British Steel - Show Support for Port Talbot & Llanwern Steelworks

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Tata / Corus / British Steel Show your support for Llanwern Steel Works. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llanwern_steelworks In the news this week: Tata Wants to sell off Port Talbot Steel Works. I started out as a young Engineer, fresh from School, and landed a job in Newport, Wales, at Llanwern Steel Works - an incredible place that blew my mind. It was an unbeatable introduction to Heavy Engineering. My relationship with Llanwern was complicated; they occasionally sponsored me through Uni (Imperial) and sometimes let me down, but it shaped me into the engineer I am today. Llanwern's design was brilliant - Ore and Coal entered one end, were Sintered, Turned to Coke, then went through a Blast Furnace, Steel refining plant, Continuously Casted, solidified into a long strip, cooled, sent through a slab yard, Reheat Ovens (my favorite!), 7-Stand Hot Mill, Coilers, "Pickle Line", 5-Stand Cold Mill, Coiled again, Annealed, and Finished at the Zodiac Line (Galvanized). Llanwern was the world's only Steelworks where Steel never double-backed; it traveled one way only. In 2000, Llanwern announced the end of Steelmaking (the heavy end), closing everything upstream of Hotmill. Concast Etc. were removed after installing the Concast from Ravenscraig Steelworks at Llanwern - both Concast 1 and Concast 2 had a unique 8m Radius. Sadly, if Ravenscraig had been built on the other side of Queensway to Llanwern's main site, Llanwern would be fully operational today instead of just the Finishing Strip mill. I left before the sale to Tata. I predicted it was bad news, and Tata would eventually sell off or close the Uk operation. They've kept it going a long time, and I respect Tata, but this outcome was inevitable. Respect to Tata Steel's owners, but British Steel - we remember you, and know in 2 years' time you'll be super-profitable again. Ladies and Gents, the 10-year Steel Cycle: we will return. I am now, and have always been a "Man of Steel". NEWPORT! EUR ING Andy Southern, CEng, aka BathRobotics.