Primetals Technologies has received an order from Gerdau Special Steel North America to modernize its electric steel plant in Monroe, Michigan, USA. The project involves modernizing the existing electric arc furnace. The electric steel plant will also be equipped with a new twin ladle furnace and a new material handling system. The aim is to increase the plant’s annual production capacity by 160,000 metric tons of rolled end products. End-to-end automation and the use of LiquiRob robot systems will increase productivity and reliability, optimize workflows in the steelworks, and reduce operating costs. At the same time, robot systems will make work safer. The ladle furnace and material handling system are scheduled to come into operation at the end of 2019, the modernized electric arc furnace in the middle of 2020.

Gerdau Special Steel North America is a leading manufacturer of special bars steels, which are mainly used in the automotive industry. The order awarded to Primetals Technologies is part of an investment package totaling around 80 million US dollars. Primetals Technologies will be responsible for the engineering and supplying the process equipment for the electric arc furnace, the 110-metric-ton twin ladle furnace, the material handling system and the structural steel work, and will also supervise the construction and commissioning of all the installations. The scope of delivery also includes the associated electrical installations and automation, the power supply – including transformers – and the complete, end-to-end process automation. Three LiquiRob systems will handle potentially dangerous tasks, such as taking temperatures and samples. Solutions such as the automatic sand refilling, a weighing system and the automated tap hole manipulator will optimize operation of the electric arc furnace.