In 2013, Rourkela Steel Plant (Steel Authority of India Limited) in Orissa, India, successfully cast the first slabs on the X-Cast® continuous caster supplied by SMS Siemag (www.sms-siemag.com).

Rourkela Steel Plant mainly processes sophisticated micro-alloyed steels and heavy-plate grades on the caster. By means of the third slab caster in Steelworks No. 2, RSP has doubled its slab production capacity to three million tons per year, thus strengthening its market position.

The single-strand caster, designed as a vertical bending plant, is intended for slabs of 220, 250 and 300 millimeters thickness in widths, ranging from 1,200 to 2,500 millimeters.

SMS Siemag supplied the basic and detail engineering, all mechanical components, the complete X-Pact® electrical and automation systems including the control systems (level 1) and process models (level 2).

The caster equipment includes several Intelligent Slab Casting (ISC®) modules which determine quality and production. Among these are the hydraulically actuated resonance oscillation system, remote-controlled narrow mold faces for width change during casting and the position-controlled CYBERLINK segments for performing Dynamic Soft Reduction. In combination with the width-dependent air-mist secondary cooling and the Dynamic Solidification Control process model, these guarantee that slabs of high internal quality are produced.

Rourkela Steel Plant has already two single-strand slab casters from SMS Siemag in operation and will soon commission a converter shop supplied by SMS Siemag.

SMS Siemag AG is a company of the SMS group which, under the roof of the SMS Holding GmbH, consists of a group of global players in machinery and plant construction in steel and nonferrous metals processing. Its workforce of more than 13,500 employees generates sales worldwide totaling EUR 3.3 billion.