The vast dimensions of the task facing the chemical laboratories result from the many and varied requirements involved. On the one hand because thyssenkrupp Steel receives tons and tons of materials for a wide range of production processes every day, and on the other hand because the company ships large volumes of products to customers on a daily basis. In addition, technical components, lubricants, greases and oils are also constantly tested as part of preventive checks on equipment. The same applies to process media and waste water. This all adds up to an impressive number of analyses that need to be carried out: Every year the chemical laboratories analyze around 720,000 samples.
Information via QR code
This would not be possible without a sophisticated acceptance and information system. The sample acceptance area at the laboratory control station in Duisburg resembles the baggage pick up area at an airport, but with the difference that plant transport service employees place samples labeled with QR codes on the conveyor belts rather than bags and suitcases. Thanks to the QR code the containers find their way to the responsible laboratory automatically. And that’s not the only thing the code does: it also tells the chemists what material the sample is made of, what exactly needs to be tested and other important order details. Due to the volume of materials moved around the company, the testers usually deal with composite samples, i.e. one sample, which may only comprise one gram of the material, can be used to test the quality and suitability of several tons of it.