Mr. ORBAN. Mr. Chairman, there is one more point I would like to make and that is that we forgot to append a table of the cross shipments and imports of the Common Market.

Mr. BURKE. We can leave the record open at this point and without objection if you will submit it we will include it.

Mr. ORBAN. We have a breakdown of the cross shipments within the Common Market and also from third countries and we find that the statement made that these countries limit the imports to a maximum of 5 percent from third countries of origin is not quite correct. It is higher for Holland and also for Belgium, Luxembourg, and also for France.

(The following information was received by the committee :)

DELIVERIES OF ROLLED STEEL PRODUCTS IN COUNTRIES OF THE EUROPEAN COAL AND STEEL COMMUNITY

Mr. BURKE. Thank you very much.

Mr. ORBAN. Thank you.

(The following article was subsequently submitted by Mr. Orban :)

[From May 1968 issue of 33/The Magazine of Metals Producing]

CONTINUOUS CASTING: TAKING OVER 10% OF SEMI-FINISHED STEEL PRODUCTION By the end of 1969 over 13 million net tons of continuous casting capacity will be on stream in the U.S. Here's a look at what steel plants have continuous casting units, their problems and some of the likely candidates, along with a list of engineering and machine builder companies associated with the process in the U.S. and Canada.

By the end of 1969 10% of steel made in the U.S. could be continuously cast. With the advent of those slab casters going on stream in 1968 there will be 13,200,000 tons of continuous casting capacity in this country. This revolution in steelmaking practice is even more precedent shattering than the BOF wave of the 60s.

The question, Can steelmaking be done continuously?, can no longer be asked. The question now is, Under what circumstances will continuous steelmaking make sense? As to a major problem of continuous steelmaking-production scheduling the advent of continuous casting in its present batch form has added new dimensions to production scheduling problems. Nevertheless many companies are already scheduling continuous casting machines on a day-to-day basis.

Is continuous casting the wave of the future? Can all steels be continuously cast as readily as they can be ingot cast? Will all steel production in all steel mills be continuously cast at some date in the future? If so, when? If not, why not? And if so, who is going to supply all the equipment, the engineering knowhow and the capital if this new process wave sweeps the industry?

About 35 production casting units have been installed in the U.S. in the period from 1960 to 1968. These machines are the ones which will be able to cast the 13 million tons in 1969. Most varieties of steel are (or will be) cast, from concrete reinforcing bars through high quality carbon steels, alloy constructional steels, and flat rolled products of all types including plates, sheets and strip of both carbon and alloy types. (Hardenable alloys are still not castable on production basis.)

As with all other steel mill equipment, the capital cost of continuous casting machines vary according to what is included in the "machine." Based on published capital costs of equipment for steel plants such as Phoenix Steel, Tennessee Forging Steel, etc. it seems $15 per annual ton of capacity is the casting machine's share.' This adds up to $200 million spent since 1962 for the 13,200,000 tons of installed casting machines. This sum represents about 2% of capital investment by the U.S. steel industry during the period '62 to '68.

As to the immediate future, the most optimistic continuous casting enthusiast does not believe that as much as 50% of steel can be made by continuous casting. Yet, a sober analysis of possible installations, company by company, indicates that some 30 million tons of casting capacity could be under contract in the period of installations 1971-72, less than five years from now. This possible addition to the 13 million tons already being cast today would give 40 million tons of continuous casting capacity at the start of the process' second decade in 1972. Such casting capacity will represent about 25% of 1972's raw steelmaking potential, a not unreasonable proportion. The machines will cost $500,000,000 a figure representing about 10 percent of steel industry capital investment to 1972. This proportion of capital investment would be readily tolerable to an industry spending at a $2 billion a year rate.

Why has continuous casting suddenly caught on?

Low cost increase in capacity is the key reason why continuous casting machines figure so high in steel industry plans today. How this need for increased capacity works can be most readily seen in the recent history of small steel plants in the U.S. In the carbon and low alloy steel products field there are 33 steel plants in the country each with annual raw steel capacities less than 200,000 net tons. (See table at end of article.) These plants have a combined capacity of 3.6 million tons of steel, representing less than three percent of total U.S. steelmaking potential. Yet these 33 plants have 15 of the 35 production continuous casting machines in operation (or under construction) in the U.S. Quite clearly, continuous casting represents a major breakthrough in production layout. Many small plants have been built around a continuous caster as their only semi-finished production unit. Such plants are based on scrap remelting using electric furnaces of less than 30 ton capacity. Rolling is generally done in roughing mills of 18 in. size with finished bar (usually hot rolled, rebars and light angles) rolled in 12 in. cross country mills. Prior to the advent of continuous casting machines, these plants cast billet size ingots. Continuous casting practices for these hot rolled bars and structural plants result in a major saving through increased yields. In addition, continuous casting machines make a more nearly continuous steelmaking practice with advantages in quicker scheduling and lower cost operations throughout. Finally, it is easier for a small steelmaker to make higher quality products by continuous casting than with billet ingots.

