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THE COMPANY
Acindar
is one of the most important steelmaking companies in
Argentina and a leader in the production of non-flat steels.
Since its founding in 1942, the company has played a significant
role in consolidating Argentina's industrialization, in
addition to incorporating new technologies on an ongoing
basis for improving quality in production and conserving
the environment.
Acindar's main industrial
facility is located in the town of Villa Constitución,
province of Santa Fe. It occupies a total of 394 hectares
of land, of which 220,000 square meters belong to its
comprehensive facilities. The mill has an annual production
capacity of 1,200,000 tons of raw steel, which is put
through different processes: reduction of iron ore; steel
manufacture in electric furnaces and continuous melting
with rolling stages; and manufacture of wire and tube
products for making steel billets, wire rods, strapping,
and construction reinforcement rods and rebars. Acindar’s
sales for 1998 amounted to U.S.$672 million.
ACINDAR AND THE ENVIRONMENT
The
steelmaking industry impacts the environment due to the
transformations involved in its production processes and
the magnitude of the natural resources used. These impacts
can be quite varied, including emissions resulting from
the generation of energy and from different combustion
processes; wastewater from surface treatments; methods
for cooling and purifying gases; solid wastes; contamination
of land; and generation of noise and heat, among others.
In one of
its planning efforts, Acindar developed an overall, practical,
simplified vision of the different kinds of impacts that
were being generated, through evaluations of the production
processes at its mills. The programs developed for controlling
the environmental situations that were being created have
included analysis and proposal of alternatives for continuous
improvement as a part of an Environmental Projects Program.
Acindar's
Environmental Management System (EMS) is set within a
framework of specific legal requirements and voluntary
requirements, in accordance with international standards.
Included among these are Certifications of Environmental
Capability according to legal standards applicable to
its facilities and processes at its mills in the provinces
of San Luis and Buenos Aires, and ISO 14001 certification
of its Navarro plant in the province of Santa Fe. The
latter is the first Argentine steel mill to attain this
achievement.
PRODUCTION
PROCESS AT THE VILLA CONSTITUCIÓN MILL
The production
process at the semi-integrated mill at Villa Constitución
starts with the reduction of the iron ore at the Direct
Reduction plant, with a capacity of 1,000,000 tons annually.
This product, together with a load of scrap iron, iron
alloys, and other ingredients, is fed into three electric
furnaces for the manufacture of 1,300,000 tons of steel
billets after the continuous melting process. The material
so produced is used in subsequent rolling processes for
making wire rods, bars, and strapping. Processes continue
at specific mills for making a varied range of products,
including items such as tubing, sections, wire, galvanized
products, meshes, and cables, among others.
STRATEGIES
The
company introduced the environmental actions and improvements
contained in its EMS that focused on improving efficiency
and rational use of energy, in order to minimize their
effect on climate change. These include:
-
A
decrease in the consumption of material for goods and
services
-
A
decrease in the consumption of energy
-
Decreased
Consumption of Materials for Goods and Services
Acindar
provides a service for cutting and bending rebars for
the construction industry, according to each client's
measurements and project plan, with quick delivery at
the job site according to required schedules and in individualized
packages.
Thanks to
this service, the company is contributing by reducing
product waste. Usually losses can amount to between 5
and 10%, but with this service, only the theoretical weight
shown on plans is used and excess rebar can be re-used
in other production processes. It is important to mention
that there can be hidden waste in concrete, such as joints
that are made to use cut pieces of rebar, or pieces that
should be of a certain length but, when they are somewhat
longer, are not cut.
The elimination
of excessive handling of very long pieces of rebar provides
additional financial benefits, such as the avoidance of
the use of cutting and bending equipment, as well as the
elimination of accident hazards and associated costs.
The objective that has been reached through this process
is to provide an extra service to enable both material
and cost savings, while making gains in sustainability,
safety, and quality.
Decreased
Energy Consumption
With
a model mill from the International Iron and Steel Institute
(IISI) as a basis, Acindar determined how much energy
was used in the production of a unit of steel, by using
overall energy consumption indicators (mkcal/t of steel
produced) and an analysis of each kind of energy used
at the mill.
This enabled
Acindar to develop energy balance sheets for the 1990—98
period, in addition to the technological and operational
improvements implemented in processes. The result has
been a decrease in specific areas of energy consumption,
as shown in the following graph:
Energy
Balance
Acindar
did several things to make energy use more efficient,
relying on continuous improvement groups and applying
methods to monitor energy use. From that point on, the
company achieved savings that benefited production and
environmental preservation. Task force groups have used
methods for analyzing and solving problems. They have
also worked on procedure-implementation tasks, data monitoring
sheets, and follow-up on cases such as efficient lighting
in production areas and shutdown of inactive equipment.
Decreases
in Lighting
By
changing over to lamps with lower energy consumption (43%)
and higher intensity (25%), with 100% useful life and
lower cost (66%), Acindar achieved significant savings,
especially by decreasing energy consumption, which was
quantified at 240,000 kW/h annually. This produces a yearly
savings of U.S.$10,000. The task force came to the conclusion
that rational use of energy does not mean to stop using
it, but rather to use it in a more efficient and controlled
manner.
Shutdown
of Inactive Equipment
When
unnecessary activity in material transfer conveyer belts
was decreased, a specific energy consumption item was
reduced. By using statistical analysis, follow-up with
monitoring sheets, and specific procedures, Acindar achieved
optimization of the process with the following benefits:
-
Decreased
electric power consumption
-
Longer
useful life for equipment
-
Lower
lubricant and maintenance costs
When
energy costs with the conveyer belt either loaded or unloaded
are considered, these benefits translate into a 21% savings
in electrical power amounting to 5,000 kW/h annually.
CONCLUSIONS
The
development of environmental indicators in Acindar's business
has enabled the company to evaluate the degree of progress
in the EMS that was implemented. The samples of environmental
performance selected are representative of the changes
that were made, starting with the application of programs
through the company's EMS. Although some of these are
simple, they can be replicated in other task forces, maximizing
the effects of improvements in environmental issues.
Among its
environmental projects, Acindar continues doing intensive
work on optimizing energy resources and mitigating the
emission of greenhouse gases. The challenge that Acindar
faces right now is to work with a permanent commitment
to continuous improvement, which is key not only to the
company's future and but to that of the community in which
it is located.
CONTACT
Ing.
Alberto Uhart
Assistant
to CEO
Ing. Adrián
Salichs
Environmental
Chief
Acindar I.A.A.S.A.
Estanislao
Zevallos 2739
1609 Boulogne,
San Isidro,
Provincia
de Buenos Aires,
Argentina
E-mail: uhart@acindar.com.ar
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