American Steel Manufacturer Relies on
Consistent Quality and Proven Herkules
Technology

For its new cold rolling mill for the production of Non-Grain-Oriented electrical steel (NGO), one of our long-standing U.S. customers deliberately chose to fully equip its roll shop with roll grinding machines, control systems, and measuring technology from Herkules. The electrical steel produced there must meet the highest standards. This high-tech material is used wherever energy needs to be converted efficiently and reliably – in transformers, electric motors, and generators. Its unique properties result from a precisely coordinated production process in which every detail matters.

“Grinding Sendzimir rolls places particularly high demands on precision, process reliability, and reproducibility. Due to the very small roll diameters, even the slightest deviations in shape or dimensions have a direct impact on strip thickness and surface quality. At the same time, extremely tight tolerances and defined roughness values must be maintained, while grinding burn and surface defects must be avoided at all costs,” explains Jared Jörgens, Business Development Manager NAFTA.

“The use of RFID technology in the grinding of Sendzimir rolls makes it easy to meet these stringent quality requirements. Each roll is uniquely identified by an RFID tag. When the roll is loaded into the machine, all relevant information – such as type, geometry, grinding history, and permissible material removal – is automatically retrieved. Based on this data, the machine selects the appropriate grinding program and sets all process parameters accordingly. This virtually eliminates operator errors and further mix-ups.”

The roll shop will be equipped with a total of three roll grinding machines – two of the WS 250 Monolith™ type and one WS 450 Monolith™ combination machine. “The shop is controlled via our inhouse developed Modular Roll Shop System (MRS), which records and manages all processes,” explains Jared Jörgens. “To ensure consistently high surface quality, the machines are also equipped with our C-frame measuring system, which captures measurement data and applies corrections in real time.” Both WS 250 grinding machines are additionally equipped with Eddy Current testing and an automatic loader with a palletizing system. The WS 450 Monolith™ is further equipped with Ultrasonic testing, enabling optimal results and the immediate detection of defects and cracks not only on the surface, but also directly beneath it,” adds Jared Jörgens. „The WS 250 Monolith™ grinders were also equipped with a fully automatic steady rest. It supports the very slender work rolls with constant pressure during the grinding process, ensuring precise guidance. This is particularly important for stabilizing the rolls and preventing vibrations or oscillations that could affect machining quality.“

All machines are designed and built directly at our production site in Ford City, PA, USA, and installed at the customer‘s site by our assembly specialists.