Chromium: Blood for Stainless Steel

by Jindal Stainless Hisar
0 978 0.0/5

A Stainless Steel Manufacturing major in India was facing competition from cheaper imports from China. COO was a worried man; to sustain the company’s market share he had to rework the costs to stay competitive.

During the review meeting itself a young and energetic metallurgist, Mr. X quipped that we must look at the chromium losses and do something to reduce these losses.

COO: Why Mr. X? Why do you think so?

Mr. X replied: Sir, chromium to stainless steel is like blood to human body. Its very existence depends upon the presence of chromium.

COO: Yes. I do agree.

Mr. X: Sir, if we work on other issues they may impact cost of a particular type of stainless steel. But improvement in chromium recovery we will gain cost benefit in all types of stainless steel.

COO: But Mr. X, your chromium loss occurs at different stages of production.

Mr. X: Sir, I have done a Pareto analysis of the magnitude of loss at different stages and found that significant amount of chromium is lost during Electric Arc Melting.

COO: Ok. Mr. X so you lead this project to reduce chromium oxidation at EAF.

Mr. X: Definitely Sir.

A cross-functional team was made comprising members from

  1. Steel Melt Operations : Impacted Team, Main Lead,
  2. R&D/QA : Process Guide/Measurements,
  3. Maintenance: Equipment Health/Availability & Modifications, if required.

The team started to work immediately on the task at hand. Various technical papers and other scientific literature were browsed. Past data was analysed using advanced statistical tools like multiple regression and DOE. A comprehensive implementation plan was made and successfully completed within stipulated time frame.

COO and senior management reviewed the project status every fortnight to understand the progress and provide support and other useful inputs.

After all the hard work the results were out there for everyone to see. The team was successful in reducing Chromium oxidation i.e. loss of chromium in EAF slag by 1.5% through replacement of manual practice by injection practice. This saved Rs.3.51 Crore for the company per year, recurring.

The project got full support from the workers as the major outcome of the project was reduction in manual injection practice. Looking at the results, COO provided an opportunity to the team for showcasing this project journey to the Vice Chairman who applauded the team for the improvement and personally felicitated the entire Team.

Lessons Learned

  1. There is always scope for improvement even with a given set of constraints. You need to break the problem in specific parts. Minor corrections or changes in these parts can result in sustained and substantial savings
  2. Best results can be achieved only by following a disciplined methodology. There are no shortcuts
  3. Cross functional teams help in understanding problem with a wider perspective. This results in generation of creative ideas for getting to the best of the solutions
Rate this Fable:
Login or Signup to rate this fable.

Comments

Post your comment
 
Login or Signup to post comments.