Expertise and technical skills concerning tin baths for float glass production

Now this furnace building company has backed up its ambitions in the field of float glass with another successful start-up of a tin bath in Russia. 

While the leading float glass manufacturers focus more and more on outsourcing their resources, HORN has expanded its own expertise and technical skills concerning float glass with in-house engineering, in-house manufacture and the installation and commissioning of tin baths.



Due to HORN’s long-standing experience newcomers and investors in the float glass industry can be advised optimally concerning their projects and be supplied with coherent concepts, adapted to the respective requirements. The implementation of projects can be checked in advance by means of feasibility studies. Moreover it is determined to what extent, by which means and in which period of time a project can be implemented.





Drossbox



Experienced customers, in turn, have the advantage that their own ideas and philosophies can be considered and integrated from the first step of planning.  This refers both to the general design of the tin bath including the peripheral equipment and the implementation of the entire equipment. Owing to the in-house engineering the smallest details can be planned and manufactured as specified by the customer.



The first step of planning is working out the basic engineering, consisting, among other things, of a technical layout with arrangement of the equipment, a foundation load plan and a media layout including media list. All these documents enable the end customer to start planning the building section with all media required.





Exit-cooler



Thereupon the detailed engineering with all single components is worked out and represented in an overall model with all required media. This facilitates precise, inter-departmental design matching which lays open all existing intersection points and insures careful clarification. After all necessary prerequisites have been achieved, establishment of the manufacturing documents can be started.



The big components of the tin bath, such as the bath floor cooling system, the steel structure, the floor resp. roof casing, the complete automation, the media pipework and the dross box including the hood are planned and manufactured on site in Plößberg. Moreover also the equipment, starting from the tweel, the venting, the entrance coolers and the graphite installations up to the exit coolers and the mobile and stationary linear motors are HORN´s scope of supply.





Manufacturing of tin bath casing



HORN does not only carry out the complete engineering and manufacturing of the tin bath, but also provides installation and commissioning thereof. After the building is finished, firstly the steel structure will be professionally installed by specialists. Then the individual casing elements will be aligned and welded free from distortion.  Due to the precise manufacture of the floor casing the valuable time for the lining with refractories can be considerably reduced. Another positive aspect for reducing man-days during installation is the detailed, internal clarification of all intersection points already during the planning stage.



After the tin bath roof has been finished, the free space between the upper and lower part will be hermetically sealed by means of wall boxes and sealing compound. Thereupon the tin bath can be charged with a mixture of nitrogen and hydrogen. Following this the readiness of the tin bath for tempering including spout, dross box and equipment will be checked.



The controlled tempering of the tin bath will take several days, taking into account the tempering curve. During this period of time diverse parameters and values, e.g. temperatures and linear expansion, will be monitored and recorded scrupulously.





Transport rack of casing



Before start of production, the readiness of the entire plant will be insured. This procedure as well as checking the readiness for tempering will be carried out on the basis of specifically worked-out check lists.



The sample sheet taking may either be coordinated by HORN and be carried out assisted by  the customer’s staff or it can be done completely by HORN specialists. After the glass sheet has stabilized, all glass thicknesses agreed in the contract will be produced, and if required, the customer’s staff will be included for training. The real values and parameters for producing the glass thicknesses will be transferred into the operating manual and handed over to the customer. There is also the possibility to assist with the customer’s production on site for a longer period of time.



The staff training seminars offered comprise theoretical lessons, practical instruction as well as assistance with production.



The tin bath is an extra component of a float glass plant which HORN manufactures in-house, in addition to the float glass furnace. HORN’s competence to supply entire float glass plants, from preparation of raw materials to packaging of the finished product, constitutes a considerable competitive advantage for its customers. This is shown by successfully commissioned projects in Russia, Belarus, the Republic of Dagestan and Kyrgyzstan.