Zhongshou Special Steel’s newly commissioned Arvedi ESP endless casting and rolling line in China has surpassed productivity and production ramp-up records for thin-slab casting and rolling plants, according to Primetals Technologies.
The first coil was produced on May 13, 2026. The line began producing 1.0-mm-thick HRC just 16 days later and reached a productivity of 7 tons per minute with a 1,250-mm-wide strip within 30 days. It produced its first 0.8-mm coil after 11 weeks and its first 0.7-mm coil after 17 weeks.
The plant has operated in full endless mode since the second sequence after startup, producing prime-quality endless HRC (eHRC). Its productivity, measured by specific mass flow in tons per hour per meter of coil width, is approximately 20pct higher than that achieved by other thin-slab casting and rolling plants, according to Primetals.
The line uses a 135-mm-thick caster with a 34-meter containment length, four roughing stands and five finishing stands. Primetals said the caster’s design enables high mass flow and a thermal profile suited to endless rolling.
The Zhongshou plant is the most powerful and productive Arvedi ESP line installed by Primetals in China to date. Zhongshou and Primetals will continue to optimize the line with the aim of accelerating production ramp-up and increasing output of high-end steel products.
The line is designed to produce a wide range of grades, from low-carbon to high-strength low-alloy steels, with gauges from ultra-thin products to heavier HRC. The technology also enables production of gauges at or below 1 mm, while eHRC can be used in conventional applications as well as specialty applications such as automotive sheet for direct use without cold rolling.