MMK introduces new IT services in its blast furnace shop
Mobile mixers are used to transport liquid pig iron fr om the blast furnace shop to the plant's oxygen converter shop. The new system allows the Company to provide the technological staff of the blast furnace shop – in particular, the production dispatchers – with up-to-date information about the location and condition of mixers.
The system is based on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. Each mixer is equipped with an RFID tag, which is identified during the passage of certain sections of MMK railway track. The main task of the system is to ensure the timely installation and output of mixers under the blast furnaces for draining pig iron and its transportation to the oxygen converter shop. This ensures compliance with the production schedule and control over the supply of liquid pig iron to the plant's converters.
The mixer dispatching system, which covers the entire blast furnace shop, allows the staff to see and evaluate when the mixer will be put under a specific blast furnace and wh ere it is currently located. While previously the furnace's process staff had to leave the control room to get this information, they can now see it by simply opening a tab on their computer. The information received from the radio frequency tags allows the furnace master to estimate the start time for the production of melting products and take technological or organizational measures to oversee the process, for example, by alerting the dispatcher. Employees of MMK's oxygen converter shop, which receives the liquid pig iron, also have access to this system and can adjust their work if necessary.
The latest system of dispatching mixers in the blast furnace shop is not the only example of radio frequency tags implemented at MMK. In particular, they have been used to implement a multi-turn fastener tracking system, thanks to which specialists at MMK's logistics department and the wagon preparation shop of Remput LLC can quickly monitor the life cycle of multi-turn fasteners using a mobile terminal. Experience shows that RFID tags are an effective technology that makes it possible to quickly read information in the difficult conditions of metallurgical production.
The development and implementation of various IT services at MMK is carried out as part of the Industry 4.0 strategic initiative, which centres on the digitalization of all of the Company's business processes. The active use of digital technologies increases the operational and functional efficiency of the enterprise, increases productivity and improves product quality, ensures the safety of employees and increases their work efficiency. It also eliminates routine tasks, and helps to meet customer expectations as well as present-day challenges.
MMK Press Office