Turkish steelmaker Habaş Sınai ve Tıbbi Gazlar İhtisal Endüstri A.Ş. (Habaş) has completed the integration tests of the new automation systems at its two continuous galvanizing lines, a skin pass mill and an inspection line designed by the German plantmaker SMS Group as part of its ongoing modernization program. According to SMS Group, in addition to these facilities, a new five-stand pickling line tandem cold mill with an annual cold strip production capacity of 1.65 million mt will be installed by August 2025. With the new facilities, Habaş intends to expand its manufacturing capabilities in cold strip production considerably and strengthen its own market position.
The pickling line cold tandem mill will be able to handle strips as thin as 0.20 mm and widths ranging from 700 mm to 1,980 mm, offering flexibility in production, while the skin pass mill is designed with an annual capacity of 650,000 mt to process strips with 965-2,100 mm in width and 0.25-4.0 mm in thickness. The continuous galvanizing lines, on the other hand, are integral parts of Habaş’s new facilities, with an annual production capacity of 440,000 mt designed primarily for construction grade steel. The lines have the capacity to handle cold rolled strips of 0.25-2.5 mm in thickness and hot rolled strips of 1.20-4.0 mm in thickness.
The cold rolling mill will also include a recoiling and inspection line designed to process cold rolled annealed or galvanized material from upstream continuous galvanizing lines and the skin pass mill, with an annual capacity of 300,000 mt.
“I strongly believe that SMS Group's method for integration testing of automation brings significant advancements in ensuring safety and quality during the plant erection and commissioning process. By involving our team from the very beginning, SMS has effectively prepared us for the upcoming tasks to optimize the startup phase and enables us to utilize the new equipment efficiently within a short time,” commented Haşim Ayten, plant manager at Habaş, on the latest process undertaken by SMS Group.
