The Nazi troops are retreating from Romania. On a wester town, they have to be held back until some strategic trains can leave the train station.

Petre Orsa, a young peasant gets a job at the Hunedoara Steel Mill with the dream of becoming a top-notch steel man, having Mihai Solca – a sort of communist industrial hero – as his role model. He starts low moving dirt around with a shovel but he soon gets into the team of an old steel man, foreman Tudor Baci.