Day: 25 July 2021

The damage reports along the Ruhr, which came out of its bed after heavy rains on 15 July, so far have mainly concerned disruptions to transportways like rail, roads and rivers. Production plants have been hit, too, though only individually, but in some cases considerably.

One mill group operates two consignation storehouses for coils in Hagen, which both have been flooded, “and one is still not accessible,” a spokesman tells Kallanish. While the dimension of the damage cannot be assessed yet, he suggests that it might not be all that bad.

“Lawyers might advise to scrap all coils that show damage. But then, all of them are oiled, and damage seen on the exterior may not have creeped in further, so that slitting off the edges might keep them workable,” he says. Ironically, they may then have the width produced by thyssenkrupp Hohenlimburg, the one mill specialising in medium-wide strip – located in Hagen, and likely affected to a high degree.

It cannot be assessed yet if this trick is all that easy, the spokesman says. Slitters need some space to be able to impose the pressure it takes to cut through 3 mm or more, so more edge may have to be cut off than is actually harmed.

Christian Koehl Germany

The devastation caused by heavy rains along the eastern Ruhr are mainly impairing the supply chain of coil products typical for the region, with thyssenkrupp and at least two Hagen-based cold-rollers declaring force majeure.

Hagen is also home to one primary steelworks of special bar qualities maker Deutsche Edelstahlwerke (DEW). The site “was massively hit by the heavy weather, and was completely under water,” DEW tells Kallanish upon request.

On Friday, the company was still busy clearing water from large parts of the works and was taking stock of the production facilities that were accessible. “We plan to resume operation at least for some sections as soon as possible,” a spokeswoman says.

DEW’s works in nearby Witten was stopped temporarily on 15 July, but could resume production immediately after the rain. The plants in Siegen and Krefeld were able to continue operation. Still, all plants are affected by impairments in transport, the spokeswoman notes.

Also in Hagen, a plant of Georgsmarienhütte Gruppe, whose products address similar customers as DEW, was hit particularly hard by the rains that day. Schmiedag, a forge making parts for big engines, trains and special vehicles, was flooded completely; 17 employees fled to the roof and were rescued by the fire department only hours later.

A long products mill of ArcelorMittal in Duisburg did not suffer immediate damage, but faces complications with logistics, like all other works in the region do. While the company did not give details, it could mean considerable reduction in output, as raw materials like scrap cannot be transported as normal to the mills. This was the case further down the Rhine at rebar mill Badische Stahlwerke (see Kallanish 23 July).

Christian Koehl Germany

Salzgitter has started operating a new stamping line for tailored blanks, Kallanish learns from the German steelmaker.

The addition required the construction of a new hall, which was carried out during the pandemic, the company underlines. The new facility was supplied by Schuler and can work coil of up to 35 tonnes in thicknesses of 0.5-3mm. It can carry out 70 lifts per minute with a cutting power of 800 tonnes, Salzgitter details.

The new line can handle qualities of the highest tensile strength, according to the managing director of tailored blanks unit Salzgitter Europlatinen (SZEP), André Körff. He adds that the unit will especially benefit from the construction of the group’s galvanizing line No.3, which is to start operation next year.

Christian Koehl Germany