Three stand mini mill method and apparatus

The method of rolling a slab into a strip product comprising in sequence:

• A. arranging first, second and third roll stands in closely spaced apart and aligned arrangement along a pass line;
• B. positioning first and second coiling furnaces positioned upstream and downstream respectively of said roll stands;
• C. providing first and second motors so as to drive said first and third roll stands independently and in speed matched relationship and so as to jointly drive said second mill stand;
• D. spacing apart the rolls of the first and third roll stands to allow free passage therethrough of a slab being reduced;
• E. reducing said slab to an intermediate workpiece by passing said slab back and forth through the second roll stand with the second stand being adjusted after each pass to further reduce the workpiece, said workpiece freely passing through said first and third roll stands;
• F. spacing apart the rolls of the second roll stand to allow free passage therethrough of the intermediate workpiece;
• G. reducing said intermediate workpiece by passing said workpiece through said first and third roll stands at least in a forward direction, said workpiece freely passing through said second roll stand;
• and
• H. coiling said intermediate workpiece when it reaches a given thickness in one of the first and second coiling furnaces positioned upstream and downstream respectively of said roll stands and thereafter decoiling said workpiece and passing it through said mill stands for coiling on the other of said coiling furnaces and thereafter passing the workpiece back and forth through the mill between coiling furnaces to a desired strip thickness.