem mill was a challenge. “SMS group’s solution to incorporate the roughing mill smoothly into the X-Pact ® Pass Schedule Calculation (PSC ® ) system supplied for the new finishing tandem mill was impressive,” said Liu Jie, general manager of Henan Mingtai Aluminium. “Throughout the project it has always been a pleasure to work with such highly motivated and dedicated project teams from both parties. The flat decision making hierarchy on the customer side was also very helpful,” added Rüdiger Roger Wiechmann, project manager at SMS group.

SMS group www.sms-group.com

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NOVEMBER 2024