Industrial Automation Magazine India

LiquiRob robotics system from Primetals Technologies designed for a new approach toward safe and efficient shroud manipulation.

London, April 2024 – Thai steel producer Siam Yamato Steel has realised a new robotic concept from Primetals Technologies, including LiquiRob, at its steel plant in Map Ta Phut. The solution is used for shroud manipulation at Siam Yamato Steel’s bloom caster. References from recent robotics system projects and the tailormade technological solution were among the decisive factors influencing Siam Yamato Steel’s choice of supplier.

Thanks to the robotics solution, safety and occupational health have improved significantly at the steel plant. Workers operating the shroud manually previously had to stand right next to the tundish and the flow of liquid steel coming from the ladle. Additionally, in the event of a so-called “frozen ladle” i.e., an unwanted solidification of liquid steel in the ladle, operators had to get into even closer proximity to the ladle slide gate to manually execute oxygen lancing.

Developed by Primetals Technologies, the new concept consists of a standard ladle shroud manipulator equipped with a mechanical interface tailored to Siam Yamato Steel’s needs. The robot attaches to the interface to guide the shroud in the right position and attach it to the ladle. Primetals Technologies’ position measurement system, featuring a 3D camera system, determines the correct position of both the ladle and the shroud manipulator. The LiquiRob robotics system performs several dangerous tasks, including oxygen lancing, tundish measurements, tundish sampling, and tundish powder feeding.

LiquiRob is a registered trademark of Primetals Technologies in certain countries.