A Better Way

[Music] steel the most versatile of all raw materials for fabrication and construction the basic material upon which 20th century man has built his foundations for the good life beginning is here at the United States Steel Fairless Works in Eastern Pennsylvania where two gigantic 200 ton electric furnaces provide a meticulously Blended stream of molten steel specially compounded to meet the precise specifications of the ultimate end product Molton Steel on its way to the most modern advance in steel making technology The Continuous Caster providing a better way to produce Blooms of the highest possible uniformity the the steel is monitored and tested all along the way part of a process which represents more than a decade of intensive research and development by us steel the ladle Rises smoothly up toward the giant tundish car which is ready to move into pouring position directly over the two molds the huge tundish which serves as a pouring Reservoir encourages the flotation of products of deoxidation and tends to prevent vortexing by the streams pouring into the molds thus assuring compositional uniformity from the beginning to the end of the heat the tundish is preheated in preparation for the poor us Steel's production capacity of strand cast steel exceeds all other producers in the United States the pouring crew in special heat resistant suits tap the label okay open her up molten steel enters the mold through two hydraulically activated sliding gate valves inside the mold the steel in contact with the water cooled mold wall solidifies to form the shell of the casting Chrome plated surfaces on the mold assure a smooth finish the process is constantly monitored by a team of skilled steel makers backed by Banks of computers to assure an accuracy of control unheard of just a few years ago the bloom measuring as much as 10x 23 in descends through multiple sets of non-driven guide rolls to a spray chamber where hundreds of water sprays cool the steel in all four sides the sprays are controlled by the computer system which considers the casting speed great steel spray water temperature and Bloom temperature the spray is regulated in five separate zones to create the desired solidification patterns further assuring good surface and internal quality that pays off in better drawing characteristics and non-porous plating surfaces The Continuous strands pass through a straightener and then to a traveling flame cutter which cuts the Strand into Blooms of specified lengths usually about 26 ft strand Castel has proven to be superior to both rim and cap Steels in surface quality uniformity of chemical composition is an outstanding characteristic of strand cast steel after cutting special railroad cars will transfer these blooms to the nearby Fairless Billet Mills where they'll be reheated and rolled into 4-in billets or conversion into USS spool rods in the ultramodern Fairless Rod Mill before the Vets are transferred to the rod Mill those destined for special applications are submitted to fluorescent magnetic particle inspection under ultraviolet light and our specially conditioned if necessary to remove any surface defects revealed billets are stored here classified and separated by grade ready to feed the almost insatiable appetite of the four strand Rod vets move by Chain conveyor up to the charging location they are pushed into the furnace by the charging car ram this roof fired furnace can handle billets up to 62 ft in length with three individually controlled heat zones it provides more than ample capacity so there will be no compromise in heating the billets monitoring by remote TV the push out man has complete control of the Furnace a switch plate guides the hot steel Billet into one of the four strand portals or entries in the first rolling stand of the roughing Mill the intermediate Mill is also a four strand operating unit housings are equipped with roller guides to prevent scratches that might cause rolled in surface defects after the second stand of the intermediate Mill there are four crop and Cobble shears which cut off cold front ends to avoid Mill cobbles and Imperfections in the rod surface the mill is now split into two lines each carrying two strands by these backto back 180° repeaters these free flowing Loops eliminate tension in the continuous lengths of Steel as they become elongated in straight line Mills the roll speeds must be adjusted to try to compensate for tension which distorts the rod the rods pass through another set of crop and Cobble shears then through an up Looper electronic scanning and circuitry in this unit automatically adjusts loops and rolling speed to eliminate tension between intermediate Mills and the finishing Mills Behind These safety lock doors the rod may be traveling as much as 10,000 ft per minute as it leaves these stands finishing Mill rolls are set alternately at a 45 degree angle from the horizontal to provide twist-free rolling aiming at approximately half the present standard dimensional tolerance the rod is cooled to proper coil laying temperature by high-press water sprays this removes some scale and prevents heavy scale formation during subsequent process the laying cones deposit the rods on the coil conveyors in overlapping Loops or grades of Steel requiring more rapid cooling the coil conveyor speed can be increased with the loop spaced more widely cooling air is blown over and through the Rings rolled cooling gives the rod a more uniform structure and for some applications can eliminate the need for air patenting rod temperatures at the reforming tub will vary between 300 and 700° F compared to 1500 to 1600° in the reels of conventional Mills this gives the reformed coils a certain amount of preset greatly increasing the payoff ability of the finished Rod coils a transfer cart called a down Ender moves the coils onto a power and free type of conveyor which permits inspectors to stop individual coils without stopping the line rods travel along the conveyor for further cooling on their way to the final inspection and testing areas here front ends are trimmed and samples taken these samples are used in metallurgical tests such as verification of grade upset test and ET according to the customers and use requirements inspected coils move to one of four horizontal compacting units which compress the rods into tight stable coils and automatically band them with three flat bands the coils lead the conveyor line at two unloading stations in the shipping area ready for Trans shipment to various USS wire Mills or directly to customers who buy rods rods destined to become wire are loaded and transported aboard trucks to the nearby ultramodern new Fairless wire [Music] Mill this is a cleaning house most rods come here before being drawn into wire the end use of the wire determines the rod treatment an acid pickling solution takes care of mil [Music] [Music] scale a Water Rinse takes care of the acid [Music] a coating of lime phosphate or Borax neutralizes remaining acid traces this will also act as a carrier for whatever lubricant is used in the drawing process the heart of the wire Mill is this line of multiple draft wire drawing machines capable of drawing over 40 mil of 16 gauge high carbon spring wire pattern laid in a single 2500 lb continuous coil it wire sizes from 0625 in through 375 in in low medium or high carbon steel the dye is the single most important tool of wire making though simple in the extreme a wire drawing die is one of the most efficient tools of any industry it consists of a nib of tungsten carbide or sometimes Diamond whose shape and angles of taper are very important to the gradual reduction of the steel this is mounted in a steel casing which holds and reinforces it though a Dye has no moving parts and removes none of the metal it handles it changes the steel in two Dimensions diameter and length in one operation at the same time improves physical properties mechanical properties and finish as the metal literally flows through the D the small grains of Steel compress and change elongate while the wire increases in hardness stiffness tensil strength and elastic limits when multiple drafts are called for several dyes and blocks can be combined in a single machine extensive reduction takes place step by step in a continuous operation lubricants ease the passage of the steel through the Dy water flowing continuously through the Dy Chambers helps reduce heat buildup Force air also reduces heat buildup following the last draft wire is fed through a dead block and dropped in deadcast rings onto the carrier all quality control checks take place before packaging and shipping including tests for mechanical properties such as tensil strength and elongation strand cast steel has resulted in a record low of rejections other tests might include checking torsion requirements or inspections for hardness size and finish all aim at careful determination of the wire's Fitness for the service required of it all wire coils are weighed before being prepared for shipping a generously dimensioned oil dip station furnishes added surface protection for smooth and extra smooth wire finishes according to customer requirements to further expedite fast delivery this humidity controlled shipping room serves as a staging area for finished full weight coils being ready for shipment to customers shipments from any one of the two rail or five truck loading areas the target is always maximum flexibility and service to the customer this is really just the beginning the story continues to the practically Limitless variety of end uses and to you our customer whose ingenuity and Imagination make it all possible [Music] [Music]