Industry Sector
Iron and Steel

Siemens to modernize main drives in two hot rolling mills of ArcelorMittal in Europe Enhanced rolling power for demanding steel grades

Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

Industry Sector / Metals Technologies ... Siemens to modernize main drives in two hot rolling mills of ArcelorMittal in Europe ... Enhanced rolling power for demanding steel grades

Siemens has won an order to replace existing DC main drives in finishing mills with more powerful AC systems in the ArcelorMittal plants in Dunkirk, France, and Ghent, Belgium. The two projects are part of comprehensive modernization plans for boosting productivity and reducing costs, within the scope of which the two hot rolling mills are also to be modernized for the processing of steel grades that demand more sophisticated production technology. The total Euro value of the contract is in the mid two-digit-million range. The drives will be modernized in several stages during scheduled annual maintenance stoppages, and completion is expected by the end of 2016. The first conversion work is planned for late 2012 and subsequently on a yearly base.


Finishing mill in the ArcelorMittal plant in Ghent, Belgium. Siemens will modernize the main drive systems of the rolling stands.

In the finishing mills of the two hot rolling mills of ArcelorMittal, a total of 13 stands are to be modernized. Siemens will supply the motors, converters and transformers for this, and will handle installation supervision, commissioning and customer training. To achieve maximum possible standardization, the same Sinamics SM150-based converter technology will be used in both plants. In Dunkirk, each stand has three DC machines in series. Adapting the existing structural environment presents a special challenge. Siemens had to design a single AC motor with a higher total power but outer dimensions which makes the motor fit on the same foundation as a single DC machine. The solution is twelve-megawatt compact machines, which will be used for the first time.

The finishing line in Ghent has a 14-megawatt pedestal bearing machine to meet higher requirements regarding achievable rolling torques. The modernization projects will be carried out jointly by the Siemens Competence Center for electrical and automation engineering in the steel industry in Erlangen, and Siemens Belgium.

The integrated production complexes of ArcelorMittal Atlantique in Dunkirk, and ArcelorMittal in Ghent, belong to the Flat Carbon Europe Division. The Dunkirk site has an annual capacity of 4.7 million tons of hot strip. An important customer for the end products is the automobile industry. Siemens will modernize the drives of seven finishing stands here in a total of four steps. Initial work on one of the mill stands is planned for December 2012. ArcelorMittal Ghent has a wide hot-strip mill and produces around five million tons of flat steel a year for applications in the automobile industry and domestic appliance industries, for example. In Ghent, a total of six finishing stands will be modernized in three stages, the first in December 2012 within just twelve days shut down time.

Further information about solutions for steel works, rolling mills and processing lines is available at http://www.siemens.com/metals

A photo supplements this press release. Please see: http://www.siemens.com/mt-picture/IMT201205461

The Siemens Industry Sector (Erlangen, Germany) is the world's leading supplier of innovative and environmentally friendly products and solutions for industrial customers. With end-to-end automation technology and industrial software, solid vertical-market expertise, and technology-based services, the Sector enhances its customers' productivity, efficiency, and flexibility. With a global workforce of more than 100,000 employees, the Industry Sector comprises the Divisions Industry Automation, Drive Technologies and Customer Services as well as the Business Unit Metals Technologies. For more information, visit http://www.siemens.com/industry

The Metals Technologies Business Unit (Linz, Austria), part of the Siemens Industry Sector, is one of the world's leading life cycle partners for the metallurgical industry. The Business Unit offers a comprehensive technology, modernization, product and service portfolio as well as integrated automation and environmental solutions covering the entire lifecycle of plants. For more information, visit http://www.siemens.com/metals

Reference Number: IMT201205461e