Production Optimization

A large aluminum rolling mill processed material at 12 work centers, focusing on hot and cold rolling mills. Aluminum slabs were heated before entering a roughing hot rolling mill and forwarded for further rolling, after which they were left to cool for the cold rolling process. However, the cold rolling process also required a specific material temperature, meaning the material was not supposed to get too cold. If so, it should be reheated at a special reheating station. As the station could handle only a single piece of material at a time, it was crucial to continuously track each piece of material exiting the hot rolling process to avoid the need for reheating.

This was achieved through a feature of the MES system, which recorded the exit time from hot rolling for each piece of material, along with its physical dimensions and temperature at exit. By applying the correct formula for each material type and considering the ambient temperature, it was possible to make precise estimations of the material temperature at a future time and schedule it for cold rolling production at the optimal temperature.