Rolling mill in Hamburg revamped

CONTROL: Everything is under control with 13 monitors at Hamburg's thoroughly revamped hot rolling mill.

(June 5, 2003) Hydro Aluminium's rolling mill in Hamburg, Germany, has completed a comprehensive revamp of its facilities including a capacity expansion. Annual output will be increased by 60,000 tonnes up to 175,000 tonnes by the end of this year.

An inaugural ceremony on Thursday celebrated the completion of the plant refurbishment. In attendance was Hamburg's Senator of Commerce, Mr Gunnar Uldall, together with numerous customers and other guests from the spheres of politics, administration and business.

An investment of approximately EUR 50 million, the "Hamburg 2000" project has transformed the plant – by means brand new technology – into a state-of-the-art facility.

The hot mill and the two cold mills were thoroughly revamped. Coils are now transported by an automatic guided vehicle system and stored in a eight-high coil storage rack. The cut-to-length line has been thoroughly modernized and a new slitter installed. Moreover, production continued throughout the revamp.

COOL DOWN: The new, almost 30-meter-high coil storage rack where the coils cool down after hot rolling.

"This project provides us with the opportunity to strengthen the future for this location and implement our business strategy. It will strengthen our leading role as a supplier of premium-quality aluminium strip and further increase the efficiency and the portfolio focus of our rolling mills," says Andreas Schütte, president of Hydro Aluminium Rolled Products.

The Hamburg plant is now concentrating on the production of brazing sheet for heat exchangers and strip for the construction industry.

Hydro Aluminium's Hamburg rolling mill, which started production in 1973, today employs a workforce of 500.