Star Cement endorses Hardox® Wear Plate steel for strength and durability, leading to low breakages and continued operations that enable enhanced factory production
Star Cement, a major premium cement manufacturer with an ultramodern Clinkerization unit in Ras-al-Khaimah, announced a significant turnaround in its machinery downtime and increased output when switching from mild steel to SSAB’s Hardox® Wear Plate steel grades. Hardox® Wear Plate is a flagship product of the Swedish steel giant SSAB, recognized globally for its strength, durability and ease of use. “Mild steel, that we were using earlier, hardly gives us a life of 2-3 months. At our factory we are targeting 330 days of running each year (which is very high compared to market standards!). And Hardox® Wear Plate is helping us achieve that target. If we use a normal steel plate, it will breakdown in 2-3 months, and then we have to take an intermediate stoppage, replace it or repair it etc. Since we switched to Hardox® Wear Plate, we have been consistently running for 330 – 331 days over the last 4-5 years, because of its low wear and tear ”, said Mr. Velayuthan, General Manager, Star Cement. He further credited Hardox® Wear Plate to be partly responsible for Star Cement’s capacity increase from 6800 Tonnes per day to 8300 tonnes per day, without any major modification. “The fact that we are able to survive this capacity increase means Hardox® Wear Plate is also playing a role in it. With Hardox® Wear Plate supporting us in some of the key areas, we are able to push the machine to the extreme and still survive the situation”, he added.
Since maintenance expenses are one of the largest cost centers (around 25%) for cement plants, machinery and equipment play a very central role in cement and clinker production. Breakdowns and stoppages can be costly affairs, not just for the investment involved in replacing or repairing parts, but moreso because of the negative impact on output due to downtime. Hence quality of steel used in manufacturing these machines becomes critical to saving time, and maintaining or increasing output. “Hardox® Wear Plate is our leading product globally for more wear-resistant solutions. We have always worked closely with the team at Star Cement to ensure our solutions are in line with their specific line of wear, from impact to squeezing or sliding. And we are very happy with their endorsement of the impact this has had on their operations – fewer maintenance hours, longer lifespan and enhanced overall productivity. We are looking forward to more collaboration with them for several other grades of Hardox® Wear Plate to suit their diverse needs”, said Moideen Irshad, Regional Sales Manager, Middle East, SSAB.
Endorsing the company for their focus on innovation to meet changing industry needs, Mr. Velayuthan, General Manager, Star Cement lauded SSAB for their consistency of quality in Hardox® Wear Plate products. “You know that if you order Hardox® Wear Plate 400 or 500, there wont be much discrepancy other than 10% maximum in the quality delivered, like 370-430, across the area. So consistency of product is better than Hardox® Wear Plate compared to mild steels or even cladded plates”. Mr. Moideen from SSAB added, “Thanks to its consistent properties, Hardox® Wear Plate performance remains constant over its lifetime. That also makes its service life very predictable, allowing you to rationalize your maintenance work”.
Apart from Hardox 450, Star Cement also commented on the stellar properties of Hardox 600 as a winning competitor to CCO/CDP plates. “We are using Hardox 600 in places and parts where we feel wear and tear is more, due to its higher strength and durability properties. And it is serving as a better alternative to even cladded plates because not only is the quality assured with Hardox 600, but also its competitive price point, strength and durability, make for a winning combination”, added Mr. Velayuthan. Looking to try and use more high temperature products like Toolox or Hardox Hi-temp in the future, he highlighted that the flexibility to cut Hardox® Wear Plate plates with normal gas as well as weld using conventional electrodes added to its ease of use. “I needed better life and something easy to work with and easy to recycle – and all are there in Hardox® Wear Plate. So you can easily fit it and forget it till the next shutdown”, he concluded.
About SSAB:
SSAB is a Nordic and US-based steel company that offers value added products and services developed in close cooperation with its customers to create a stronger, lighter and more sustainable world. SSAB has employees in over 50 countries with production facilities in Sweden, Finland and the US. SSAB is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Nordic Exchange in Stockholm and has a secondary listing on the NASDAQ OMX in Helsinki
About Hardox® Wear Plate:
Abrasive applications and aggressive wear environments are simply no match for Hardox® Wear Plate. Whatever your wear challenges, Hardox® Wear Plate offers better wear resistance, higher payload and longer service life. The Hardox family features the original wear plate – thinner and thicker than ever at 0.7-160mm (0.027-6.25”) – as well as tubes and round bars. By delivering superior quality, reliability and performance, Hardox® Wear Plate keeps your equipment and your business, up and running.
About Star Cement:
Star Cement LLC was incorporated 19th December-2001, a ISO 9001 and 14001 certified company in United Arab Emirates. Subsequently in 2010 it became part of UltraTech Cement, a leading multination cement company and part of global conglomerate Aditya Birla Group. Star Cement has emerged as a major premium cement manufacturer in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean Rim. With the ultramodern Clinkerization unit in Ras-al-Khaimah and sublime quality limestone mines in Fujairah, Star Cement produces over 2.5 MTPA premium grade clinker to satisfy customers across Indian Ocean Rim and Gulf. It manufactures various ASTM,BSEN standard grades along with special grades based on customer or structural requirement.
