For JISCO Carbon Steel, SMS group will supply the automation system and provide technical services to optimize technological processes in the existing strip mill. After the revamp, the new rolling mill will feature the combined HSM and CSP® modes and cover the full range of hot rolled steel grades, including stainless steel, high-quality grain-oriented steel, medium and high-quality non grain-oriented steel, pipe line steel (X80 or above) and ultra deep drawn steel. Increasing the thickness and width of hot rolled strip is one of the goals of the project.
The originally two-strand thin slab casting and rolling (CSP®) production line went into operation in May 2006. The customer now relies on the technology and automation provided by SMS group. The designed capacity of the existing production line is 2 million tons of carbon steel per year. After the revamp, the total annual capacity of the strip mill will be 3.5 million tons.
The final acceptance test for the project is expected to be completed by the end of January 2026. Key milestones include the date of the first coil in CSP® mode (July 2025) and the date for the first coil in HSM mode (December 2025).
Project implementation
SMS will provide the comprehensive X-Pact® automation system to control the mill from the discharging roller tables up to the end of the coil transportation system, including level 1 and level 2 systems and an X-Pact® Vision HMI, thus realizing the first reference plant in the world to combine the CSP® and HSM modes.
To realize the production mode, the swiveling car of the tunnel furnace will be adapted into a shifting car to transfer slabs from the tunnel furnace to the entry area of the finishing mill. Accordingly, the entry roller tables in the finishing mill will be designed as shifting roller tables in order to make room for the shifting car from the tunnel furnace.
A rolling schedule to combine the slab discharging from the reheating furnaces and from the tunnel furnaces will be created and realized in the new X-Pact® process automation. The models of the level 2 system will make adaptations according to whether the strip is being delivered from the tunnel furnace or from the reheating furnaces.
After revamping, the main mill line will include one roller hearth tunnel furnace, two walking-beam reheating furnaces, one high-pressure water descaling box, one slab size press, two sets of four high reversible roughing mill stands with vertical edgers, one crop shear, six finishing mill stands, one laminar cooling system, three downcoilers, and one coil transportation line.
The production process will be resumed within shortest possible time. Finally, the product spectrum will be enhanced to include high value-added grades. Additionally, the production output will increase, leading to lower production costs per ton.
A long history of cooperation
SMS and JISCO’s collaboration over the past 20 years in various fields, including casting, strip and plate rolling, and processing lines has built a foundation of mutual trust and technological excellence, paving the way for successful project completion and future innovations in the steel industry. JISCO, based in northwest China, will continue to serve the region with expanded and optimized production capacity, producing a wider range of high-quality steel products, including potential future stainless steel offerings.
During the signing ceremony, important project stakeholders shared their perspective on the project and the cooperation.
Mr. Zeng Qing, Deputy Director of Project Management Department of WISDRI, highlighted the long-standing cooperation between SMS and WISDRI , emphasizing SMS’s pioneering technologies in the metals industry.
Mr. Qiao Degao, Project Manager of JISCO Carbon Steel Strip Mill, stressed the project’s importance as part of JISCO’s strategy for production capacity optimization, expressing their full trust in SMS’s automation system and adherence to the project timeline.
Mr. Christoph Stappenbeck, Vice-President of the Automation, Digital & Service Solutions at SMS group, China, reaffirmed SMS group’s full commitment to ensure the project’s success, setting a new benchmark in hot rolling mill automation.