Page 17 - ITAtube Journal 1-2021

Technical Papers
Thomas Maßmann,
Executive Vice President Center of Competence Long Products, SMS group
ondary operating facilities and administrative facilities remains constant with the increase in production.
PQF® – the benchmark of tomorrow
Around 40 million tons of seamless tubes are produced worldwide every year, around half of them in high-grade PQF® quality. The main customer is the oil and gas industry, using OCTG tubes preferably manufactured with PQF® technology. The reason: As the con- ditions for extracting fossil energy deposits become more and more extreme, the tubes must meet correspondingly high quality
and load requirements. Structural tubes are another area of application for high-quality PQF® tubes. Here, further market shares can be gained through reduced manufacturing costs. Likewise, existing, old equipment for seamless tubes can be replaced by state- of-the-art, digitalized PQF® plants of the fourth generation, as conventional seamless tube lines cannot viably compete with the high-precision PQF® quality nor with the new productivity boost.
Significant five-second reduction in
cycle time
The main innovations include the arrange- ment of a quick entry side with the inline insertion of the mandrel in the pierced billet.
In conjunction with the highly efficient configuration of the retaining system, the cycle times are reduced by between four and five seconds. This means that a cycle time of around 20 seconds per tube – and even up to a peak of 18 seconds – is now possi-
The quick entry side: one of the 4th generation’s main innovations
ble instead of a cycle time of 24 seconds. A 7-inch PQF® is therefore able, for example, to roll 200 tubes per hour; a 10 3⁄4-inch PQF® can achieve 150 tubes per hour.
Another new feature is the chocks design
in the PQF® rolling mill helping to simplify roll assembly and dismantling. The roll and shaft are separate from each other and are no longer made of one part. This reduces tool costs considerably and reduces the necessary operating stands inventory. A special, newly developed grooved profile between the roll and shaft replaces the previous cylindrical coupling ensures reliable torque transmission.
ITAtube Journal 2021 – Special Edition
17