Method and arrangement for manufacturing hot-rolled steel strip

Claim 1

In a method for manufacturing hot-rolled steel strip from continuously cast initial material having a thickness of more than 50 mm in continuously successive work steps, including cutting the continuously cast initial material after solidifying into billets having a certain length, heating the billets in a soaking furnace to rolling temperature and introducing the billets to a finishing rolling mill train for rolling the billets into the desired size, wherein the improvement comprises introducing each billet after being heated into a finishing rolling mill train having a plurality of reversible rolling mill stands arranged one behind the other, rolling each billet in the finishing rolling mill train in a forward movement with a direct sequence of several rolling passes with relatively high moment and low rolling speed and in a reversing movement with a direct sequence of several rolling passes with relatively low moment and high rolling speed, and adjusting a ratio of rate of rotation between drive motors and work rolls of the rolling mill stands between the forward movement and the reversing movement by changing gear transmission of the rolling mill stands.