Roughing Mill Enjoys Successful Startup

Early in the morning of August 4th, the Bar Mill roughing mill project team achieved the milestone they had been working towards for the previous sixteen months.  At 4:41 AM, team members rolled the first bar through the new roughing mill.  The bar was not only successfully through the roughing mill to the cooling bed, but also on size.   That first bar represented the tremendous work, dedication, and commitment of a large number of AltaSteel employees, contractors, vendors, and numerous others in turning a huge project into reality.
 
The roughing mill project has replaced our existing six 1950’s vintage roughing stands with eight new state-of-the-art Danieli mill stands.  These eight stands are capable of converting 8x8 inch billets into every size we produce.  Using all 16 stands in the mill, we will soon begin trials to roll new sizes, including 0.750" SR from 8x8 inch billets.  With the improved design and loading capability we have reduced the number of stands required for 8x8 inch billet products from 5 to 3.
 
Just how successful the commissioning of the roughing mill was is shown by the speed at which the Bar Mill was brought back into operation.  Although the new equipment required time for testing, training of personnel, and adjustments, on August 7th, the new combined rolling mill achieved a production of 1008 tons.  Presently, we are using only the first three stands to feed steel into the finishing mill.  Over the next four months, a considerable amount of work remains.  The other five roughing stands will be put into operation as required by our different size ranges, and exhaustive testing and mill adjustment will continue.   However, the major risks associated with this project are now behind us.
 
Thanks to everyone involved for the dedication and effort that has made this project a success for AltaSteel.