Pyongyang, August 29 (KCNA) -- The Kim Chaek Iron and Steel Complex, the nation's giant iron producer in the northern part of the country, began producing rolled steel plates from a modern high temperature air combustion heating furnace put on a CNC basis.

The establishment of the system for producing steel billets by use of locally available fuel means a great technological progress made in placing the nation's metal industry on a Juche-oriented and modern basis.

A high-pitched drive was waged at the complex to rebuild heating furnace No. 3 of its hot-rolling shop into a high temperature air combustion heating furnace. The complex completed in a brief span of time the Korean-style design for the above-said heating furnace having a simple and reasonable structure suited to its actual conditions.

The invention and introduction of a new method helped the complex successfully manufacture in a short span of time dozens of boxes for accumulating heat requiring high technology.

Various pipe networks for furnace were successfully laid and a timely production and supply of parts of machines and tens of thousands of accessories necessary for assembling the furnace were ensured.

Dozens of iron pillars made their appearances in the place where the heating furnace No. 3 was dismantled. The complex solved technologically difficult issues rising in building the heating furnace including the construction of a furnace roof whose fireproof materials weigh hundreds of tons.

Teachers and researchers of Kim Chaek University of Technology in cooperation with technicians and workers of the complex developed by their own efforts dozens of programs for controlling and operating processes and built a control panel for regulating temperature, pressure and amount of flowing molten iron inside the heating furnace, etc.

The successful building of the above-said heating furnace at the complex made it possible to keep the production going at a high rate while cutting down manpower and the consumption of materials by use of only gas without using any heavy oil.