CASE STUDY FOR BILLET WEIGHING
THE CHALLENGE
Our customer is one of the world’s leading steel producers. Their goal was to improve the billet cutting process in the continuous billet caster by controlling the billet weight and improving production supervision. The billets vary in cross-section size from 120 mm2 to 140 mm2, and in length from 9 m to 11 m. Target weight ranges from 1.1 to 1.6 tons. The main concerns were the high temperatures involved, and the need to synchronize lifting of the billet in order to perform the weight measurement in a fast, secure, and stable manner. Our customer had considered several alternatives but did not find a system suiting their needs.
The Solution
BLH Nobel proposed a solution in which the billets would be weighed in the ripper area. The operating temperature is lower in the ripper area, so the BLH Nobel solution required fewer components—resulting in easier installation, lower maintenance requirements and a more cost-efficient investment. The equipment, supplied by BLH Nobel, included a mechanical block with cylinders and load cells, and a G4 instrument for weight display and communication to the customer’s PLC system and operations room. This system offered high accuracy and excellent control of production.