62 ›››  HOT ROLLING

Finishing block technologies for

1- and 2-strand rolling of rebar
and wire rod
A wide range of finishing blocks has been designed for the production of both rebar and
wire rod – composed of three different blocks, amounting to a total of eight varieties,
for different plant capacities and finished product qualities. They can also be tailored to
the product mix and the technical know-how of the operators.

speed wire rod rolling, the suggested

finishing block is the same; in fact the
finishing block for wire rod is dimen-
sioned for speeds up to 120 m/s, but it
can also be used at lower speeds, i.e. for
the production of rebar or wire rod. It is
evident that this is not a winning solu-
tion from the viewpoint of cost manage-
ment, since the equipment is quite often
over-dimensioned in case of rebar or low
speed wire rod production. The range of
blocks from Pert is composed of the:
▪▪ intermediate block,
▪▪ rebar block,
▪▪ wire rod block,
▪▪ 2xTechnology™
▪▪ 2xTechnology™ convertible,
▪▪ 2xTechnology™ TwistFree.

Pert rebar block Pert rebar block

This block with cantilevered roll-
ing rings has been designed for high-
Nowadays, the conditions of the sential for plant suppliers to also study speed rebar production and is installed
steel market require manufacturers and propose really innovative process- in plants of small and medium capaci-
to reduce above all the production es and equipment side by side with tai- ty (up to 350,000 – 400,000 t/year). Its
costs to remain competitive. This is lor-made solutions. main features are the following:
valid for both producers in develop- Pert accepted this challenge and ▪▪ max. rolling speed: 35 m/s,
ing countries, where the steel demand designed a wide range of finishing ▪▪ one-strand design,
is strong but management costs of the blocks for both rebar and wire rod, ▪▪ roller bearings,
plants are often too high to have a good allowing the use of really innovative ▪▪ H/V configuration,
profit margin, and for producers in in- and tailor-made solutions and plants, ▪▪ nominal rolling ring diameter: 250
dustrialized countries who must com- for low production capacities (approx. mm,
pete with the products produced in 100,000 t/year) as well as for very high ▪▪ centre-to-centre distance of the
the aforementioned group of coun- production capacities (1,500,000 t/ stands : 635 mm,
tries where especially labour and elec- year). The range consists of three dif- ▪▪ possibility to mount rolling rings
tricity costs are far lower. Hence, it is es- ferent blocks, configurable in eight made of carbide, cast iron or steel.
varieties, for different plant capacities All on-board piping is incorporated
and finished product qualities. They and protected in the steel frame and
can also be tailored to the technical can be easily inspected or accessed for
Matteo Tomba, Nicola Tomba, Mas- know-how of the operators as well as maintenance through the removal of
similiano Zuccato, Andrea Fontanini; to the product mix. simple panels. The maintenance re-
Pert srl, Tavagnacco (UD), Italy Taking into consideration the solu- quirements have been drastically re-
Contact: www.pertengineering.com tions presently suggested by suppliers of duced as well as the times required for
E-mail: [email protected] long product rolling mills, it can be no- changing the rolling rings, thanks to
ticed that for rebar, low-speed or high- the FLUR™ system.