1 Capital costs per anual ton of capacity will be less than $15 as machine capacities become greater, and designs less compler. Nevertheless, 33's survey indicates that $15 is a useful order-of-magnitude cost figure.

As a result, it is likely that no more small tonnage carbon steel plants will be built on a greenfield site except around a continuous casting machine. This has been true in the U.S. since 1964. In addition, any expansion of capacity in existing steel plants of less than 200,000 ton capacity will be by way of continuous casting. (Oregon Steel is an interesting exception. It soon will install pressure casting for carbon steel slabs which will be rolled into plates.) Thus, companies like Kentucky Electric Steel or Structural Metals will almost certainly install continuous casting machines as their production needs grow. Kentucky Electric with its second electric furnace on the line now has production capability of 140,000 tons/year. "We're talking to continuous casting engineering companies right now," says Sam Mansbach, sec.-treas. “We'll install a machine within the next year-if imported steel let's us," concludes Mansbach. Continuous casting could also be the way of modernizing the older plants with open hearths (Judson Steel in the West and Washburn Wire on the East Coast) as open hearths become more costly to operate especially in regard to air pollution.

As noted, continuous casting practice also makes it simpler for these smaller steel companies to upgrade their product mix. This is a prime reason Pollak Steel, for example, chose continuous casting. One of the most successful production records for continuous casting quality steels is held by Roblin Steel. Roblin has been making forging and cold-heading grades of steel since the company started new steelmaking in 1965. Making these grades of steel in a mill setup of less than 200,000 tons capacity with billet ingots would be very difficult. From a competitive commercial standpoint it would probably be impossible. But with its continuous casting machine Roblin has been able to successfully penetrate the high quality bar market.

Where do their machines come from?

The list of small steel plants shows the useful role these companies have played in development of continuous casting in the U.S. The engineering companies supplying machines to the small steel companies include all major promoters of the process now operating in the U.S. (except for newcomers like Dravo, Penn. Eng., Danieli etc.). Thus, the small steel companies have furnished the battle and breeding ground for production development of commercial casting machines in the U.S. Allegheny-Ludlum was a pioneer with its Watervliet continuous casting machine, going on stream in 1949. This installation was an example, however, of the hazards of being an early bird. Watervliet's specialty steel mix is still the kind of steelmaking least daptable to continuous casting. Allegheny-Ludlum bowed out in the '50's and it's still standing on the sidelines. Another group which worked on continuous casting of specialty steels in the early 50s only to drop it, was a team from Bethlehem Steel's tool steel research. Subsequent to the Watervliet installation it was to be the small companies who jumped into full scale production with continuous casting machines. This occurred in the late '50s and early '60s, as more small steel companies were formed or expanded their operations. In this period there were only a few engineering companies offering continuous casting know-how. Today, a decade later, these are a baker's dozen offering continuous casting know-how and machine building expertise, (There are also patent and licensing situations, especially regarding curved mold machines, creating an unpredictable future for straight vs curved mold machines.)

For those steel companies in the market for continuous casting machinesand 33 believes most steel companies are there's a list of engineering (and machine builders) to call in along with some background on their experience in the field. (See table at end of article.)

There are several possible groupings of these engineering companies as related to continuous casting. Some are concerned with conceptual design, others with machine building, others with steel plant engineering and construction. Some offer combinations of capabilities. Continuous casting concept engineering has become one of the most international of activities in the steel industry. Several leading companies, particularly Concast, Inc. (but also including Demag in Germany and Olsson in Switzerland), have adopted the policy of being a central clearinghouse for patents and engineering know-how as the basis for their expertise. Continuous casting machine contracts are then let to machine builders and and other contractors (either as affiliates or as sub-contractors) usually domestic to the country where the casting machine is being installed.

U.S. CASTING MACHINE BUILDERS

In the U.S. there are five machinery companies actively associated with continuous casting. These are Mesta Machine, E. W. Bliss, United Engineering, Blaw Knox and Birdsboro Corp.

Mesta Machine Co., Pittsburgh, Pa.

Mesta has established a continuous casting division headed up by Herb Lemper. This group has developed and patented several mechanical improvements in continuous casting machines including among others, a progressive shear, a braking control on the mold oscillating equipment, a dummy bar and a horizontal continuous casting machine (still in the design stage).2

Mesta designed and built for Concast the Atlas Steel slab machine (start-up 1965), and The Steel Company of Canada's six-strand billet machine (start-up 1966). Both machines use the curved mold concept with the design, engineering and fabrication by Mesta. In addition, Mesta is furnishing the six-strand Jones & Laughlin (Aliquippa) Koppers billet caster (start-up early 1969). To just which company the conceptual aspects of the J & L machine should be assigned is one of those steel plant equipment puzzles: Mesta states about the Jones & Laughlin machine "it is our own complete design." Various engineers and operating people from Jones & Laughlin privately state they had a major influence in the machine's design. What is certain is that Jones & Laughlin is purchasing and installing in its Aliquippa works through a turn-key contract with Koppers a new steelmaking facility including a six-strand continuous casting machine being built in Mesta's Homestead shops.

