Title

SIROLL TCOPTIMIZER® PROCESS EXPERT SYSTEM FOR JUST-IN-TIME WARNINGS AND DECISION MAKING

SIROLL TCOPTIMIZER® PROCESS EXPERT SYSTEM FOR JUST-IN-TIME WARNINGS AND DECISION MAKING

Authorship

Bonhomme, Laurie; Jalard, Benoit; Georges, Stéphane

Bonhomme, Laurie

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Jalard, Benoit

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Georges, Stéphane

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DOI

10.5151/2594-5297-00002

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Abstract

Worldwide steel manufacturers are constantly looking at increasing productivity while maintaining quality at the highest level. This involves a perfect control of the whole steel production chain, a reliable production monitoring and finally a good knowledge of customer needs. Siemens has developed a solution for an efficient follow-up throughout the complete steel processing consisting of an advanced software helping line managers as well as operators and maintenance people in the daily handling of a processing line. Thanks to embedded steel process business logics and rules, the hundreds of signals coming from the whole metallurgical route (from casting to downstream process) are combined together into valuable information making this software more than a classical condition monitoring system. This information is then stored in a single database where it can be consulted in an easy manner through final user-oriented screens. Monitoring all the working parameters and steel quality along the entire steel making process may turn out to be a challenge and when the time comes to transform them into valuable information able to trigger relevant just-in-time warnings, the task suddenly seems overwhelming. Siemens meets this challenge with a solution that allows setting up process parameters conditions for defined grades, quality control of the products coming out of processing lines or triggering of early warnings against performances degradation regarding equipment conditions, process and product quality. With special focus on recent projects, the article presents this expert system (concept, technological solution and embedded production knowledge) that leads to improved end quality production.

Worldwide steel manufacturers are constantly looking at increasing productivity while maintaining quality at the highest level. This involves a perfect control of the whole steel production chain, a reliable production monitoring and finally a good knowledge of customer needs. Siemens has developed a solution for an efficient follow-up throughout the complete steel processing consisting of an advanced software helping line managers as well as operators and maintenance people in the daily handling of a processing line. Thanks to embedded steel process business logics and rules, the hundreds of signals coming from the whole metallurgical route (from casting to downstream process) are combined together into valuable information making this software more than a classical condition monitoring system. This information is then stored in a single database where it can be consulted in an easy manner through final user-oriented screens. Monitoring all the working parameters and steel quality along the entire steel making process may turn out to be a challenge and when the time comes to transform them into valuable information able to trigger relevant just-in-time warnings, the task suddenly seems overwhelming. Siemens meets this challenge with a solution that allows setting up process parameters conditions for defined grades, quality control of the products coming out of processing lines or triggering of early warnings against performances degradation regarding equipment conditions, process and product quality. With special focus on recent projects, the article presents this expert system (concept, technological solution and embedded production knowledge) that leads to improved end quality production.

Keywords

Expert system; Monitoring; Metallurgical knowledge; Just-in-time warnings; Steelmaking process.

Expert system; Monitoring; Metallurgical knowledge; Just-in-time warnings; Steelmaking process.