The Modern Mill

Lukens modernized and expanded its steelmaking operations through the twentieth century. In 1927 it installed a new 84-inch mill to replace an 84-inch mill from the 1870s; the new mill could produce plates as thin as 1/8 inch and as wide as 72 inches. That same year, Lukens formed the By-Products Steel Company to provide partial fabrication before shipment through shearing, flame cutting, bending, and pressing. In 1930 it established Lukenweld, the first commercial weldery in America specializing in the design and fabrication of steel plate structures by welding, and introduced clad plate, which bonded two or more different metals. World War II brought further expansion as Lukens, working with the United States Navy, constructed the 120-inch mill, while the 206-inch mill continued producing heavy armor plate for military needs. The workforce, known as Lukenites, exceeded 6,000 in 1943 and reached 6,166 in 1944. Women entered the steel manufacturing divisions on October 1, 1942. Two thousand employees served in World War II, and 57 died. On March 27, 1942, the United States Navy honored Lukens with the Navy "E" Award for outstanding production achievement. In 1953 the Navy announced plans for a new armor plate plant at Lukens. In 1957 construction began on a new steelmaking facility centered on a 100-ton electric furnace later called A Furnace. In 1958 a new 140-inch slabbing and roughing mill, the S and R Mill, began operating with nine soaking pits. A second 100-ton electric furnace, B Furnace, was built in 1962, followed in 1964 by a third furnace, C Furnace, with a 150-ton capacity. Lukens also developed a computerized operator guide control system, the first applied to electric furnaces of this size. In 1970 the company completed a strand casting facility that shortened slab production by eliminating the pouring of molten steel into molds to form ingots before rolling; instead, molten steel ran directly from the ladle into the casting machine and solidified as it descended. In 1972 construction began on a fourth furnace, D Furnace, with a 150-ton capacity that was upgraded to 165 tons in 1984. The open hearth furnaces were phased out by 1975. That year Lukens became the first steel company in the United States to receive national nuclear certification from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. In 1978 it purchased the 110-inch Rolling Mill formerly owned by the Alan Wood Steel Company in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania.

Coatesville, Pennsylvania · United States