Master Thesis: Optimizing Heating Parameters to Improve Quality in Hot Rolling

What do you get?

You will be a part of a company doing the right thing because its right, that already today has a world-leading CO2 position and is doing its best to create a sustainable society.

Ovako is an employer for you who likes the smaller organizations efficient decisions and the larger organizations security. At Ovako you can expect an energetic and forward-leaning place of work, with open discussions, good camaraderie and great organizational drive. As an employee you get (among other things)

• A workplace with focus on employee health, safety and wellbeing
• Great personal responsibility and freedom to how you solve your tasks
• A culture that likes to be challenged and welcomes new ideas that improves
• Ability to work in a dynamic environment with engaged and experiences coworkers

Backgrund and purpose

In the current process of hot rolling 200mm square billets, various quality problems arise due to insufficient heating during the initial stages. Factors such as furnace time and billet temperature play a critical role, and when these are not properly controlled, they lead to defects such as crooked bars, cold spots that affect dimensional tolerances, and surface imperfections.

Why is this relevant to study?
These quality issues impact both production efficiency and the overall product quality, leading to increased rework and scrap. By understanding how process parameters like furnace time and furnace temperature affect heating, we can optimize the process to reduce defects and improve the overall quality.

Why do we want to learn more about it?
Ovako aims to enhance its hot rolling processes by identifying the critical heating parameters that affect product quality. By improving control over these parameters, we expect to reduce production defects, increase product consistency, and ultimately improve customer satisfaction.

Description
This thesis will investigate the process parameters in the hot rolling process that affect billet heating and contribute to quality issues. The focus will be on identifying specific indicators that a billet has not been sufficiently heated, such as cold spots, material crookedness, and surface defects. The student will analyze how furnace time and furnace temperature can be optimized to minimize these issues.

Research question

Investigating the process parameters influencing heating during hot rolling and how they correlate with product quality issues.

• Which process parameters indicate insufficient heating of billets?
• How do inadequate heating conditions contribute to specific defects such as end hooks, cold spots, and surface imperfections?
• What improvements can be made to the heating process to reduce these defects?

What is our expected result?
A well-defined set of process parameters and guidelines for optimizing the heating process during hot rolling, leading to improved product quality and reduced defects.

About the Team
The selected student will work closely with Ovako’s production engineers and quality control teams. Regular feedback sessions and meetings with the production teams will ensure progress and provide practical insights into the hot rolling process.

Project Setup
The student will have the opportunity to conduct study visits to production facilities to gain firsthand experience with the hot rolling process. Data from actual production runs will be made available for analysis, and collaboration with production staff will help ensure practical recommendations for process improvement.

If you have any questions, you are most welcome to contact Ovako’s Representative as Supervisor:

Magnus Nordqvist or Oscar Modigs 

Email: magnus.nordkvist@ovako.com, oscar.modigs@ovako.com

Your profile

The ideal student should have a strong interest in materials engineering and process optimization, with a focus on metallurgical processes. Students in materials engineering, mechanical engineering, or related fields with a focus on hot rolling or thermal processes. Experience with data analysis, thermodynamics, and material science is preferred. Familiarity with industrial production environments and process optimization tools is also an advantage.

Information & other

Compensation

Ovako will compensate you for completed master thesis corrsponding to a value per "högskolepoäng". We can also in most cases assist with accomodation during the time you are performing your master thesis with us. Ovako will support with travel to and from our sites for interviews, eventual trips back to the university for meetings with supervisor and equivalent.

Recruitment

Selection will be ongoing and during the process you will get the chance to meet potential supervisors, relevant managers and stakeholder. The process will include ability tests, interviews, background check and references.

Other Information

This master’s thesis provides a unique opportunity to work on a real-world problem in one of Ovako’s core production processes. The insights gained from this project can lead to valuable career development opportunities within the field of materials science and process engineering.

About Ovako and Career Opportunities

Ovako is a leader in steel production with a strong focus on innovation and sustainability. For the right candidate, there are excellent opportunities to continue within the company after completing the thesis, either in production or in quality control and process development.