3. Partner and invest
Procurement departments typically raise a cost-driven barrier to buying more efficient, new technologies. “One of their KPIs is to minimize expenses in any current budget. This doesn’t allow for strategic investment and it blocks the mindset to truly partner with suppliers,” says Esterhuizen.
“If you’re always driving towards the cheapest option, it makes it hard for suppliers to provide the features and customization that will multiply the difference made by an entry-level package. ABB seeks to engage in real partnerships that allow us to work with customers, understand their needs and provide advice on investments that deliver incremental benefits.”
For instance, ABB has developed a comprehensive range of electromagnetic stirring (EMS) devices based on its ArcSave
® technology, to improve the output and efficiency of EAFs. Every installation benefits from ABB’s technical expertise in training operators and fine-tuning how the EMS works in individual melt shops.
ABB partnered with electric arc furnace manufacturer Tenova to develop Consteerer®, an innovative bespoke technology. When
deployed at Italian steelmaker Acciaieria Arvedi’s record-breaking melting unit (furnace tapping size 300mt), Consteerer boosted productivity by 5% and reduced electrical energy consumption by 3.6%.
“Obviously, if you use less fossil-fuel-driven energy, you have fewer emissions and there's a lot of room for improvement in metals production,” says Esterhuizen. “Every manufacturing site is different, but they all have the potential to save a couple of percent, if not double-digit percentages, on energy consumption.”
4. Think circular
Electric arc furnaces have sustainability in their DNA — by melting down scrap metal to produce new steel, they are inherently part of the circular economy. But the drive to lower the carbon footprint of steelmaking which accounts for around 8% of global carbon emissions requires further systemic change. Reducing waste in every aspect of metal production, ensuring the recyclability of manufacturing equipment and moving to reduce fossil fuel use in steel processing are key areas of focus.
Ola Norén, ABB’s Head of Metallurgy Products, Process Industries.
By reassessing their supply chains, manufacturers can seek to partner with companies with a mindset to reduce, reuse and recycle materials, and thereby progressively minimize their own carbon footprint.
For example, ABB has committed to using low-carbon copper in its electromagnetic stirrers (EMS) through a partnership with the Swedish mining and smelting company
Boliden, and is working with Finnish metals manufacturing specialist Luvata, a provider of low-carbon hollow conductor wire for EMSs; and global low-carbon copper wire supplier Dahrén. Depending on size, an EMS incorporates up to 2,700kg of copper. By utilizing Luvata product ABB saves up to 6,700kg of CO2 per stirrer, based on verified industry-standard calculations. Dahren’s copper wire is 65% lower in embedded carbon than the industrial average.
“ABB’s aim in supporting low-carbon suppliers is to reduce the greenhouse gases in its own emissions accounting.” says Norén. “We also strive to build a supply chain ecosystem with a low-carbon and ultimately a zero-carbon approach at its center.”