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 HOT ROLLING   ‹‹‹ 63

The distinctive trait of this block is a correct position in order to avoid the Pert wire rod block
that it uses roller bearings instead of oil displacement of one of the two shafts This finishing block can be supplied
film bearings, which is possible due to due to the axial rolling load. Having the in two configurations, at 90° up to the
the relatively low maximum working first stand in a vertical position ensures speed of 80 m/s and at 45° for high-
speed (35 m/s). Roller bearings imply that all ovals are upright, so significant er speeds up to 120 m/s. It is installed
the great advantage of using a stand- temperature reductions due to contact in one-strand wire rod mills with a
ard and simple lubrication unit, instead with the cooling water of the rolling production capacity from 150,000 to
of a complicated lubrication unit, and rings are avoided, since the contact 600,000 t/year. Its main features are:
a related station for separating water surface is much smaller and there are ▪▪ max. rolling speed: 120 m/s,
from oil, which would be necessary no effects due to settling water. More- ▪▪ one-strand design,
when using oil film bearings. Therefore over, transitions with the upright oval ▪▪ oil film bearings,
also the use of high-viscosity lubrica- give more stability to the rolled bar low- ▪▪ FLUR™ system,
tion oil is avoided (high-priced and dif- ering its inter-stand flexion. ▪▪ H/V configuration (90° or 45°),
ficult to dispose of). Instead, the same In addition to rebar production, ▪▪ nominal rolling ring diameter:
lubricant as for the gear boxes of the rest this block is also used as a pre-finish- 200/160 mm,
of the mill is used for block lubrication. ing block in wire rod mills before the ▪▪ centre-to-centre distance of the
The configuration is 90° providing high-speed finishing block, so as to stands : 700 mm.
maximum accessibility to operators avoid the use of cantilevered stands All on-board piping is incorporated
having to replace the rolling rings, which imply a bigger lubrication unit, and protected in the steel frame, and
which are all placed in the front po- equal to the ones used for high-speed can be easily inspected or accessed for
sition; in a block configured at 45°, blocks since both use oil film bearings. maintenance through the removal of
this would be much more complicat- Moreover, in cantilevered stands the simple panels. Maintenance require-
ed, since there would be right and left replacement of rolling rings is more ments have been reduced.
modules and, what is more, these mod- complicated and needs dedicated hy- The 90° configuration is suitable for
ules would be arranged in an inclined draulic tools. The Pert rebar block, speeds of up to 80 m/s so as to provide
position. like all other Pert blocks, uses a pat- good accessibility of the rolling rings
The first stand is in the vertical posi- ented fast rolling-ring changing sys- also in this case, speeding up and sim-
tion in order to have a horizontal one as tem, called FLUR™ system, which al- plifying their replacement. For higher
the last stand. This is to maintain axi- lows rolling rings to be exchanged in speeds, a 45° solution is necessary, not
al stability of the ring holder shafts and about one minute, without using any so much for vibration problems, but to
consequently maintain the groove in hydraulic equipment. have a better gravity condition in order

Pert 2xTechnology™ block

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64 ›››  HOT ROLLING
to promote as much as possible the dis- ▪▪ centre-to-centre distance of the The operating costs of this block are
charge of the lubrication oil of the oil stands : 950 mm, really minimal as spare parts are al-
film bearings . ▪▪ possibility to mount rolling rings most eliminated, since there are no
Another important characteristic made of carbide, cast iron or steel, cardanic spindles, chocks, container
is that the centre-to-centre distance ▪▪ no on-board piping. unit, etc., which are typical of com-
between the stands is limited to only The ease of use and maintenance mon housingless stands. Moreover, the
700 mm, thus implying less vibration makes this block the optimum solu- lubrication unit is standard and utiliz-
of the rolls and the block itself. tion for rebar mills of small to medium es the same lubrication oil as the stands
Less vibration and an excellent bal- capacity (up to 350,000 t/year), above of the rolling mill.
ance of the gears involve an improve- all in countries with scarcity of skilled Since there are no spindles, up to
ment of the quality of the finished prod- labour or for customers who are for the 5% of electricity can be saved; in fact
uct, in fact in a block where vibrations first time investing in a steel making the gear couplings used instead of the
are nearly non-existent, it is easier to plant. spindles never work in an inclined po-
maintain the stringent final tolerances, sition, but are always aligned to the
plus there will also be less noise, which axes of the ring holder shafts,
is reduced to minimum levels, avoid- so the transmission efficien-
ing annoying and deaf- cy from the gear box to the
ening whistles while rolling rings is nearly
the block is working. equal to 1.
Given its high Besides the operat-
working speed, the ing costs, also the in-
Pert wire rod block has vestment costs are
been designed so as cut; the foundations
to minimize damages for the 2xTechnolo-
caused by possible mal- gy™ block are very
functions or emergen- simple and compact.
cies such as cobbles, mo- Also the required
tor failures etc. In fact, space is markedly re-
thanks to reducing to a duced: the height of
minimum the inertia of the block, including
the gears in the block, it the basement, is less
stops in minimal time. than 0.9 m.
The diameter of the Also the flexibili-
rolling rings can be of 200 ty of this block is very
mm in the first stands and 160 important. In fact, the produc-
mm in the last ones, de- tivity of an installed plant can
pending on the need, to 3D view of the 2xTechnology™ TwistFree mandrel units be easily increased without sig-
provide an adequate and nificant interventions. Given a
reduced relation between the rolling The main characteristic of this block maximum achievable speed of 35 m/s
ring and the finished product’s dia­ is that it can simultaneously roll two per strand, for example can be pro-
meter, so as to have very tight toler- strands of the smallest diameters. Thus duced more than 80 t/h of 8 mm rebar.
ances and achieve a high quality. In it is possible to use the full furnace pro-
addition, the shaft length is reduced ductivity even when rolling at relative-
to have less cantilever “length” and ly low speed. 2xTechnology™ convertible
therefore reduce vibrations. Compared to one-strand rolling, The 2xTechnology™ convertible
rolling two strands allows cutting the block has essentially the same charac-
production speed in half, while using teristics as the 2xTechnology™ block,
2xTechnology™ block the same output per hour of the fur- but in addition it provides the possi-
Derived from the Pert bi-support nace. This speed reduction may be bility to use a H-H/V configuration,
stand, this block is made up by four helpful for less experienced operators. i.e. even stands can be arranged both
or six stands, controlled by only one Stand replacement is completely au- horizontally and vertically. This al-
motor and mounted on only one base- tomatic, since no cardan spindles are lows rolling the smallest diameters in
ment. Its main features are: used and the stands have no on-board the H/H configuration in the 2-strand
▪▪ max. rolling speed: 35 m/s per strand, piping. With one stand as a spare, re- mode so as to exploit the full capaci-
▪▪ one or two strands, placement time is reduced to less than ty of the reheating furnace, and larg-
▪▪ air/oil lubrication, ten minutes for all the stands of the er dia­meters in the H/V configuration
▪▪ FLUR™ system, block. Due to the double support of the so as to avoid torsion of the rolled bar.
▪▪ H/H configuration, ring holder shafts and to the gap reg- The convertible stands can be driven
▪▪ bi-support stands (double support), ulation by an eccentric system, stand either from the top or from the bottom.
▪▪ nominal rolling ring diameter: 265 rigidity is high, providing high quali- The technology has proved to be
mm, ty of the finished product. particularly suitable for small to me-

