Tenova, an Essen-based company specialising in solutions for the metals and mining industries, has received a major order for the supply of a walking-beam furnace from Thyssen Krupp Steel Europe AG.

The furnace, designed for the heating of slabs, will be located at the Thyssen Krupp Beeckerwerth plant in Duisburg. The plant will be built in Hot Strip Mill 2 and meet the requirements for the production of premium sheets to be used in the automotive industry.

The scope of the contract includes engineering and the largely turn-key delivery of all equipment, as well as installation and commissioning — including training. The plant replaces an old reheating furnace and will be installed directly next to an existing Tenova walking-beam furnace.

Tenova, together with Tenova LOI Thermprocess and Tenova Italimpianti, will design and supply the entire walking-beam furnace plant, including the charging roller table and the charging machine, as well as the related electrical, measuring and control systems.

In addition, an advanced automation system developed by Tenova LOI Thermprocess will enhance the control and energy efficiency of the furnace, which will have a capacity of 380 tonnes/hr and will be integrated in the existing hot-rolling-mill infrastructure.

The furnace will also feature a combustion air pre-heating system to significantly reduce the energy consumption of the overall production.

Arnd Köfler, chief technology officer at Thyssen Krupp Steel, said: “We selected Tenova due to the large number of references for comparable plants. The short implementation time was another important criterion. The new plant is scheduled to start operating in mid-2022.”