Make More Tons with the Right Asphalt Plant Parts

This month’s product gallery focuses on the parts and pieces that enhance production of asphalt mix. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and service providers are already gearing up for a busy winter of helping you update and upgrade for 2020. Whether you need a component right now or you’re planning ahead for off-season, the case studies and press releases on the next few pages bring you up to speed on what those providers consider most important for you to know about.

See Plant Components Via the Road Show

By Mark Shreve, Hotmix Parts/Stansteel

The purpose of the Hotmix Parts/Stansteel Road Show is to help inform and educate industry professionals of the numerous products that Hotmix Parts and Stansteel has available to make running their plants much easier. Depending on the region the Road Show Team travels to will determine the products displayed. For instance, if the team is visiting plants in a region that has numerous batch plants they may choose to insert the Accu-shear™ model that is used for warm mix or liquid blending in batch plant applications as opposed to continuous mix applications. Some other devices found in the Road Show are different safety technologies that protect plant personnel while saving them time on the job.

The Road Show can easily carry the Precision Pin Pusher™ to show producers. It is designed to break press fit chain connections and push pins out with ease on 4-inch and 6-inch pitch chain, which means one tool for multiple chain sizes. Aside from taking hours off of the job and only needing one tool, it provides other benefits like the hard case for storage and security, and aiding the maintenance team by eliminating the need for torches and hammers, which further reduces safety hazards associated with separating chain.

The Safe-T Station™ is another device that the Road Show carries. It can be used in multiple areas of the plant to sample asphalt cement (AC) in a safe, enclosed environment to prevent burn injuries. This device will fit up to 3-inch or 4-inch thermal jacketed asphalt lines. It allows operators to sample and test AC being off loaded from the truck to verify you are receiving the grade of AC that you ordered from the terminal, that it is the correct grade coming from your AC storage tank. The Safe-T Station also enables you to ensure sure you have the correct foaming/grade coming through the Accu-shear liquid blending device.

The Niteowl™ plant alert system never disappoints on the road show, according to the manufacturer. There are thousands of Niteowls throughout the country that many already take advantage of but there are many plants that still rely on physically checking the plant over the weekend or risk coming in to a cold plant on an early morning start up. The Niteowl saves you from plant, paving crew and truck downtime. The Niteowl system is designed to automatically call up to four phone numbers repeatedly until someone is alerted if the temperature of liquid asphalt or hot oil exceeds the pre-set high or low limits or when the hot oil heater has failed.

One of the newer technologies being shown is the Tank Management Series that includes our Accu-level™ for checking the level of tanks or silos without having to leave the control house or climb equipment. The Tank Tracker™ gives you the ability to see levels and temperatures of tanks, from remote locations right over your cell phone.

The Tank Manager Total Inventory Management System™ is the total inventory management system storage solution for your plant. The Tank Manager gives you the control to run your business while it runs your tanks. Managing AC tanks can be cumbersome. A lot of time and resources can be used up just instructing workers on how to set the valves in the AC tank farm just to do simple tasks such as transfer from one tank to another. With high accuracy tank level and temperature visibility, the system can provide real time inventory reporting. The screens are visible over the network where inventory can be watched in real time from remote locations. The tank management system can allow the supervisor to have a better source of information that can lead to more efficient scheduling of AC deliveries. With The Tank Manager Total Inventory Management System, you can select tank sources and tank destinations at the touch of a control on the screen for systems that have actuated valves. A safe and effective method to prevent overflows and spills, visibility into the unloading procedure allows the system to automatically shut off the unloading pump whenever the high preset limit is reached. The integration of lockouts of the agitator control can be done programmatically, eliminating the need for extra starters, contactors and temperature control switches. Also the cycle time and dwell of the agitator can be controlled, eliminating the need for fixed time relays.

These are just a few of the items that are displayed in the Hotmix Parts/Stansteel Road Show that the team would be happy to come by and discuss with you at your asphalt plant. Of course, no display can compare to the hundreds of years of knowledge that Hotmix Parts and Stansteel has on their team of hot mix industry veterans. Hotmix Parts and Stansteel deals with any brand or type of asphalt plant and can help with any plant, problem, part or component that is troubling you.

