New-design Danieli billet welder in operation at Ferriere Nord

Italian minimill producer and industry innovator Ferriere Nord (Pittini Group) is first in operating a 6th generation Danieli billet welder.

With the experience of more than 30 billet-welder installations in operation since 1997, Danieli engineers came up with a new, patented machine design which, in addition to consolidated quality performances offers improved maintainability.

In fact, the innovative design allows shorter cleaning operations, reducing to 50% the time previously required.

This new achievement leads to an improved plant yield which, in the Ferriere Nord case, means an increased efficiency of 5%.

Furthermore, the welder features a cartridge concept applied to the welding clamps which now can be replaced quickly and easily, allowing off-line maintenance in the workshop instead of onboard.

Finally, a new current-control system speeds-up the welding time and improves the homogeneity of the welding joints.

The new billet welder went into operation at Ferriere Nord in January 2022 during a 3-week plant maintenance shut-down.

Billet welders allow endless rolling by welding head and tails of billets, avoiding crops of heads and tails.