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66 ›››  HOT ROLLING

Example of a PPM™ Pert Pocket Mill layout for a small-capacity rolling mill

dium plants (up to 350,000 t/year) The employment of innovative steel This block provides numerous advan-
producing bars and wire rod. When rolling rings, whose lifetime is compa- tages: it substitutes plants using 3, 4
wire rod is produced, the 2xTech- rable to that of carbide rolling rings, al- or 5-strand multislitting technology
nology™ convertible block is config- lows the use of only one motor for all (higher number of guides, higher pos-
ured horizontally and vertically and four stands, since groove consumption sibility of cobbles, low finished prod-
therefore the bar does not twist dur- is far less and more uniform compared uct quality, H/H sequence, operating
ing rolling, thus obtaining excellent to cast iron rings. complications, higher specific operat-
wire rod quality, since all rolling is With the Pert intermediate block ing costs for smaller diameters, higher
torsion-free. low-capacity plants can be more ef- number of short bars) and plants using
Given the high rigidity of the stands, a fectively arranged, while drastically re- two finishing blocks with high-speed
further application for this block is that ducing the installation space, invest- 2-strand slitting (greater space require-
as a sizing block in H-V-H configuration ment costs and spare parts. ments, longer plants, more civil work,
for the production of special steel bars – an additional block, two extra quench-
round, square or hexagonal – in a range ing lines, an extra shear…). With this
from 16 mm up to 40 mm. The use of car- 2xTechnology™ TwistFree new technology, one single block is
bide mono-groove rolling rings increas- This block represents a revolution- sufficient.
es the rigidity of the stand even further, ary innovation for long-product roll- Noticeable savings on equipment and
which guarantees tolerances up to 1/4 ing mills and it is the first block in the civil work are also obtained in 2-strand
DIN on the finished product. world capable of rolling two strands si- wire rod mills, which all have that one
multaneously, in a horizontal/vertical block less and require a smaller work-
configuration and at speed of up to 100 ing platform. Since the 2xTechnology™
Intermediate block m/s. Its main features are: TwistFree block is also equipped with a
This block has the same characteris- ▪▪ max. rolling speed: 100 m/s for wire rapid FLUR™ rolling ring locking/un-
tics as the 2xTechnolgy™: Its main fea- rod (50 m/s for rebar), locking system, the whole block can
tures are: ▪▪ FLUR™ system, be set up in less than 20 min, using a
▪▪ one-strand design, ▪▪ reduced maintenance, team of only four workers. So down-
▪▪ four stands, ▪▪ two strands, time is reduced and plant productivi-
▪▪ H/H configuration, ▪▪ cantilevered, H/V configuration ty increased.
▪▪ possibility to mount carbide or spe- (90° or 45°),
cial steel rolling rings. ▪▪ oil film bearings,
Four rolling units are controlled by a ▪▪ nominal rolling ring diameters: 200 Layout example for a low-
single motor and installed on a com- mm and/or 160 mm. capacity mill
mon basement. The nominal diameter The 2xTechnology™ TwistFree block As mentioned at the beginning of
of the rolling rings in the stands is 420 has been designed for high-capacity the article, the wide range of finishing
or 340 mm. Therefore the block is suit- plants (up to 1,000,000 t/year) for the blocks allows adopting plant layout
able to be used in the intermediate po- production of rebar in 90° configura- solutions which perfectly adapt to the
sition or before the rebar block. tion and wire rod in 45° configuration. real needs of the customer, starting