For more information, visit www.stansteel.com.

Turnkey Solutions Enter Primary Crushing Systems

From Kristen Randall, Haver & Boecker

Haver & Boecker Niagara, Münster, Germany, offers primary crushing plants in a wide variety of configurations for pre-crushing, secondary and tertiary crushing in the mining and aggregates industries. The manufacturer highlighted its primary crushing plant systems in at bauma 2019 in Munich.

“We’re entrenched in the mining and aggregates industries and are dedicated to each customer’s profitability and success,” said Peter Grotjohann, managing director of the German facility. “We use our industry experience and work closely with each operation to design comprehensive primary crushing plant systems with the highest level of durability, service and flexible design so each customer can find the best plant for their operation.”

Haver & Boecker Niagara provides crushing plant systems with a variety of components, including impact, jaw, cone or roller crushers, Haver screens or rolling screens, push feeders, apron conveyors, and Haver vibrating feeders. The plant systems work with all peripheral components such as maintenance cranes, de-dusting systems, compressed air systems, hydraulics and hammers.

Customers choose from two types of systems—basic or master. Both systems work with the Haver & Boecker Niagara N-Class vibrating screen. Also included is comprehensive plant documentation on CE requirements and beyond and declaration of conforming with EC directives for machines 2006/42/EG (CE).

For more information, contact Kristen Randall at (905) 688-2644.

Reverse Air Baghouse Solves Dust Return Surges

By Jeff Meeker, Meeker Equipment

Meeker Equipment Co. Inc., Belleville, Pennsylvania, has launched a new reverse air baghouse (Freedom Air) that provides unique control of the turrets, does not require an air compressor and uses stainless steel turrets.

Hot air containing fine particles enters the center plenum of the baghouse. The center plenum is tapered so as air moves from one end to the other, the air evenly gets distributed across all bags. The center plenum has plasma cut holes across the sidewalls to help with the distribution of air on the bags.

On top of the baghouse are multiple (one to four) stainless steel turrets that turn like a carousel. The turrets are used to clean the bags. As dust collects on the bags, clean air passes through and the dust collects on the outside of the bags. Pressure drop begins across the bags. When the turret moves to the row it wants to clean, the pressure rises as fresh outside air flows from the turret to a row of bags and the reverse air blows down the bags from the inside out (high pressure air flows to low pressure).

Meeker uses variable frequency drives (VFDs) on the turrets to allow the turrets to move faster or slower depending upon dust loading on the bags. Meeker also allows the turrets to pulse the bags in various configurations. For example, the turrets can pulse in a line 1, 2, and 3 or they can pulse 3, 1, 2 and the system allows to pulse only half of the bags on a turret. This allows for even flow of dust from the baghouse back to the drum or batch processes.

If a turret ever goes off line, the baghouse can still operate. The operator simply takes the selected turret off-line and the plant continues. This is another unique feature of the Meeker Freedom baghouse.

For more information, contact Meeker at (888) 333-0323.

Roads Across America Get Their Vegetables

By Matt Merritt, for POET

A vegetable oil-derived product is now proving to be an effective asphalt rejuvenator and performance-grade modifier. POET’s new product is called “JIVE,” and it is improving performance and economics for more asphalt producers every day, according to the manufacturer.

It is all-natural, renewable, affordable, and proving its resilience and reliability today in roads ranging from high-traffic highways in New Jersey to fierce conditions in Utah and parts of Canada. According to Matt Reiners, vice president of business development for POET Nutrition, asphalt producers have been attracted to the product for three reasons.

• JIVE has proven to improve the resiliency of roads in extremely low temperatures.
• It is more affordable than alternatives in its space.
• It is a renewable product, and it is safe for the environment and public health.

Reiners said the company started with a few trials in 2016. From there, the task was to prove JIVE’s performance and earn trust more broadly within the industry. Asphalt providers are extremely risk-averse, he said, and with good reason. There’s no room for error.

With time and many commercial trials, business has taken off this year.

