CARB toroidal roller bearings double service life in continuous caster
The challenge
A steel maker capable of producing 5.9 million tonnes of steel a year had been experiencing unplanned downtime due to recurring bearing failures on the continuous slab caster strand guide rolls. Eventually the slab caster failed due to bearing failure.
The SKF solution
SKF suggested installing CARB toroidal roller bearings for maximum load carrying capacity and dynamic, self-aligning capability. The steel maker implemented a customized caster roll arrangement with three roll bodies, the centre roll supporting two full CARB toroidal bearings and immediately reported improved service life. The SKF Caster Analyst System was also installed to achieve further performance improvements.
The results
The customized caster roll arrangement with CARB toroidal roller bearings paired with subsequent maintenance and lubrication procedure improvements enabled the steel maker to double service life. ThyssenKrupp was able to achieve a stable service life of 3.5 million tonnes in the caster bow segments and straightening zone as well as 5 million tonnes in the withdrawal area.
- Increased productivity
- Reduced planned and unplanned downtime
- Extended service life
- Lower maintenance costs
