On June 24, 2026, the 2400mm composite aluminum hot rolling production line, China's first of its kind and constructed by Sinomach Heavy Equipment Group, achieved full-line success and was officially commissioned as part of Huafon Aluminum's high-end aluminum plate, strip, and foil intelligent construction project. This marks a major independent innovation breakthrough in China's high-end aluminum hot rolling complete equipment sector, providing solid equipment support for the independent supply of key basic materials for strategic national economic fields such as new energy vehicles and rail transit.

Soaring Demand for High-End Aluminum Materials Urgently Calls for Equipment Self-Reliance

With the rapid development of strategic emerging industries such as new energy vehicles, aerospace, and rail transit, the demand for high-end aluminum plate, strip, and foil materials continues to rise. However, as the "heart equipment" of the aluminum processing industry chain, high-end aluminum hot rolling production lines have long relied on imports or been constrained by foreign technology blockades. The low self-sufficiency rate of core equipment and insufficient system integration capabilities have been persistent "bottleneck" challenges hindering China's aluminum processing industry from moving up the value chain.

Against this backdrop, Sinomach Heavy Equipment Group's Erzhong Heavy Equipment, in collaboration with China National Heavy Machinery Research Institute, leveraged Huafon Aluminum's high-end aluminum plate, strip, and foil intelligent construction project to launch a comprehensive independent research initiative for high-end aluminum hot rolling complete equipment.

Three Pioneering Technologies Driving Industry Transformation

Pioneering Process Layout: Integration of Single-Stand Double-Coiler and Tandem Rolling

The most significant innovation of this project lies in China's first-ever process layout combining a single-stand double-coiler with tandem rolling in a series configuration. Traditional aluminum hot rolling production lines often adopt a single rolling mode, making it difficult to accommodate the processing needs of aluminum materials with varying thicknesses and alloy types. This project innovatively integrates three rolling modes, achieving an organic unity of process flexibility and production efficiency.

Single-stand double-coiler mode: Suitable for hot rolling thin-gauge, multi-variety, small-batch aluminum coil products, significantly enhancing the line's adaptability to different alloy grades and specifications.

Tandem rolling mode: Enables efficient continuous rolling for large-scale, standardized products, markedly improving capacity and stability.

Series integration: Organically connects the two modes, allowing "flexible switching" on the same production line, endowing the entire line with dual advantages of high efficiency and flexibility.

Independent Control System: Fully Domestic High-Precision Automation Control System

In terms of electrical and automation control systems, China National Heavy Machinery Research Institute collaboratively handled the design, supply, and commissioning of the line's electrical and automation control systems. The entire control system achieves full-process high-precision automation from rolling force control and shape control to thickness tolerance, ensuring product quality consistency and stability reach industry-leading levels.

Complete Mechanical-Electrical-Hydraulic Integration: System Integration Capability Reaches International Standards

Sinomach Heavy Equipment Group's Erzhong Heavy Equipment provided complete mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic integration services for the entire line. From main mechanical equipment to hydraulic transmission systems, and from electrical control systems to automation software platforms, all were independently designed, manufactured, and integrated. The comprehensive indicators of the line's process mode, equipment configuration, and production efficiency have reached industry-leading levels, fully demonstrating Sinomach Heavy Equipment Group's system integration capability and core competitiveness in the field of high-end aluminum hot rolling complete equipment.

Annual Output of 450,000 Tons of High-End Aluminum Materials, Serving National Strategic Industries

Production Capacity: Annual output of 450,000 tons of high-precision aluminum plate and strip

Upon commissioning, the project can stably produce 450,000 tons of high-precision aluminum plate and strip annually. This scale will not only effectively alleviate the supply-demand gap for domestic high-end aluminum materials but also significantly enhance the scale and intensification level of China's aluminum processing industry.

Application Fields: Covering key national economic sectors such as new energy vehicles and rail transit

The line's products will comprehensively cover key national economic fields including new energy vehicles and rail transit:

New energy vehicles: Basic materials for lightweight aluminum alloy components such as battery casings, battery trays, motor housings, and body structural parts.

Rail transit: Plate and strip blanks for large-section aluminum alloy profiles used in high-speed train and subway car bodies.

Aerospace: High-precision aluminum alloy skins and structural component materials.

Electronics and appliances: High-end aluminum foil, electronic consumer product casings, etc.

Strategic Value: Strengthening the Industrial Chain Security of Key Basic Materials for New Energy

The successful commissioning of this production line provides core material support for the high-quality development of China's new energy industry and high-end equipment manufacturing. It not only enhances China's independent supply capacity for high-end aluminum plate, strip, and foil products but also further consolidates the resilience and security level of China's key basic material industrial and supply chains for new energy, helping the country's aluminum processing industry steadily move toward the mid-to-high end of the value chain.

A Landmark Event from "Following" to "Leading"

Setting a Benchmark for Independent Innovation in China's High-End Aluminum Hot Rolling Equipment

Wang Huiqiu, General Manager of Sinomach Heavy Equipment Group, stated that the successful commissioning of this project marks a new starting point for cooperation between the two parties. Sinomach Heavy Equipment Group will steadily advance the line to reach its designed capacity and efficiency, ensuring long-term stable and orderly operation. At the same time, it will continue to deepen technological iteration around the needs of the new energy and new materials industries, creating more demonstration projects for domestic high-end equipment.

This project has successfully established a benchmark for independent innovation in domestic high-end aluminum hot rolling equipment, marking a historic leap for China from "relying on imports" to "self-controlled" in the field of ultra-wide, high-precision aluminum hot rolling complete equipment.

Providing an Equipment Foundation for the Upgrade of the Aluminum Processing Industry

For a long time, China's aluminum processing industry has faced the structural contradiction of being "large but not strong"—with world-leading production capacity but still relying on imports for high-end equipment and products. The successful commissioning of the 2400mm composite aluminum hot rolling production line offers domestic aluminum processing enterprises a competitive, domestically produced high-end equipment option, which will strongly drive the transformation of China's aluminum processing industry from "scale expansion" to "quality improvement."

Driving Coordinated Development of Upstream and Downstream Industrial Chains

The successful implementation of this project will drive the coordinated upgrade of upstream high-end equipment manufacturing chains, including large castings and forgings, precision transmissions, hydraulic systems, and automation controls. Simultaneously, it will provide more stable and higher-quality key material support for downstream strategic industries such as new energy vehicles, rail transit, and aerospace, forming a virtuous cycle of "equipment breakthrough—material upgrade—industry leap."

From the original breakthrough in process layout to the full self-reliance of mechanical-electrical-hydraulic systems; from an annual production capacity of 450,000 tons to application prospects covering national strategic industries like new energy vehicles and rail transit—the successful commissioning of the 2400mm composite aluminum hot rolling production line is another milestone in China's independent innovation of high-end equipment manufacturing.

As Wang Huiqiu stated, Sinomach Heavy Equipment Group will continue to deepen technological iteration around the needs of the new energy and new materials industries. Driven by the dual imperatives of the "dual carbon" goals and the strategy of building a manufacturing powerhouse, this "national heavy equipment," embodying the wisdom of independent innovation, is injecting strong momentum into China's aluminum processing industry as it moves toward the mid-to-high end of the global value chain.