One year without maintenance – and what it cost
5,000 euros saved, 80,000 euros paid – the same mechanism twice
Initial situation
A customer went a full year without maintaining their aluminium furnace. When we finally opened the plant, slag had built up throughout the melting chamber – enough that the usable charge capacity had noticeably dropped. What began as a saving on maintenance ended in a repair costing over 100,000 euros. At a second customer the same mechanism played out on a smaller scale: a repair worth around 5,000 euros was postponed and the due care spraying omitted. Six months later the same spot cost around 80,000 euros.
Scope of services
- Cold cleaning and complete removal of the slag build-up
- Condition survey of the exposed lining
- Repair of the areas no longer load-bearing
- Care spraying as a protective layer against renewed build-up
- Agreement on fixed maintenance intervals of no more than six months
Project data
The task
The slag layer had built up over months and had grown firmly into the lining
Under the slag it was unclear how much load-bearing lining was actually left
The scope of the repair could only be quantified reliably after cold cleaning
By the time we were commissioned, the furnace was already scheduled back into production
The SBS approach
We first cleaned the furnace cold and exposed the lining. Only then could we judge which areas were still load-bearing and where we had to go back to the shell.
After the repair we agreed fixed maintenance intervals with the customer. At least every six months the furnace is opened, inspected and cleaned – plus care spraying, which limits slag build-up from the outset.
The decisive difference is not skill but the calendar: slagging is not a sudden event but a build-up over months. Those who look inside regularly repair small spots. Those who wait replace linings.
Measurable results
The key figures of the “One year without maintenance – and what it cost” project
Similar references
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