The present invention provides an apparatus for cutting a material, comprising: a frame body installed on a conveying path of a material; a cutting means, mounted on the frame body, for cutting an end portion of the material being conveyed; a laser preheating means for preheating the material by irradiating a laser beam onto the material before being conveyed to the cutting means; and a blocking and reflection means for blocking the laser beams reflected to the cutting means and re-reflecting the laser beam to the material.

A method for revamping a starting rolling plant, for producing a final strip starting from a slab having a determinate starting thickness, including: at least one heating furnace configured to heat at least the slab to a determinate starting temperature; at least one reversible roughing stand configured to subject the slab to one or more rolling passes in order to obtain an intermediate rolled product; and a rolling train disposed operatively in line with the roughing stand, including at least one pre-finishing stand and a plurality of finishing stands and configured to reduce the thickness of the intermediate rolled product, until the final strip having a determinate final thickness is obtained.

A heat-insulating device for use in a processing line for a metal strip to be transported along a strip conveying direction, preferably for use in a rolling mill, wherein the heat-insulating device has: at least one heat-insulating carriage which has a heat-insulating hood which, in order to reduce temperature losses, can be moved over the metal strip; and a transport, which has a drive for moving the heat-insulating carriage and is configured in such a way that the heat-insulating carriage can be moved out of the processing line and into the latter horizontally, preferably along a straight line.

A method of hot forming an aluminum alloy component may include heating the aluminum alloy component in a heating furnace to a solutionizing temperature, cooling the aluminum alloy component to a desired forming temperature, deforming the aluminum alloy component into a desired shape in a forming device while the aluminum alloy component is at the desired forming temperature, maintaining a constant temperature during the deformation of the aluminum alloy component, and quenching the aluminum alloy component to a low temperature below a solvus temperature.

A contactless looper for a metal substrate includes an entrance, an exit, and at least one deflection device between the entrance and the exit. The contactless looper is configured to receive a metal substrate moving in a processing direction from the entrance to the exit and impart a deflection along the processing direction in a metal substrate such that a position of the metal substrate at the at least one deflection device is vertically offset from a height of the metal substrate at the entrance of the looper. A method of processing a metal substrate with the contactless looper includes receiving the metal substrate at the entrance of the contactless looper along a passline, imparting a deflection in the metal substrate with the looper, and passing the metal substrate out the exit of the contactless looper.

A continuous casting and rolling apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a continuous casting apparatus for producing a steel sheet; a roller, linked to the continuous casting apparatus, for receiving the steel sheet; and a push heat unit, connected to the continuous casting apparatus and/or the roller, for selectively carrying outing heating work or removal work with respect to a portion of the steel sheet. Also, a continuous casting and rolling method according to another embodiment of the present invention may comprise: a continuous casting step for producing a steel sheet; and a selective performance step for selectively carrying out heating work or removal work with respect to a portion of the steel sheet.

A hot rolling device, according to one embodiment of the present invention, may comprise: a cast part supply portion for producing a cast part; a hot roller, linked to the cast part supply portion, for receiving and hot-rolling the cast part; and a heating unit, arranged between the cast part supply portion and the hot roller, for reheating an outer surface portion in the widthwise direction of the cast part while latent heat is maintained in the center portion of the widthwise direction of the cast part from preheating.

Manufacturing a cold-rolled steel plate, having a steel slab having the chemical composition containing, on the basis of percent by mass, C from 0.03 to 0.08%, Si from 0 to 1.0%, Mn from 0.2 to 0.8%, P at 0.03% or less, S at 0.01% or less, and Al at 0.05% or less so as to satisfy the following: formula (1) and at least one of Nb from 0.03 to 0.4%, V from 0.01 to 0.3%, and Ti from 0.01 to 0.3% so as to satisfy the following formula (2), with a residue being formed of Fe and unavoidable impurities. The steel slab is heated to 1200 C. or more and hot rolled to form a hot-rolled steel plate, which is wound from 550 to 700 C. to form a hot-rolled coil, and the hot-rolled coil is cold rolled or annealed and cold rolled, obtaining cross-sectional hardness from 200 to 350 HV.

A plant and process for the continuous production of hot-rolled steel strips with a minimum thickness of 0.3 mm is disclosed which includes a continuous casting device of thin or medium slabs with a thickness between 40 and 150 mm and a maximum width of at least 2100 mm followed by a roughing mill, a first induction furnace, a water descaler, a second induction furnace, a finishing mill, a cooling station, a cutting station and a winding station. A system for feeding a protective atmosphere containing ?3% vol. oxygen is provided from the inlet of the second induction furnace to at least the third stand of the finishing mill. Between the continuous casting device and the roughing mill, an initial thermal conditioning and descaling section is provided having in sequence an induction edge heater, an induction heater for the rest of the slab surface and a water descaler.

A rolling plant and method for producing a strip starting from a slab having a certain starting thickness, comprising at least one walking beam heating furnace configured to heat at least the slab to a starting temperature, and a rolling train operatively disposed in line with at least one roughing stand and configured to reduce the thickness of an intermediate rolled product at exit from the roughing stand, until the final strip is obtained; the rolling train comprising at least one pre-finishing stand for obtaining a pre-finished rolled product, and a plurality of finishing stands for obtaining the final strip; the plant comprising load cells directly associated with the pre-finishing stand for detecting the rolling force applied on the pre-finished rolled product, a rapid heating device, interposed between the pre-finishing stand and the finishing stands, for heating the pre-finished rolled product, and a command and control unit connected both to the load cells and also to the rapid heating device and configured at least to selectively activate the latter, at least as a function of the rolling force detected by the load cells.