| Abstract Scope |
Contract-oriented steel production must respond to diversified orders with small batches, multiple specifications, and heterogeneous due dates. To improve coordination between order demand and steelmaking–continuous casting operations, this study proposes a resource-allocation-based production planning method integrating slab design, heat formation, and cast organization. Contract attributes, including steel grade, dimension, and due date, are mapped to flexible slab requirements, allowing adjustable matching in downstream planning. Slabs are grouped into heats under furnace capacity, grade compatibility, and dimensional tolerance constraints, and heats are organized into feasible casts according to continuous casting rules, width matching, strand allocation, and equipment capability boundaries. A multi-objective optimization model is developed to minimize contract surplus slabs and due-date deviation while maximizing consecutive heats per cast. A hybrid solution approach combining heuristic clustering and an improved NSGA-II is designed to generate Pareto solutions. Tests on 15 datasets show reduced surplus ratio and width changes, with improved casting continuity. |