SSAB - one year without biocides

Wallenius Coolant System has been running at SSAB for one year now, during which time it has successfully reduced the bacteria that can grow in metal working fluid. Absolutely no extra biocides have been added under the new bacterial control programme – something that was previously necessary at regular intervals. Checks of the system as a whole, of bacterial levels, active biocide levels, pH levels, concentrations and temperatures were carried out every week and showed that the active biocide level had fallen to a minimum and was, in principle, immeasurable. Bacterial levels were also analysed and after a few minor adjustments, their levels fell to below established upper limit values. 

Unpleasant smell gone
The smell sometimes present in the facility has now been completely eliminated and there has been no reduction in the efficiency levels of the metal working fluid. Air quality measurements taken by the Work & Environmental Medicine Department of the Örebro University Hospital before and after the installation of Wallenius Coolants System show, amongst other things, that levels of formaldehyde in the premises have fallen dramatically – a natural result of eliminating biocide addition. 

“One of our goals is to always be at least one step ahead of legislation when it comes to our employees’ work environment,” says Anders Jacobsson, Assistant Manager of the SSAB machine workshop.

SSAB implements a stringent environmental policy that endeavours, wherever possible, to avoid or reduce the use of biocides and other chemicals. 

“When our metal working fluid supplier introduced Wallenius Water’s chemical-free cleaning technology and proposed a study with detailed follow-ups, we felt that this was very much in line with our environmental work and goals,” continues Anders.

SSAB has suffered from bacteria-related issues for a number of years but has now demonstrated that the growth of bacteria in the metal working fluid can be controlled without high biocide levels. It should also be noted that this has been achieved during a warm summer, which is normally the most testing of conditions with regard to this problem. Today, with the help of air quality measurements, SSAB has verified that not only have biocide levels fallen to a minimum, but bacterial levels have fallen to below upper limit values.

“We’re very happy with the results, because we know what a challenge it is to keep the metal working fluid in good condition and bacteria-free,” ”ends Anders Jacobsson.

Employee health vital
SSAB’s goal has been to eliminate or drastically reduce the use of biocides in metal working fluid because it has an impact on employee health, and indeed, before the installation, some of the employees were suffering from a range of complaints attributable to the biocide usage. The challenge lay in controlling biological growth in the metal working fluid without adding these chemicals. The use of biocides notwithstanding, the metal working fluid still had to be replaced – usually twice a year – resulting in unplanned operational shutdowns that impacted production and gave rise to substantial costs in connection with the decontamination and destruction of the fluid.

SSAB is a world-leading supplier of high tensile steel. The company has a strong environmental profile and endeavours to reduce its use of chemicals that pose a risk to the environment and people’s health. Almost 15 machine tools are connected to a so-called central cleaning system in the machine workshop where Wallenius AOT was installed. The environment affects just over 40 people. The machine workshop effectively operates 24/7, 365 days of the year and is a significant department in terms of ensuring the operations of other parts of the company.

“Metal working fluids are a very important work environment issue for those of us who work in the machine workshop, and one that affects the health of a large number of people,” says Anders Jacobsson, Assistant Manager of the SSAB machine workshop.