Friday, June 25, 2004
WCI plans to have the blast furnace back in operation by mid-July.
By CYNTHIA VINARSKY
VINDICATOR BUSINESS WRITER
WARREN -- When Arwood Pinkerton started his career in steel in the mid-1960s there were 23 blast furnaces churning out iron ore to supply the Mahoning and Shenango valleys' booming steel mills.
Now there's only one, the 92-year-old blast furnace at WCI Steel in Warren.
Pinkerton is sticking around to make sure it survives, at least for another decade.
The 38-year steel industry veteran said he postponed his retirement plans for the chance to serve as chief construction engineer on WCI's $15.3 million blast furnace relining project.
Relining, or replacing the heat-conducting bricks that line a blast furnace, is a crucial maintenance chore that must be performed about every eight to 10 years.
The costly process, which started June 3, is symbolic of a rebirth for WCI as the company works to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection by August.
Pinkerton said the relining, now about 35 percent complete and running on schedule, should be done July 17.
'Good sign'
"This is a good sign for WCI, but it's only the first step," cautioned Tim Roberts, the company's spokesman. "We need to become a lot leaner and a lot stronger. All the old rules are being thrown out."
Also critical for the mill's survival, Roberts said, is ratification of a new, cost-cutting union contract modeled after those approved by union workers at International Steel Group and other mill unions around the country.
Leaders of United Steelworkers of America Local 1375, which represents WCI's 1,330 hourly employees, are recommending approval of the proposed, four-year pact. Informational meetings will begin next week, with sessions at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday at the Local 1375 hall, and members will vote on the agreement July 15.
Pinkerton said about 254 workers are laboring around the clock, seven days a week in the furnace, replacing the brick and copper cooling coils that have become worn after years of iron ore production.
Workers expect to use about 1,600 tons of brick, mortar and other lining materials and about 73,360 pounds of copper coil in the project. Copper plate replacements, improvements to the water distribution system and repairs to the gas cleaning system are also part of the project.
Graycor, a Chicago-based construction maintenance company, is coordinating the project. The company also worked with WCI employees on the last reline in 1995.
Hot stuff
When in operation, the blast furnace is heated to temperatures of 2,600 degrees or higher. Workers using a computerized measuring system combine iron ore, limestone and coke inside the furnace to produce up to 4,000 tons of molten iron ore a day, the first step in the steelmaking process.
WCI began to prepare for the relining about six months ago, processing extra steel in advance to meet the needs of its key customers.
The mill is being idled as departments run out of material to process. Most workers will be furloughed, but some will complete maintenance chores in other parts of the facility.
Business has been improving, and steel prices are up, so WCI has enough borrowing capability under its revolving line of credit to cover the relining cost. The company has finished the last four months with a profit after more than two years of operating in the red.
Pinkerton said he's been involved in nine blast furnace relinings over his lifetime, including the mid-1990s relining at WCI.
vinarsky@vindy.com