Team News Riveting
Raipur, July 25
The Universal Rail Mill (URM) of SAIL-Bhilai Steel Plant, which commenced its commercial production in December 2016, the unit reached the monumental milestone in just over eight years by achieving the landmark of 5 Million Tons of Prime Rail production as of 22nd May 2025.
To commemorate this remarkable feat and celebrate the eight-year journey, a special event was organised on the shop floor. Members of the Senior Management, including A K Chakraborty, ED (MM), Praveen Nigam, ED (F&A), Pawan Kumar, ED (HR), and B K Giri, ED (Mines), Vishal Gupta, GM I/c (CGM), and other Senior Officials from URM, associated departments and organisations, along with members of the URM collective, participated in the celebration and extended their best wishes to URM for surpassing future targets and continuing its stellar performance with the same zeal and commitment.
Universal Rail Mill, a modern production facility at SAIL-BSP, was conceived to meet the rising demand for high-quality railways in India, particularly for Indian Railways. From the outset, URM has charted an impressive trajectory. Despite its initial challenges, the unit has made significant strides in both technology and performance.
The journey of URM has been marked by a series of technical upgrades and strategic innovations. Through brainstorming sessions and decisive, result-oriented actions, the team succeeded in addressing complex operational and maintenance challenges.
In its continuous pursuit of excellence, URM has invested in skill development, safety enhancements, and spares procurement and management. These efforts have not only boosted productivity but have also fostered a vastly improved and safer working environment. Parallel initiatives to aesthetically upgrade the mill’s peripheral areas have added a world-class look and feel to the shop.
URM has also kept pace with the evolving technical requirements of Indian Railways. It progressed from rolling Grade 880 rails to advanced grades like R260 and R350HT, and transitioned from the UIC-60 profile to the 60E1 profile, ensuring alignment with international standards. In partnership with RDCIS (Research & Development Centre for Iron & Steel), URM has pioneered innovative developments such as the R350NC grade and offline heat treatment of NCC weld joints, further establishing its credentials as a future-ready unit.
A remarkable highlight of URM’s journey has been the substantial improvement in quality acceptance rates, rising from 82% in FY 2017–18 to an impressive 96%, which is considered a world-class benchmark in rail manufacturing. This achievement is the outcome of continuous process improvements, workshops, and open communication forums that encouraged real-time learning and corrective action.
