TAPHOLE DRILLS AND MUD GUNS HEADING TO ASIA.
WOODINGS INDUSTRIAL SELECTED TO SUPPLY BAOTOU IRON AND STEEL

(January 17, 2006)--Proving it’s mettle in serving the global steel market, Woodings Industrial Corporation, announced today that it will be building, shipping and supplying taphole drills and mud guns to Baotou Iron and Steel (Group) Co., Ltd. located in China’s Inner Mongolia.

Baotou is currently undergoing a greenfield construction of a new blast furnace. This will be the sixth furnace for the Chinese steelmaker but will be the first to have fully automated drills and guns.

The Baotou furnace will have a three-taphole configuration. The furnace is expected to produce over 10,000 metric tons of hot metal per day. Woodings Industrial will build and supply all of the guns, drills, hydraulics, and electrics. The Woodings components will be the most technologically advanced units available.

Woodings was selected for the project based on the company’s ability to provide superior rugged design, equipment reliability and its reputation for quality and service.

“This project vividly illustrates our ability to answer the needs of steelmakers anywhere in the world and is indicative of our global reputation as a leader in engineering and manufacturing solutions” said Woodings president, Rob Woodings.

The taphole guns and all-hydraulic drills will be supplied with the capability of completely automated plugging and tapping. The benefits of this automated capability are more predictable results, reduced labor cost and greater efficiency. Operation of this equipment will be from a remote console or radio controls. Monitoring and recording of all iron notch conditions is included with this system.

Designed, engineered and manufactured by Woodings, the guns are designed for a 5000 psi hydraulic operating pressure and a nozzle pressure of 3000 psi, and feature a high-performance hydraulic system with PLC control. The three drills, also designed and manufactured by Woodings, incorporate a hydraulic drifter that is configured in a unique housing design. Woodings Industrial’s all-hydraulic rotary percussion hammer is the strongest and most compact hammer available for blast furnace operation.

Woodings will also supply all electrical systems. These will be integrated systems that are completely designed, engineered and manufactured by Rexroth to Woodings’s specifications.

Woodings will deliver all of the components to Baotou in July. The blast furnace is expected to be completed by September.

About Woodings Industrial Corp.
The only hot metal equipment supplier offering design, engineering, manufacturing and service from one source, Woodings Industrial Corp. is the oldest continuous family-operated business in North America’s steel industry. A worldwide leader in the manufacture of metals industry equipment, Woodings uses the most current technologies to design, engineer and manufacture an extensive line of traditional and not-so-traditional hot metal equipment, such as tap hole drills, clay guns, tuyere stocks, blast furnace valves and engineering specialty products for continuous casters. Woodings is the exclusive supplier of Grabe overlay components in North America and has plants at its headquarters in Mars and Harmony, Pa., along with offices in Detroit and Gary, Ind.