The biggest old forges in the world. How much metal did these forges keep in stock? In what year were they built and how many tons of metal could they make
The largest forge ever built is the Phaon smelting plant in Germany. It was built in 1891 and could produce up to 20,000 tons per day (1). The Phaon smelting plant was the first modern industrial-scale facility of its kind, and it was based on Alexander Parkes's design for a large ironworks known as the Phaon process. This process was used to produce pig iron out of iron ore using simple heating, hammering and rolling techniques
The Phaon process is still widely used today by modern steelmakers such as ArcelorMittal and Tata Steel. Another example of an old forge that still operates is the Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Company's Ilsan Steel Complex which produces 4 million tons of steel each year (2). The facility was originally built in 1964 but it has been expanded several times since then
After World War II many new ironworks were built around the world because there was a shortage of
how much metal did old forges keep in stock
