A giant industrial mold, produced by the foundry of LIBERTY Engineering Products Ostrava for its British customer Sheffield Forgemasters, today starts its challenging 1600 km journey by road, river and seas to its new home.

The mold, which is a special device for casting steel, pig iron, metals or other alloys, is the largest ever produced by the foundry at a record 140 tonnes. It will initially be shipped to Lovosice on a special truck which has 14 axles to ensure proper weight distribution. There it will be transferred to a ship on the Elbe and will travel via the river and canal system to Vlaardingen in the Netherlands. There it will be shipped to Immingham on the east coasts of the, UK, from where it will be moved by truck to its final destination in Sheffield.

“For the production of the mold, it was necessary to secure 150 tons of liquid metal from Ostrava’s Blast Furnace, which was transported to the foundry on rails by two special cars. Production coordination was prepared in detail, because the temperature of the liquid metal must not fall below 1210 to 1230 degrees Celsius, the casting temperature at the foundry,” explains Aleš Sekanina, the marketing manager for LIBERTY Engineering Products Ostrava.

“Already during production, we contacted a carrier that specializes in oversized shipments. The transport of such a large and heavy mold is complex and very demanding, which is why the police and an assembly truck will accompany it on its full journey between the Czech Republic and Great Britain. The assembly truck operator is there to ensure the truck runs smoothly and doesn’t cause any damage on the way, so for example, may have to remove traffic signs or place reinforcements under the truck when passing through a roundabout.” Aleš added.

At Sheffield Forgemasters the mold will be filled with liquid metal before being processed into the final product. The British company specializes in the production of large parts for the shipbuilding, nuclear and defence industries.

The tradition of producing castings in LIBERTY Ostrava dates back to 1951. The long-term experience gained in the production of castings is currently used for the production of castings from steel, gray iron and ductile iron for engineering companies in the Czech Republic and abroad. The operation also includes a model shop. At the same time, the operation received product certificates from Bureau Veritas for the entire production range and Lloyd’s Register for gray and ductile iron castings up to a unit weight of 25,000 kg.

Further information:

LIBERTY Ostrava is an integrated steel company with an annual production capacity of 3.6 million tons of steel, which is mainly used in construction, engineering, and the oil and gas industry. It is a domestic leader in the production of road barriers and tubes.   In addition to the Czech market, it supplies its products to more than 40 countries around the world. Together with its subsidiaries, it has 6,000 employees. Thanks to above-standard greening, it produces its products with the minimum possible impact on the environment. The smelter belongs to the LIBERTY Steel Group.

The LIBERTY Steel Group plans to invest CZK 8.6 billion in the transformation of LIBERTY Ostrava into a carbon-neutral crude steel producer over the next eight years. 8.6 billion crowns.   A key element of the program to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 will be the replacement of the existing four tandem furnaces of the steel plant with two hybrid electric furnaces and the construction of a new ZVN line. The new furnaces will be supplied by Danieli, the world’s leading manufacturer of machines and industrial equipment, based on the signed contract. At the ceremonial signing of the contract, LIBERTY Ostrava also entered into a partnership with ČEZ ESCO, the aim of which is to search for and develop together technologies in the field of renewable energy sources and hydrogen, and launched the activities of the GFG Foundation in the Czech Republic.

In addition to the modernization of the steel plant, the transformation will also include an extensive modernization of the rolling mills, which will improve the quality of the steel and expand the portfolio of products with high added value.   The investment program will also include the construction of power plants producing electricity from renewable sources, as well as the development of the GREENSTEEL Academy, the aim of which is to increase the qualifications of the existing workforce and encourage new people’s interest in working in the steel industry.

LIBERTY Steel Group is part of the global GFG Alliance owned by Sanjeev Gupta and his family.  GFG Alliance has three independent industrial brands: LIBERTY Steel Group, ALVANCE Aluminum Group and SIMEC Energy Group , which share the same values and strive for a long-term sustainable future for industry and society.   GFG Alliance operates in 30 countries around the world, where it has a total of 35,000 employees and a turnover of over USD 20 billion.