After successfully completing the commissioning of its new horizontal straightening machine, Hyundai Steel has awarded SMS group a follow-up order for the revamp of its Incheon heavy section mill in South Korea.

With this revamp Hyundai Steel aims to expand its product range towards larger sections with webs of up to 1,100 millimeters and sheet piles up to a system height of 800 millimeters. SMS group takes up this challenge as the leader of a consortium with Hyundai Rotem, a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Group.

As part of the project, various new functions will be added to the existing two-high breakdown mill stand and a new sideguard manipulator will be installed.

The rolling line downstream of the breakdown stand will be replaced by a new CCS® (Compact Cartridge Stands) tandem group and one additional CCS® finishing stand. The stands will feature nominal rolling forces of 12,000 kN for the horizontal rolls and 8,000 kN for the vertical rolls.

The CCS® stands will reduce the maintenance effort, and enable a shorter roll change time and higher rolling speeds, while achieving better tolerances.

Commissioning of the new rolling line is scheduled for October 2020.

With an annual crude steel production of 24 million tons, Hyundai Steel is one of the ten largest steel producers worldwide, supplying its products predominantly to the automotive, shipbuilding and general construction industries.