25/06/2020 – Tenova-ORI Martin partnership
The steel plant restarts, thanks to digital technologies
Tenova and ORI Martin invest in digital technologies and circular economy to face the post-Covid-19 crisis, and the Lighthouse Plant “Acciaio_4.0” plays a pivotal role in the new context.
Tenova and ORI Martin invest in digital technologies and circular economy to face the post-Covid-19 crisis. © Tenova
A long-standing collaboration centered on innovation and sustainability gains momentum through the ambitious Lighthouse Plant “Acciaio_4.0”. ORI Martin – one of the main European integrated steel groups for high-quality steel – and Tenova – a Techint Group company specialized in innovative solutions for the metals and mining industries – have their headquarters in Lombardy, one of the areas most affected by the Covid-19 health emergency worldwide. To face the crisis hitting the Italian and European manufacturing sector, the two companies have invested in digital technologies, finding in the digitalization process the strategy to adapt to the changing conditions.
“Acciaio_4.0”, one of the four Lighthouse Plant projects selected by the Italian Smart Factory Cluster (Cluster Fabbrica Intelligente), entails an overall investment of 12 million Euro – 8 million Euro of which are partly (22%) funded by the Italian Ministry of Economic Development and the Lombardy Region within the Fund for Sustainable Growth. The goal is to transform ORI Martin’s steel plant in Brescia into a smart factory with the support of Tenova, the project’s technological partner, thanks to the application of the enabling technologies of Industry 4.0.
“Over the past months, our main priority – together with safeguarding our employees’ health and safety – has been to guarantee business continuity to our customers, trying to react promptly. This experience is showing us that the path undertaken with ORI Martin is the right one to face the challenges ahead: the implementation of a platform for advanced digital services based on big data analysis and machine learning technologies, integrating the entire value chain, is the key to manage steel plant operations in the safest and most efficient way. This crisis will widen the gap between those who invested in innovation and those who did not, favoring the first ones in a market outlook that promises to be very competitive,” affirmed Roberto Pancaldi, Tenova CEO.
“Despite the difficult moment – both from a health and an economic point of view – ORI Martin has not stopped investing, especially in strategic models like Digital Transformation and Circular Economy, fundamental pillars for green steel production and at the basis of the Lighthouse Plant Acciaio_4.0,” stated Uggero de Miranda ORI Martin President. “We are aware that this is not just a simple investment: it is almost a revolution. We are asking our employees great efforts in terms of time, energy, and also creativity. There is enthusiasm, but it cannot be denied that, as in all endeavors, there are critical issues and doubts. We are proud and happy to have Tenova at our side in this – I would say historic – transition for the ORI Martin Group.”
About Tenova
Tenova, a Techint Group company, is a worldwide partner for innovative, reliable and sustainable solutions in metals and mining. Together with its subsidiaries, Tenova leverages a workforce of over 2,500 forward-thinking professionals located in 19 countries across five continents, who design technologies and develop services that help companies reduce costs, save energy, limit environmental impact and improve working conditions.
About ORI Martin
Founded in 1933, ORI Martin developed into an electric furnace steel mill to produce continuous casting billets and hot rolled wire rod, bars in coils and alloy steel bars for special applications in the automotive sector, such as nuts and bolts, suspension springs, torsion bars, steering components and mechanics in general. It is also fitted with installations for annealing and tempering thermal treatments.
