Gerdau’s special-bar-quality (SBQ) steel mill in Monroe, Mich., will transition to a 240-mm square bloom this September as part of an overall initiative to enhance the steel cleanliness necessary for evolving critical applications in the automotive market and other industries. This project is an expansion of the capability of the mill’s continuous-casting machine, which was originally installed in 2012. The switch to a larger section size will result in a greater reduction ratio, improved surface quality and cleaner steel with fewer inclusions.

Gerdau, a leading supplier of SBQ steel, has prepared to better serve the forging industry through modernizing its processes and equipment, finding ways to improve steel cleanliness and remaining intensely focused on forgers.

Steelmaker Gerdau completed the transition from 152-mm (6-inch) square billets to 210-mm (8.25-inch) square billets on the recently installed state-of-the-art continuous caster at its special-bar-quality (SBQ) steel mill in Monroe, Mich.