Primetals Technologies is moving to a new manufacturing and office facility in Sutton, Massachusetts, which will house its long rolling manufacturing and service operations. The new facility will complement the company’s 13 other U.S. locations.
“In the past few years, we have made significant investments in our manufacturing and service workshop capabilities,” said Ralf Hanneken, president and CEO of Primetals. “The Sutton facility is the latest example of our commitment to U.S. manufacturing. We’re providing our people with a state-of-the-art space and the advanced manufacturing tools they need to continue exceeding customer expectations for capital projects, equipment upgrades, and services.”
Construction of the 183,000 sq ft building in Sutton is complete and all office personnel (including the engineering, sales, and research and development departments) have transferred to the new facility. Primetals is now faced with the complex challenge of relocating its manufacturing equipment and operations from its other facility in Worcester, Massachusetts.
“With customers located throughout the world, we had to carefully plan the move to meet production schedules and delivery timelines,” said Gabriel Royo, vice president, Rolling Mill Services. According to Royo, the process for disassembling, moving, and then reassembling the remaining machinery in Sutton is on schedule. “So far, we have moved more than 75% of our manufacturing equipment, most of which is now operating in Sutton.” Several older machines will be sold at an auction.
Globally, the Sutton operation will be responsible for engineering and manufacturing technologies involved in the production of long products. This includes wire rod mills, reducing/sizing mills, controlled cooling systems, finishing blocks, trim shears, high-speed laying heads, as well as coil reforming, handling, and compacting systems for aluminum, steel, and other metals.
Primetals long rolling digitalization portfolio includes smart sensors and control systems to monitor and collect data throughout the production process. Its domain extends from enterprise resource planning (ERP), through manufacturing execution systems (MES), to control systems and down to the plant device level.
The final move in of manufacturing equipment at the Sutton facility is expected to be completed by the end of 2020. The plant will house more than 300 employees once completed.