Baosteel’s construction of a "dark factory" and the intelligent transformation.
Baosteel Co., Ltd. is promoting the construction of a "dark factory" for cold rolling, and the intelligent transformation of production lines has become a focus of the industry.
Recently, the intelligent transformation of the steel industry has been continuously deepening, among which the construction of "dark factories" (i.e., unmanned intelligent workshops) in cold rolling workshops has become a hot topic. Take Baosteel Co., Ltd. as an example, it is carrying out all-round intelligent upgrades for production lines such as the 2030 cold rolling workshop.
The core transformation involves the following equipment and systems:
Pickling and tandems cold rolling mill: By introducing an AI surface quality inspection system, real-time, high-speed, and high-precision identification and classification of surface defects on steel strips are achieved, replacing traditional manual visual inspection and significantly enhancing the level of quality control.
Annealing furnace: By applying intelligent combustion control models and digital twin technology, the temperature and atmosphere inside the annealing furnace can be dynamically regulated with greater precision. This not only enhances the consistency of product performance but also significantly reduces energy consumption, facilitating green production.
Between the flattening machine and the grinding roller: Promote the "robotic automatic installation and removal of rolls" and "unmanned crane" technologies to free workers from heavy and high-risk labor, while enhancing operational efficiency and equipment utilization.
Full-process logistics: From loading steel coils to finished product storage, it realizes the collaborative operation of AGV carts, unmanned cranes and automatic strapping equipment, and builds a complete closed loop of material flow automation.
Industry significance:
The transformation of this production line is a microcosm of China's steel industry's current move towards high-end, intelligent and green development. Its goal is not merely to replace human workers with machines, but to achieve precise prediction of the production process, optimized decision-making and flexible manufacturing through data-driven approaches, ultimately enhancing the market competitiveness of high-end steel plates.