New 2.6-m mill stand and roller-type quench from SMS Siemag. Successful modernization of the Acroni heavy-plate mill

Slovenian steelmaker Acroni has commissioned a new 2.6-m X-Roll^® heavy-plate mill stand from SMS Innse, Italy, and a new roller-type quench supplied by Drever International, Belgium, two subsidiaries of SMS Siemag.

Acroni, a company of the Slovenian Steel Group (SIJ), is a highly specialized niche supplier with a focus on plates and strips of stainless steel grades, tool steels, abrasion-resistant steels and HSLA grades. To extend the product range, especially in the field of thin and wide plates, and to improve plate quality, Acroni has invested in a new heavy-plate mill stand and a new quench from SMS Siemag for its Jesenice (Slovenia) works.

The new 2.6-m X-Roll^® heavy-plate stand has a rolling force of 60 MN and is equipped with hydraulic adjusting systems and heavyduty work-roll bending systems. The mill stand was pre-assembled and tested in the SMS Siemag workshop in Germany in order to realize the installation at Acroni within a short shutdown period.

The new quench is designed for heavy plates of up to 2,560 mm wide and replaces a 2,000-mm-wide cooling unit. Thanks to substantially higher cooling rates, Acroni is now able to extend its product portfolio e.g. in the range of Duplex stainless grades.

The supply scope of Drever International comprised the supply and installation of the quenching unit, a new pump station, the piping and the adaption of the electrical and automation systems. The installation of the roller-type quench and of the new heavy-plate stand took place at the same time. To keep the shutdown period as short as possible, Drever used pre-manufactured and pre-tested modules.

The new 2.6-m heavy-plate mill stand of the Slovenian steelmaker Acroni.

Based on SMS Group information