Gerdau Aominas selects Broner scheduling solution for new Steckel and Plate mill complex

Broner Metals Solutions, provider of integrated MES, supply chain and scheduling solutions for the metals industries, has been selected by Gerdau Aominas to implement a new Advanced Planning & Scheduling solution for Gerdau's new Plate and Steckel Mills in Minas Gerais, Brazil.

 
The objective of the new project is to provide the new production lines with advanced planning scheduling solutions that will support Gerdau's production, inventory and sales strategies and place Gerdau Aominas among the most efficient producers of Plates and Hot Coils.

• Broner's Production Planner (PP) and Material Planner (MP) modules will be implemented to the new Steckel and Plate mill complex to provide an integrated, plant-wide, production & material plan from steel making, rolling finishing and shipping.
• The Plate Combination Module (PC) module will be introduced to provide functionality specific to the planning of plate mills. This functionality provides the ability to combine several orders for plate into one, larger master plate; and child slabs into mother slabs. PC groups orders by similar characteristics such as finished gauge, finished width, grade and quality and determines the "optimal" cutting pattern for the master plate.
• The new Hotmill Scheduling solution (HS) will provide specialized programming capabilities for the single reheat furnace and feedstock to both the Steckel mill and plate mill. The process uses current inventories, and caster schedules to generate multiple rounds, based on user-defined sequencing rules and parameters. The scheduling solution will also include the ability to re-allocate slabs already loaded in the reheat furnace to alternative orders should mill problems prevent the scheduled specification being produced.

Some of the benefits which will be provided by Broner's new solutions include:

• Integration of capacity balancing and material flow planning across the entire plant from the Blast Furnace to shipping finished product including the new Steckel Mill, Plate Mill as well as the existing heavy sections mill and billet mill.
• Ability to operate the new plant with:
• Minimum inventory
• Optimum  Delivery Performance
• Maximum yield
• Minimal  Production Costs.

David Mushin, CEO of Broner Metals Solutions said, "Broner has a long standing relationship with Gerdau Aominas supplying advance scheduling solutions since 1999 and I am pleased to continue this relationship to assist Gerdau with their business needs".