Steel Mills

Tenaris Koppel Melt Shop Restarts Steel Bar Production
Written by Sandy Williams
June 13, 2021
The Tenaris melt shop in Koppel, Pa., is fired up and underway after a $15-million, year-long upgrade. It will soon supply steel bars for the company’s seamless pipe mills in the U.S. and Canada. The facility is Tenaris’ first U.S. melt shop and was part of the 2020 acquisition of TMK IPSCO.
The upgrade expanded the mill’s capabilities to produce a wider range of bars. It also included a new design for the caster as well as the installation of new molds.
Other improvements include an overhaul of the existing cranes in the Koppel mill as well as the addition of new cranes to transfer scrap metal to the mill’s furnaces. The refurbishment in addition resulted in the integration of a new production management system and automation upgrades.
“The vertical integration of Tenaris in the U.S., a long-term vision for the company, is being realized. We are producing steel at our facility, a central component of our domestic industrial system and at a critical time when supply chains are under severe constraints and costs are surging to unprecedented levels,” Luca Zanotti, Tenaris US president, said in a press release.
The facility will continue to ramp up over the next few months while testing is conducted to steady production and streamline processes, Tenaris said. Full commissioning of the facility is expected by the end of summer.
By Sandy Williams, Sandy@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Sandy Williams
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