Abstract: From the aspect of the resource balancing of the hot-metal/liquid-steel in a steel plant， a mixed integer linear programming model with the objective of maximizing the total benefit of continuous casters was established for casting start time decision of continuous caster (CSDCC). The model was solved by YALMIP optimizer based on MATLAB. Application tests were conducted with the instances from the practical production process in a steel plant to evaluate the proposed model. The results show that the casting start time of continuous casters can be predicted accurately， which is beneficial to make a feasible schedule， to stabilize the production conditions for the shifting of working groups， and to reduce the quantity of hot-metal/liquid-steel stored in the production line. The CSDCC model provides a useful tool for steel plant to determine the optimized casting start time of continuous caster.

Key words: continuous caster, casting start time decision, optimization model, safe stock, mixed integer linear programming