Rolling and finishing - Introduction - Case study 3

Technical know-how, training, market development consultancy
Location: Latin America

In the early 1990's a South American Company began installing a new medium/heavy section mill, however the project was suspended when construction was approximately half complete. In 2000, a new management team decided to complete the project whilst at the same time incorporating recent developments in rolling technology and process control. This involved changes to the mill layout and a new process control and automation system.

In addition it was recognised that the market for sections in South America was not highly developed with demand largely met through local fabrication of plate and through imports. If the new mill was to be a success then a significant effort would be required to educate the market in the benefits of using steel sections.

In the early 1990's, Corus had implemented similar technical improvements at its own Lackenby mill at Teesside in the UK. Corus had also been particularly successful in promoting the use of steel sections in buildings in the UK and European markets.

Corus Consulting was appointed to provide services in support of the client in the following three areas:

• Advice and assistance during the engineering and construction phase of the project
• Transfer of operational and technical know-how based on experience of Corus section mill operations, by means of standard operating and maintenance practices and training programmes
• Advice on the development of the local sections market.