Kametstal produced a record 7,000 tons of grinding balls in August

The company's rolling mill operators achieved maximum productivity thanks to technological changes and teamwork

In August 2025, the ball rolling section of Kametstal’s rolling mill set a historic record, producing more than 7,000 tons of grinding balls of various diameters for the first time. This is the highest figure in the section’s history and an important step in improving the company’s efficiency, according to a press release.

Grinding balls are a key product for mining and processing plants, ensuring their stable operation. They are among Kametstal’s most profitable products and are in high demand on both the Ukrainian and European markets. Therefore, increasing production volumes has become one of the rolling mill’s development priorities.

This achievement was the result of systematic work by the team. At the end of last year, a special working group was set up in the shop. The team developed and implemented a number of design and technological solutions that stabilized production processes for all profile sizes.

In particular, for layers with a diameter of 100 mm, the roller control scheme was optimized when removing the workpiece from the furnace, which made it possible to improve the heating mode and increase the production rate. In addition, changes were made to the length of the workpiece, which reduced metal consumption.

As a result, average profile productivity in August reached 5.43 t/h, which is 0.17 t/h more than in April and 0.59 t/h more than last year. In September, rollers continue to increase efficiency for the main profile sizes, consolidating the results achieved.

As a reminder, work is continuing at Kametstal’s coke shop to upgrade the equipment of coke oven battery No. 5 as part of the 2025 capital repair program. One of the main tasks is the modernization of coke pusher No. 4, the machine responsible for transferring finished coke from the chambers to special cars for further quenching.