How steel plants conduct maintenance procedures.

In the recent years, the ever-increasing domestic and international supply for high quality finished steel products has flourished the steel industries in India. For ensuring a steady supply of steel products, the companies keep their manufacturing facilities up-to-date by upgrading the technologies used. Along with the upgradation, routine checks and quality control have to be conducted to enhance the reliability of the machines and reduce breakdowns. Untimely breakdowns result in much larger losses than temporary shutdowns carried out to host maintenance drives. Regular inspection of machinery sustains the damage and daily wear and tear it is subjected to, due to constant operation. 

  Here are a few of the maintenance procedures that must be carried out at a steel plant:

Analysis and Costs: A thorough analytical report of the plant, including the machinery, equipment, inventory, and human resources goes a long way in resolving bottlenecks and technical failures. Data obtained from hosting quarterly check-ups and quality control drives offers vital information for issues within the process. Conducting daily analysis through software that gathers the data from the equipment, helps organize the information. Calculating data on machine downtime, meantime between machine failures, expenditures on parts, technologies used, and technical response time would help to determine expenses for hosting shutdowns. Analyzing operational variables helps in checking the factors that affect the process directly and indirectly during the repairs.

For example, if a casting machine has broken down, the components are checked for any irregularities and repaired accordingly.

Reliability: Throughout the maintenance processes, technicians check the levels of plant efficiency, along with looking for ways to improve production, operating procedures, etc. Increase in the number of operating procedures leads to maximizing the machine's uptime resulting in an increase in its productivity. The equipment is subjected to a constant operation which often affects the quality and reliability of its output. Targeting process specific issues and resolving them by incorporating expert technicians goes a long way in improving the longevity of the equipment.

For example, a reliable furnace with automated processing ensures efficient combustion and melting of the steel billets.

Technical Solution: Investing in a technical solution is a great way to resolve process related issues. A recurring issue that has crossed a certain threshold and is affecting the safety or efficiency of the plant needs technological solutions offered by experts. Process Re-engineering helps in resolving issues by modifying the processes without compromising the end result. Analytical data helps in finding multiple solutions efficiently and thus applying them to the process to reduce breakdowns.

For example, a bottleneck regarding the quality of the rod can be solved by a team of technical experts who have the thorough knowledge of the re-heaters.

Preventive Measures: When the maintenance is carried out, ensuring that the same technical failure isn’t a recurring issue, it ensures smooth functioning of the plant. Preventive measures need to be carried out to avoid constant breakdowns. The process sometimes needs to be re-designed to accommodate such preventive measures. But the effectiveness of the same is usually clear in improving the efficiency for manufacturing the same.

For example, say irregular deposition of melted steel just outside the furnace can be avoided with preventive measures.

Many such methods are carried out in a steel plant for enhancing the efficiency and profitability of Steelmaking. The quality and the longevity of the equipment is largely dependent on its smooth operation. Since the manufacturing of finished steel products is far different than the assembly line products, any defects in the product cannot be repaired in the quality checks. With proper inspection, evaluation and skilled technicians, maintaining a steel plant systematically is elementary. Agni Steels follows these methods to maintain the quality of their exceptional TMT Steel rods.