ABB Ability™ Smart Melt Shop

Industry-first smart factory solution for steel melt shops is a unique application facilitating the move towards a fully connected and autonomous melt shop.

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Are you facing inefficiencies in your steel melt shop due to lack of visibility and manual synchronization between ladles, processes and cranes? Is your superheat compliance lower at caster, causing reduced casting speeds?

After connecting all moving objects - ladles, cranes, transfer cars  - with sensors, laser positioning, image processing and integrating information from automation, Level -2 or planning systems ABB AbilityTM Smart Melt Shop will allow you to:

  • Visualize melt shop ladle and heat movements in real time
  • Reduce delays and waiting times by forecasting heat pacing according to process demands from caster and converter or EAF and generate optimal crane schedules
  • Improve superheat compliance and increase caster speeds by predicting thermal losses and obtaining recommended lift temperatures for ladles at ladle furnace
  • Enhance human safety by reducing exposure to hazardous hot metal zones and allowing for decision-making based on information dashboards
  • Save energy and improve quality by predicting the ladle's thermal loss during transfer and calculating the right temperature to avoid excess overheating
  • Improve service planning by tracking the history of ladle maintenance and contact time with metal
  • Boost overall operational effectiveness in steel melt shop by identifying operational bottlenecks using time motion analysis reports for heats and cranes
 

>>>Find out how this technology has already helped  top steelmaker JSW to boost productivity and profitability by 2MUSD/annum

Smart melt shop solution

Tracking engine
Real-time ladle and crane tracking

Track crane position using radar
Track ladle transfer car position using laser
Identify ladle pick-up & drop-off using crane weighing system
Identify ladles using camera imaging system

Scheduling engine
Automatic, optimized crane scheduling

Track process events like caster remaining time
Forecast crane jobs
Crane route planning and scheduling

Thermal engine
Thermal prediction model

Predict heat loss during ladle transfer
Obtain recommended lift temperature for ladle furnace

Benefits you can expect

  • 4–5 percent increased casting speed due to better superheat compliance
  • Reduced tapping delays, i.e. in EAF or converter due to more efficient scheduling of cranes for ladle movement
  • Better ladle management and maintenance planning thanks to access to historical data on all movements
  • Increased manpower productivity since no manual intervention or acknowledgement is required
  • 5°C less arcing per heat in ladle furnace using thermal models to accurately predict target temperature
  • Less material rejection due to incorrect temperature at destination
  • Improved decision-making thanks to real-time availability of actual heat loss information
  • Increased human safety with less footfall in hot zones which would otherwise be needed to manage ladle and crane movement

Partner with ABB to accelerate your digital transformation journey

Why ABB?
  • Experienced provider OT and IT stack
  • Third party and legacy integration
  • Domain knowledge and metals industry knowledge
  • Efficient transformation projects, focus on ROI
  • New tools such as cloud, analytics
  • Development model with partners to jointly develop solutions

>> ABB references in metals industry


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