With some of our customers, such as SSAB, we have adopted a service model based on CPT agreements. Under this service model, we provide the customer’s site with the material deliveries required by the production processes, monitoring of the functioning of refractory materials, monitoring and maintenance of inventory levels, participation in R&D projects included within the scope of the agreement, reporting of monthly events, such as campaign durations, and technical support. The customer pays us for the service on the basis of the volume of steel it has produced.  

Eeva-Liisa Pisilä, Production Manager, Refractories, at SSAB’s steel plant in Raahe, has a clear view of the benefits of our CPT functions:

“Cooperation with Bet-Ker is smooth, also in matters outside the CPT agreement. The Technical Support Engineers are easy to contact and always ready to help. The aim is to review deviations – such as prematurely rejected ladles – and find out their root causes. Thanks to close monitoring, they are up-to-date with campaigns, mass consumption and performance. 

The development work is continuous, such as in the form of diverse tests. For example, in the spring, we experimented with a small volume of recycled material refined from the demolition waste of steel ladles as part of the castable used in the wear lining of a ladle. It is easy to start new tests when you know that the proposed experiments are backed by high-quality R&D, the test periods are carefully monitored and comprehensive reports are provided.

SSAB and Bet-Ker share a willingness to prolong campaign durations, reduce material consumption and decrease the carbon footprint with recycled materials, among other means. With the support and monitoring provided by the CPT agreement, we can better focus on the core business: fabricating refractory components for the needs of steel production.”