Example of a Pert Giga Mill layout for the production of 300 t/h of rebar

MPT International 4 / 2014

 HOT ROLLING   ‹‹‹ 67

from low-production plants (100,000 Besides the spare parts of the 3-high high-capacity plants. The Pert Giga
t/year) up to plants with a high pro- stand, the rest of the rolling train does Mill for rebar production at a capaci-
duction capacity (1,500,000 t/year). not have the spare parts required for the ty exceeding 300 t/h can be suitable
For low-capacity plants for rebar pro- housingless stands presently available for installation in large integrated
duction, the concept of the Pert Pock- on the market, since there are no cardan plants, particularly in rapidly de-
et Mill (PPM™) has been introduced. spindles, container units, chocks or on veloping countries such as India or
Its aim is to reduce above all the ini- board piping at risk of damage. Neither China, in order to drastically reduce
tial investment costs, operating costs, the Pert intermediate block nor the Pert production costs, not only through
plant dimensions and spare parts. rebar block needs these spare parts. The the technological layout of the plant
The Pert Pocket Mill is composed of absence of the spindles also leads to net itself, but also by exploiting the
a pusher furnace, one 3-high stand, energy savings of 5%. economies of scale resulting from
two intermediate blocks, one rebar This lay-out solution may come in such high production volumes at a
block, cooling bed and finishing fa- several variants, depending on the single site.
cilities. From the viewpoint of the in- production volume (between 100,000 The simultaneous use of two
itial investment, it is clear that thanks and 300,000 t/year), as a continuous 2xTechnolgoy™ Twist Free blocks al-
to the really moderate plant dimen- roughing configuration (6 Pert bi-sup- lows high-speed rolling for rebars
sions the investment costs are reduced port stands) or as a configuration with (up to 50 m/s) with diameters from
to a minimum. Spare parts are drasti- 2xTechnology™ in the finishing mill, 8 mm to 16 mm in four strands (with
cally reduced, both for the mechani- using 2-strand slitting. peaks of 300 t/hour) and for rebars
cal part and for the electrical part. The in diameters from 18 to 32 mm in
motors of the 3-high stand and the re- two strands. The same configura-
bar block are identical, as are the two Layout example for a high- tion can be used for wire rod plants
motors of the intermediate blocks, i.e. capacity mill guaranteeing an output of 5.5 mm
four main motors with only two dif- The 2xTechnolgoy™ Twist Free repre- wire rod at 100 m/s, corresponding
ferent power ratings. sents most advanced technology for to 250 t/h. 

2014-3550-002_LEC_Anzeige_Roll_Cooling_174x128_en_174 x 128 23.07.14 16:38 Seite 1

Selective Roll Cooling at it’s best!

More than
300 references
world-wide

Lechler Ltd.
1 Fell Street
Newhall
Sheffield S9 2TP / United Kingdom
Phone: (0114) 2492020
Fax: (0114) 2493600

E-Mail: [email protected]
Internet: www.lechler.co.uk

Wide range of spray nozzles and State of the art header design Selective roll cooling system engi-
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MPT International 4 / 2014