“We are either active in the commercial phase or in the middle of trials with nearly every big provider of asphalt in the country,” Reiners said. “It’s become popular. Not only do you get a price and performance advantage, but we’re renewable.”

Getting the word out can be tough in an industry that likes to keep its ingredients secret. However, a number of customers agreed to submit testimonials anonymously.

“We have been asked by many agencies to eliminate the use of recycled engine oil as a component of asphalt cement for use in hot mixed paving applications,” one customer reported. “We find the use of JIVE to be a good fit for this replacement. JIVE is an environmentally safe replacement and seems to react well with most asphalt and polymer blends.”

“JIVE is a sustainable product that allows contractors to use more reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) in their hot mix asphalt,” another reported. “It helps restore some performance properties of the aged asphalt binder in the RAP, resulting in improved performance of a new recycled mixture.”

JIVE has been subjected to the battery of tests to ensure it meets the necessary specifications for use in roads and other projects in the United States. That includes TSR for moisture sensitivity, Hamburg Wheel Tracking tests against rutting, cracking resistance at intermediate and low temperatures and long-term aging tests.

Dr. Alex McCurdy, senior research scientist at POET, said the results show JIVE is a reliable ingredient for asphalt, and they also revealed specific advantages, especially in cold climates and where softer asphalts are not available.

By using Jive at 3.5 percent by weight, a producer can modify the performance grade of an asphalt from PG64-22 to PG58-28. The low temperature improvement at such low inclusions has created a lot of interest, McCurdy said.

“For a lot of producers, it’s actually surprising to them to find that we out-perform many of the petroleum-based materials,” he said. “JIVE improves the asphalt performance at a low dose in a more cost-competitive manner.”

In addition, it allows producers to use more RAP.

“It’s going to get in there and allow for RAP material to blend better with the virgin materials,” McCurdy said. “A lot of producers would like to increase RAP as much as they can while not sacrificing mix performance.”

That improved performance is due in part to the ability of JIVE to replace maltenes, which can be lost over time in aging roadways.

“JIVE doesn’t contain asphaltic maltenes,” McCurdy said. “But JIVE contains renewable, non-toxic components that replace the lost maltenes that serve to disperse asphaltenes.”

While performance and price are most relevant to the bottom line, the asphalt industry is not immune to the growing awareness of environment and health concerns from consumers in the United States and around the world. As a green solution for asphalt rejuvenation and performance-grade modification, Reiners sees a unique role for JIVE to fulfill many of those efforts.

“We’re seeing more and more green projects,” he said. “With JIVE, you get the green benefit bolted on.”

While today that might still be a niche, the trends are undeniable. This is an issue that will grow in every industry in the future. The early adopters, those producers starting to use more environmentally sound ingredients today, will have an advantage.

“They’re already going to know how to use this product, where to get it,” Reiners said. “They’ll already be a preferred customer.”

POET is no stranger to competing with petroleum products. Their primary business has been biofuel production from 28 plant locations across the Midwest that replace chemicals in gasoline. For more than 30 years, they have been fueling America’s vehicles. Now they’re paving America’s roads.

For more information, contact Ashley Hummel at (605) 965-6232.

Install Your Mind

From Reliable Asphalt Products

Reliable Asphalt Products Inc., Shelbyville, Kentucky, installs the Minds Suite of Asphalt Plant Control Systems & Automation. MINDS’ automation systems for asphalt plants, emulsion and modified bitumen/asphalt plants, are designed from an operator perspective with the aim of facilitating a quick grasp of the system. State of the art technology enables modern mobile applications like LiveLoader™ or TankFarm™, remote access, dual workstation access and more.

The automation systems are used in hundreds of plants worldwide as their preferred plant control solution. The production-level data forms the foundation that flows up the pipeline to our large-scope job/business management IT tools.

For example, Tessera Ticketing is a job ticketing & management software offering efficient ticketing and management software for asphalt plants to handle billing jobs, trucks, haulers, materials. Use standalone or fully integrated with MINDS production systems such as DrumTronic, BatchTronic, and LoadOut.

