02/02/2023 – Tested in successful pilot project with Gerdau
New lifecycle services platform
Primetals Technologies recently completed a pilot project together with Brazilian steel producer Gerdau. The pilot project was executed at Gerdau’s plant in Ouro Branco, Brazil, together with Gerdau’s local maintenance team.
Euder Melo, Caster Maintenance Specialist at Gerdau’s Ouro Branco site, is wearing smart glasses that can be used to receive digital guided support from Primetals Technologies. © Primetals
Focused on Gerdau’s slab caster, the project gave the steel producer the opportunity to both access technical information about its spare parts, and create service requests online via “m.space”.
“m.space” is a comprehensive digital platform that offers an easy and fast way for steel producers to connect with the right experts at Primetals Technologies when having any kind of service-related request or question. The inquiry could be related to spare parts, plant documentation, and remote live support for mechanical as well as electrics and automation issues.
“The ‘m.space’ platform offers a new interface between the customer and Primetals Technologies. It is a unique solution, and this portal might well be widely used by Gerdau entities all over the Americas,” says Euder Melo, Caster Maintenance Specialist at Gerdau’s Ouro Branco site.
The requests were, for example, about remote inspection of caster rolls, analysis of the data generated by the ladle turret’s condition monitoring system, or automation support for Primetals Technologies’ technological packages such as Dynawidth, Dynaflex, the ASTC system, and Strand Checker.
The requests were technology-specific and required a high level of expertise. In addition to solving the requests, Primetals Technologies provided Gerdau with additional insights thanks to its expertise in the wider maintenance area and via the use of historical troubleshooting data from m.space.
Traditionally, maintenance issues often needed to be addressed by a field service engineer on-site. However, recent technology developments make it possible for Primetals Technologies’ experts to digitally assist steel producers. In that way, maintenance issues are solved faster and at lower cost as there is no accumulation of travel expenses.
Experts from Primetals Technologies will support the steel producer’s in-house service technicians from initial troubleshooting to the successful implementation of a solution. With the help of smart glasses and a mobile phone or a tablet, the team from Primetals Technologies consistently stays in dialogue with the technicians on site.
With a history spanning 121 years, Gerdau is Brazil’s largest steel producer, one of the leading manufacturers of long steels in the Americas, and one of the world’s most prominent producers of special steels. Gerdau has operations in nine countries and serves the agricultural, automotive, construction, distribution, energy, industrial, and mining markets.
