From STEEL GRIPS online
Europe

Standardised production control and quality tracking for ThyssenKrupp Isbergues, France

Oct 23, 2009
ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel is updating the production management system for the rolling mill and thermal treatment in the electric strip cold rolling mill in Isbergues, France. The goals of ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel are harmonised processes and reduced expenditures in the IT administration by means of a standardised shop-floor system in all the plants. This order was preceded by the proven use of such systems at the Gelsenkirchen site and the successful implementation in slitting and packaging in Isbergues. In the future the same system will be controlling the production at both European plants and securing the quality across all the processing steps.

The solution is based on components for Production Execution (PES) and Advanced Line Sequencing (ALS). The specific plant programs will be generated and implemented for all the system types in the rolling mill and the tempering. The cross-plant tracking of the production orders, including the production data acquisition and implementation of the quality standards, is handled at the level of the specific plant segment by means of a task-optimised menu.

ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel expects benefits especially in retroactive quality analyses. Every modification and defect, including precise information about where the position of the defect was in which stage of treatment, is shown in a graphical material genealogy for every piece of electrical steel. This quality information forms the basis for the future improvements in the production process.

The solution "has now shown us at Isbergues that my colleagues’ long years of positive experience with the implementation at the Gelsenkirchen site were justified. The old system was successfully replaced and the ramp-up occurred without incidents. The first strips were cut and packed just a few hours after the conversion of the system. The process was tracked completely by means of the new system. We are looking forward to phase 2, i.e. the introduction of the rolling mill and the tempering with great confidence,“ reports Guy Ligi, Head of Order Center & Finishing Operation at ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel in Isbergues.

The connection to SAP and to the various sub-systems is handled by a special integration tool. The commencement of operations for the rolling mill and thermal treatment is planned for the first half of 2010.



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