Unlimited Expertise Paving the Way to the Future

Good, better – Herkules: As world market leader for roll grinding technology and incredibly durable machines, SBA, the HerkulesGroup’s retrofit specialist, and Maschinenfabrik Herkules convince the Swedish company Swedish Steel AB (SSAB) to place the modernization and technological development of their roll grinding machines in the hands of our experts – the ultimate basis for the best results and a reliable partnership for decades to come. The clue: The machines to be modernized are third-party products manufactured by a direct competitor. This confirms that the technology from Herkules remains unrivalled. SSAB is a global player producing high-strength steel in a cold rolling mill in Borlänge, Sweden. Although SSAB uses roll grinding machines from a competitor in Italy in its cold rolling mill, SBA and Herkules won the contract for the complete electrical and mechanical overhaul of the machines together with our Swedish partner K.O. Rydqvist AB against their main competitor, the original manufacturer. The ace up our sleeve: Our Italian Vice President Sales, Guido Matarazzo, who convinced the customer with his sophisticated knowledge and expertise. „A direct comparison with the competitor was the decisive factor,“ explains Guido Matarazzo. „It shows, that the grinding shop using our machines reaches higher savings due to a significantly reduced stock removal based on highly precise and effective grinding processes.“

An additional advantage in our favor was undoubtedly the successful overhaul and modernization of two machines from the same manufacturer by our site in Ford City, USA. Both projects serve as prime examples of the extraordinary expertise of our employees worldwide and of our comprehensive know-how. „In the last two years, we have already overhauled machines of the same manufacturer and were able to achieve a tremendous performance boost for the customer’s mill in Iowa. Also, we sold another Herkules machine to SSAB in Alabama“, says Guido Matarazzo. „With our in-house developed measuring technology, like Eddy Current and Ultrasonic with Creeping Wave, we reliably provide our customers with the ultimate carefree package, preventing machine downtimes for higher competitive advantages.“

Gert Allabauer, Managing Director of SBA and in charge of this project, also emphasizes the strengths that are made possible by the high depth of knowledge and manufacture „SBA stands for innovation, technology and development. We are renowned for our reliability, good service, flexibility and efficiency“, he explains. „Our company looks back on more than 20 years of experience in the field of roll shop solutions: We started with service and repair projects for roll manufacturers and roll service companies, particularly focusing on roll grinders. In recent years, this extensive experience allowed us to establish ourselves not only as a service company but also as a quality supplier for new roll grinders and also special roll shop machines. With this high level of expertise, it is therefore a logical consequence that the customer decided in our favor.“

After an intense three-day diagnosis visit in the cold rolling mill, the team around Gert Allabauer, Thomas Zerenko, Jakob Müller and Thomas Tauchner, was able to fully convince the customer based on their expert knowledge and to finally score this great success. „This is an important step to position ourselves on the market for modernizing any type of machines, including those of our competitors. This testifies to the uniqueness of our superior technology and high-class service offerings“, says Gert Allabauer. After the complete overhaul, all machines will be also equipped with the Herkules 3-point measuring system for precise measuring on the fly. This upgrade optimizes the longevity of the roll and guarantees an ease of operation with a complete repeatability of all operations at any time.