SMS Concast, part of the German plantmaker SMS group, has been awarded a major contract by Chinese steelmaker Henan Jiyuan Iron and Steel to upgrade its continuous caster No. 2. Originally built by a local manufacturer, the eight-strand caster will undergo a complete redesign to reach new standards of productivity and quality. Commissioning is scheduled for June 2026.
The modernization aims to enhance product quality, increase yield, and improve the caster’s ability to process diverse steel grades, particularly high-carbon steels such as bearing and spring grades, along with various steels for the automotive industry. Once operational, the facility will achieve an annual billet output exceeding 1 million tons.
The caster features eight strands, ten-meter nominal radius and is able to process billets in 150 mm, 160 mm, and 180 mm sections. Over 90 percent of the production mix will consist of SBQ and high-carbon steels, a key input for downstream forging and automotive component manufacturing.
The revamped caster will integrate SMS Concast’s CONFLOW system to achieve precise steel flow control into the mold, ensuring consistent internal structure and minimal central porosity and the CONDRIVE oscillation system which provides a flexible electromechanical setup, allowing operators to fine-tune oscillation parameters for different grades.