TMW Expands Capacity of CTL Lines

The Material Works, Ltd. (TMW; Red Bud, IL) announced that growing demand for their EPS Unlimited flat rolled product has motivated major investments in their two Stretcher Leveling Cut-to-Length lines. Capacity increases for these two CTL lines will be phased in beginning this September and are scheduled for July 2018 completion, with no interruption in service to TMW customers. The two lines are located in their main toll processing facility in Red Bud.

“We started up our Generation 3 EPS Coil Line in March, knowing there was immediate demand for EPS coils,” explained company president Kevin Voges in announcing this investment. “However, the demand for this particular product really took off at the same time.” EPS Unlimited is an application of both EPS Pickling and Stretcher Leveling that produces an ultra-clean, oil-free, ‘stay-flat’ sheet product.

The patented EPS process is an environmentally friendly replacement for acid pickling of hot rolled steel strip. It removes the mill scale (oxide) from the surface of hot rolled steel, imparting a very clean, uniform surface. Unlike acid pickling, this process uses no hazardous substances to accomplish its “pickling,” just ordinary water and fine steel grit that are recirculated for continuous use. The process also leaves the steel inherently rust resistant, so that it does not require the oil film that is applied to acid pickled steel to prevent rusting.

“To meet this increased demand, we are upgrading our heavy gauge Stretcher Leveler with a new roller leveler, shear, threading system, stretcher frames and PLC controls to increase its overall capacity,” added Voges. “We will make similar upgrades to our lighter gauge Stretcher Leveler, both increasing its throughput and allowing it to stretch material up to 4.75 mm (0.187 in). When complete, we will produce greater volumes of EPS Unlimited sheets over a broader thickness range of 1.2 mm to 9.5 mm (0.04 in to 0.375 in).

www.thematerialworks.com