MEKA AND BERKSHIRE HAS DEVELOPED A SPECIAL CONCRETE PLANT FOR GRANITE PRODUCTS

Granite Products demanded a plant that can be fed from the quarry in lower elevation and that can meet all special concrete needs considering local market conditions and the site they own. After a long working process, MEKA and BERKSHIRE has developed a special concrete plant. A plant consisting of two main chasse with one aggregate bunker was presented to the client. One of the main chasse has 2 m³ planet mixer and it is suitable for Wet, Dry and Semi-Wet concrete production frequently used in UK. Unlike Dry concrete, cement, sand, water and additives are mixed in the mixer while other aggregates are directly unloaded into the truck mixer during Semi-Wet concrete production. Therefore higher quality concrete is produced within a shorter period compared to dry concrete while abrasion-resistant components of the mixer are protected. Other body which was designed for smaller and more specific needs has 0,5 m³ planet mixer.

The assembly and installation of the plant required close collaboration between members of the Granite Products team and technicians from supplier Berkshire Engineering Supplies Ltd (BES) and local power company, Jersey Electricity. Head of Health and Safety for the Brett Group and the local Health and Safety Committee ensured the safety of everyone involved, in both the installation and future use of the plant, was paramount.

The new fully-computerized plant comprises a main loading tower, with a 2m3 planetary mixer, two loading heads and a half-wet facility, and a secondary loading head with a 0.5m3 mixer supplying wet mixed concrete for the collect market.  Aggregate is held in eight hoppers – four 50t covered hoppers feed the main tower directly via a weigh belt, while a further four 25t hoppers can feed either the main or secondary tower via a reversible weigh belt.

These hoppers are supplied by a 55m-long aggregate pre-feeding conveyor and shuttle conveyor with a loading hopper down on the quarry floor. “Taking aggregate from its source in this way reduces the need for loading shovel transport and consequently reduces fuel usage,” explains Mike Cowan, Site Manager at Granite Products.

 “The design of the new plant with its three separate covered loading facilities, enables faster turnaround, which we have maximized with improvements in vehicle management on the site,” continues Mike. “The new facility also provides significant environmental benefits over the old plant, with improved energy efficiency, the use of recycled water in the process and a reduction in the amount of cement used.”