Sollac (acronym of Lorraine SOciété of Continuous Rolling ) is a iron and steel company which marked the French industrial history of after Second world war, mainly in Lorraine, but also with Dunkirk and in the Rhone delta. Since 2000, this company belongs to the group Arcelor under the names of Arcelor Atlantique and Lorraine, like Sollac the Mediterranean.
Chronology
Origin
As of 1946, the plan Monnet envisaged a considerable growth of the demand for steels, in particular of flat steels for auto industry and the household electricals. To meet these needs, a grouping of steelmakers exclusively decided the realization of a large factory manufacturing thin Tôle S, and of a capacity of a million tons per annum. The decision of this unit was made in 1948 by the following companies:- of Wendel
- Steel-works and forging mills of Rombas
- UCPMI Hagondange
- Blast furnaces and steel-works of Longwy
- Company of the forging mills and steel-works of the navy and of Homécourt
- Forging mills and steel-works of Gueugnon
- Low-Indre Forging mills JJ Carnaud
- Blast furnaces and steel-works of (in the Saar (Land))
Called the “members”, the latter chose the sites of Sérémange and Ebange, in the valley of the Fensch in the Moselle, for the establishment of the SOLLAC (acronym of Lorraine Company of continuous rolling). It is an engineer, Louis Dherse, polytechnician come from a large national company, which will be the president of the new business.
The originality of SOLLAC is that it functions in Coopérative, not buying nor not selling anything. Each member providing the raw material (the Cast iron (metallurgy) liquid) transformed by steel SOLLAC flat, and resold on the market by these same members.
The development
The cast iron liquid of higher temperature to 1.100 °C, and originating in the blast furnaces of the members, is conveyed by trains on the site Sollac via the networks the SNCF and deprived of Wendel, in pockets with cast iron, or specific coaches, of capacity from 100 to 200 tons. These coaches were called “torpedes” or “cigars” because of their form.
“Hot” rolling
Die installation of “heat” with Sérémange, which includes/understands the Steel-works, which are equipped with 4 open hearth furnaces, capacity 140 to 200 tons and 4 basic Bessemer converters of 55 tons each one, especially adapted to the treatment of the Lorraine cast iron, while enriching oxygenates the air blown with the converter of it. The characteristic of the Lorraine cast iron is its strong content of Phosphore, at the origin contained in the Lorraine ore, also called “the iron ore”.In 1960, Sollac tries out a new converter of 115 tons. Revolving kiln, turning on rollers with refining with pure oxygen, it is the Kaldo . This furnace works out in a time reduces a steel of very great quality, adapted well to the requirements of the rolling of flat products. Molten steel obtained is transformed into ingots from 15 to 20 tons.
The hot rolling mill, established in a 700 meters length market, transforms the ingots into a steel band from 2 to 5 mm thickness of 1,20 to 2 meters broad and of more than 100 m length. Arrived at the speed of 30 km/h, the band is rolled up in reels at the end of the line. These reels are transferred by rail towards the cold rolling mills from Ebange, distant of approximately 3 km.
“Cold” rolling
The cold rolling mills of Ebange are composed of 2 pickling lines. The sheet is removed there from its Calamine or rust, while passing in a sulphuric bath of Acid. Washed, dried and oiled, it is directed towards the rolling mills tandems of 3 or 5 cages, where its thickness will be reduced to 1 mm, even some 1/10e of mm, then rolled up in reel at the speed of 80 km/h. The sheet undergoes then a heat treatment, either reheats bell kilns of them, or in continuous annealing, the band being unrolled for the passage in the furnaces, then rewound. A new treatment on lines of work hardening to make steel more follows ductile. Then the reels are conveyed:- is towards lines of tinning, the sheet is covered there with a fine layer of tin by electrolytic process. It is the Fer-blanc, intended for the canning facility
- is towards a line of electrozingage.
In 1962, construction with Florange of a new factory of cold rolling, with a pickling line, a rolling mill tandem of 5 cages, a line of electrolytic tinning, and lines of shearing. The production starts in 1964.
The years 1980
In 1980 is supplemented the construction of a line of electro-zinking on the site of the future LAF of co. Agathe. Line, called ELSA, of more than 300 m long has a production capacity of 250 kTonne per annum and can reach the speed of 10 km/h at the exit before the rolling up of the band by a winder. This speed is conditioned by dimensions of the band and, especially, the thickness of the coating of Zinc.The principle of the électrozingage is to make circulate a steel band in vats filled with electrolyte. The application of a strong electric current between the transaction tape and of the anodes of Zinc carries out the deposit of a layer of zinc on sheet. The end product from now on is very much used in automotive engineering.
In 1984, with the site of Holy-Agathe is built a new whole of cold rolling, more modern, more automated and controlled by computers, with coupling of scouring with the rolling mill with 4 cages, and of the lines of sheet metal lining. This new establishment marks the decline of the factory of Ebange, become obsolete and which will preserve only its line of continuous annealing, 1 line of tinning and a line of varnishing, after modernization of these last.
External bonds
- Principle of electro-zinking, by the French company of chemistry
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