Cost Effective Roll Machining - Example of Purchasing a Roll Grinder By Analysis of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

by Mike Nitschke

Publisher - WaldrichSiegen GmbH & Co. KG, Germany

Category - Engineering & IT

The quality of rolled flat products (thickness and evenness) is greatly dependent on the accuracy of the ground work roll (WR) and backup rolls (BUR). Vice versa, perfect rolls are the key to a first-class production quality in rolling mills. Reliably meeting surface tolerances and producing homogeneous surfaces avoids extra work and quality defects in the subsequent, cost-intensive rolling steps. Efficient grinding machines, which excel thanks to their high reliability and short machining times, are vital for the efficiency of a modern roll shop as they can guarantee economic machining of the rolls. When investing in new roll machining equipment, buyers only evaluate the initial investment costs. However, the initial investment costs do not cover operating and maintaining the equipment. The total life cycle costs have to be considered, as well. Based on a calculation example for purchasing a new roll grinder, this paper shows how more equipment that is more expensive at the initial stage of investment may turn out cheaper in the long run. This calculation takes into account the total cost of ownership (TCO).

Please login to borrow the book.