Mesta has evolved its own continuous casting machine design which is offered by the company on a turn-key basis as the company does with its rolling mill services. It is of interest that Mesta has several machine builder licensees of its casting machine design. (These include: Italmesta SpA, Italy; Maschinenfabrik Sack, GmbH., Germany; and Beloit Sorel, Ltd. of Canada.)

E. W. Bliss Co., Salem, Ohio

Bliss's Rolling Mill Division has established a continuous casting group, headed by chief engineer Joe Heigel, which works in cooperation with the firm's Engineering Research and Development Center in Swarthmore, Pa. The company's activity in this field includes a twin-strand curved mold billet caster at Manitoba Rolling Mills built to Concast designs (start-up 1966). Bliss is currently building the Concast designed twin-strand curved mold slab caster at Phoenix Steel, whose 80" x 12" maximum size is the largest in the world (start-up 1968). The arrangements with Bliss included the entire plate making equipment installation as part of a $27,500,000 turn-key contract. Bliss is also building the Timken four-strand billet caster as the machinery building subcontractor to Concast (start-up 1968). The twin-strand slab casting machine for Republic Steel at Canton, Ohio of Babcock and Wilcox design is also being built by Bliss.

United Engineering & Foundry, Pittsburgh, Pa.

United is the other U.S. heavy steel mill machinery builder which has evolved its own continuous casting machine. (United in the early 60s worked with BISRA and related groups on continuous casting.) United's is a low-head straight mold, curved apron design. Two such machines have been put into operation to date. A twin-strand 2 in. and 4 in. square unit was started in 1965 at Wickwire Brothers, Cortland, N.Y. The machine was technically successful but costs of producing the small tonnage needed by Wickwire made the operation unprofitable and the unit has been shut down. United's second machine started in 1967 at Etiwanda Steel and is presently making 4% in. billets on a production basis. United's continuous casting operation is headed up by Frank Kyes. United also produces pressure pouring equipment under license from the developer of the process, Amsted Industries. United has built installations for stainless slabs at Ingersoll Steel. New Castle, Indiana, and Nyby Bruks Aktiebolag, Sweden. The company will also build a pressure pouring installation for stainless slabs at Kawasaki Steel, Japan, as well as Oregon Steel's facility for carbon slabs.

2 Horizontal casting may be the wave of the future. In the course of getting this article together. 33 has learned that both the Concast and Olsson groups are putting horizontal casting units into production in the U.S. and overseas, respectively. It is still too early for production information from these units (it is believed that the Olsson unit went on the line first) but it can be stated that this "machine of the future" is already here.

Birdsboro Corp., Birdsboro, Pa.

Birdsboro has built three of the Demag-designed machines now operating in the U.S. While maintaining interest in continuous casting under direction of Robert Miller, Birdsboro at the present time does not have any machine in fabrication.

Blaw-Knox Co., Aetna-Standard Division, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Blaw-Knox continues casting activity is carried out by its Aetna-Standard Divison. Blaw-Knox is the machine builder for National Steel's Weirton dual twin slab caster (start-up 1968) which has the largest productive capacity of any unit made by a U.S. machine builder. The Weirton unit was designed by Schloemann AG of Dusseldorf, Germany under license by Concast, Inc. of N.Y. Other machinery builders

A sixth machinery builder, Dominion Engineering Works Ltd., a Canadian General Electric affiliate, is now fabricating the Great Lakes Steel continuous casting machine to Concast designs. This machine is a 4-strand Concast curved mold unit, designed to cast 74 in. blooms. Approximate cost of the machinery contract held by Dominion Engineering is $21⁄2 million.

Both small and large steel companies, notably Tennessee Forging Steel and U.S. Steel, have independently designed and built their own casting machines. These units were fabricated either in company shops or in various contract machine shops. One such shop is the Gladwin Corporation in Detroit, Michigan area. This company has fabricated both continuous casting molds and casting machine assemblies.

Where does a U.S. steelman go?

The most important companies in the continuous casting field are those with basic design know-how which usually includes patent ownership or rights and varying degrees of originality in machine design. In addition, particularly for smaller steel companies, it is useful if the casting machine design and engineering company can also provide fabrication and erection services. Surprisingly few companies in the casting machine field can supply a turnkey job from A to Z. In the U.S., Koppers Co. is the largest company that has been doing this. Koppers now has nine machines operating (or soon to start) in the U.S. Babcock and Wilcox has also been involved in continuous casting for many years. Concast, which has the most machines in the field, is a U.S. based operation with international affiliations. As noted earlier, United and Mesta are two U.S. machine builders with their own casting machine designs. All other basic idea companies are based outside the U.S. working in the country through direct sales representatives, or U.S. affiliates.

U. S. continuous casting machines now on line or to go on within a year

The following brief description of these conceptual continuous casting companies outlines their activities primarily as they affect developments of the process in the U.S., and to some extent, in North America.

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