The Steelmaking Process Research Team at Dangjin Integrated Steelworks
Steel manufacturing and continuous casting, or the process of creating and hardening molten metal, are considered the core elements of the steel industry. The Steelmaking Process Research Team at Dangjin Integrated Steelworks researches ways to raise productivity, improve quality, and save costs in the processes of steel manufacturing and continuous casting. In other words, the team continuously works to come up with the most effective steel manufacturing processes.
The most important task of the Steelmaking Process Research Team involves “prerequisite” research on steel manufacturing and continuous casting. “Prerequisite” literally means “to do first.” This type of research involves predicting changes in the business environment based on precise data and responding to these changes before they even occur. Given the team’s reliance on accurate information, “big data,” “artificial intelligence,” and “smart factories” are concepts closely associated with the Steelmaking Process Research Team. The team takes great pride in conducting research and making preparations to lead the future of Hyundai Steel.
Members of the Steelmaking Process Research Team often say that they are the “chefs of the steel mill.” They must research and develop the most economical “recipe” and come up with the best plan, before supplying it to the steel mill. In order to achieve this, the team creates new models based on big data that analyzes conventional processes, and then retest their new models.
The most important role of the Steelmaking Process Research Team is organic communication with the steel mill. In order to ensure that different types of technology, which have been created utilizing process analysis data, operate effectively, it is paramount that team members always be present at the steel mill. Dining and communicating with other mill workers and conducting research are part of the everyday lives of the members of the Steelmaking Process Research Team.
Last year, the Steelmaking Process Research Team received a great honor. It participated in the prestigious World Steel Dynamics (WSD) Steel Challenge and won “fifth place in Asia.” The team is taking small but meaningful steps toward accomplishing the industry’s goals of leading the Fourth Industrial Revolution and establishing smart factories. Members of the Steelmaking Process Research Team are undoubtedly key players in predicting the future of the industry, which is why the team often says, “We are the future of Hyundai Steel!”