Pit & Quarry, August 2012
Situated on Lake Huron Presque Isle is able to transport by water allowing it to serve customers thousands of miles away es conveyors to load the shipping vessels Especially with rising fuel costs in recent years Nelson points out the distinct advantage Presque Isles location offers over its competitors Land based producers typically only serve customers within a 100 mile radius or less Our location grants us the advantage of waterway transport and allows us to expand our market reach hundreds even thousands of miles and into multiple states Nelson says While the expanded reach has given Presque Isle a distinct competitive edge what wasnt helping it were less thanadequate loading rates Nelson says the conveyors are capable of carrying 4500 tons per hour but during the upgrade planning and operation assessment it was found they were nowhere near close to maximum efficiency In fact he estimates they were sometimes loading as little as 800 tons per hour or less depending on material To say we were underutilizing our load out facility is an understatement he says This made it crucial for the companys vibrating screen selection to offer enhanced performance It required more than trading up to a newer model Additionally increased efficiency didnt equal greater tonnage output or even faster operation so it wasnt going to be as simple as machines bigger in size and production capabilities either And the final choice couldnt leave out the most important factor structural concerns Presque Isles plant engineer Dennis Skaluba began to explore options First a precise analysis of the screen houses structural integrity was needed A professional structural analysis was conducted by a local engineering company and Skaluba was left with two options Choose a fleet that would transmit minimal vibration into the structure or require significant infrastructure changes to the existing screen house to accommodate added vibration The lat www pitandquarry com August 2012 PIT QUARRY 21
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