Dillinger Hüttenwerke (Dillinger) and SMS group have recently set a milestone in thick slab casting technology by commissioning the new two-strand vertical slab caster CC6 and casting slabs of up to 500 millimeters thickness for premium heavy plate.
With an investment volume totaling approximately EUR 400M, CC6 is one of the biggest ever single investments in the history of the Dillingen steel plant. The one-of-a-kind concept of designing a vertical casting plant for the production of thick slabs provides Dillinger new potential for expanding their range of high-grade products because during casting the slab will not be subjected to any bending or straightening. The new casting plant is the first to use a new pinch-roll technology developed by SMS. Referred to as X-Pact® Strand Centering Control, this feature of the new caster allows Dillinger to also continuously cast steel grades which up to now could only be produced via the less efficient ingot casting route.
The jointly developed design concept includes extremely exacting solutions to cope with the very heavy loads and to transport the cast strand. Dr. Ralf Bruckhaus (Head of Steel Plant at Dillinger): âThis continuous caster is an outstanding plant providing great potential for current and future developments – in terms of both quality and productivity. Itâs fun to produce on the new CC6 casting machine.â?