Tessera Ticketing allows users to quickly and easily print tickets/invoices after material has been loaded onto a truck. Tessera supports the ability to store customers, haulers, jobs, materials and trucks. When making a new ticket, all the operator needs to do is select the appropriate customer, job, material, etc. and all of the relevant ticketing information is automatically filled in on the ticket. The software takes care of pricing the material, doing any relevant unit conversions, calculating the taxes and making sure that all required information has been selected.

• Sell by weight and measure by volume or vice versa
• Automatic unit conversion; system adjusts unit price based on units selected by the operator
• Comprehensive material pricing rules; price material for specific customer and job
• Handles multiple taxes, including tax-on-tax; can account for tax increases that automatically take effect at a specified date
• Visual ticket layout designer provides ability to accommodate any ticket layout; if we store it, you can print it
• Allows use of different ticket layouts for casg sales versus credit sales
• Easily design reports to see any piece of data collected on a ticket in a custom report
• Free-form ticket fields allow system to capture custom ticketing information with no software changes

For more information, contact Len Newton at (502) 303-8896.

Measure Screening Performance

By Matthew Armstrong, MAJOR

MAJOR, of Candiac, Quebec, has introduced the Flex-Mat Sensor, which is a vibration data measurement tool operators can use to review results and fine tune their screen machine without shutting down equipment. The app-controlled vibration analysis sensor enables readings of screen box vibrations within seconds and generates a report that can be sent or reviewed. The simplicity of the system’s design ensures valuable and actionable data without the requirement for a plant shutdown to calibrate the sensor.

The Flex-Mat Sensor enables users to measure and—almost immediately—view vibration data. The operator connects the single sensor to the Flex-Mat Sensor app on their phone before placing the sensor on one corner of the machine. The user will continue to move the sensor to each corner of the machine until finished. Once the measurement process is completed, the information will be delivered to the phone in the time it takes to climb down from the machine.

Machine information is stored locally for ease of use and viewing in areas with cellular limitations. Once signal is available, the information uploads to MAJOR’s cloud service where it is viewable from a web browser. Historical equipment performance data is also viewable through the cloud.

The sensor measures g-force, stroke, rpm and orbit, including lateral movement. Producers can use the data to monitor and fine tune screen box performance as well as make parameter decisions with minimal guesswork. For example, it’s difficult to tell just by looking at it whether a screen that’s supposed to be operating at 800 rpm is operating at 900 rpm because the difference in vibration could be just a few millimeters, but the extra could mean too much carryover.

The sensor makes that information easy to access. The data can also give indications of what kind of screen media would be most effective on the machine.

The sensor kit arrives in professional casing and includes one sensor, instructions, a USB charging cable and instructions on how to download the Vibration app. The app will be available for iOS and Android phones. MAJOR dealers will have access to webinars to help them learn to interpret the gathered data.

For more information, contact MAJOR at (450) 659-7681.

Mind Your Tank Farm

From MINDS

MINDS Inc., Boisbriand, Quebec, offers the TankFarm app for remote monitoring of liquid tank farms & heating. The plant control is designed to oversee critical operations anywhere the user has cell phone reception. Real-time data is constantly communicated between the plant’s control system and the TankFarm app. It monitors boiler conditions such as hot oil temperature, warm oil temperature, pump status and burner status. If the boiler or tanks aren’t running within set parameters, the user receives an alert on his phone. Warnings are sent as text-based push notifications to a smart phone, while “faults” play a loud sound on the smart phone as well as sending the text notification.

For more information, contact (866) 938-1124.

Program Conveyor Signal Points

From Conveyor Components

The new Model MSD-800 series motion sensing controls from Conveyor Components Company, are designed to offer affordable and reliable protection of indoor and outdoor rotating equipment such as screw conveyors, belt conveyor pulleys, rotary feeders and bucket elevators from costly damage by continuously monitoring rotary speed. The Model MSD alerts the operator of a change in speed by sending a signal to the control unit, which can be used to sound an alarm and/or shut down the equipment completely. By monitoring speed, you can greatly reduce system and equipment downtime by fixing malfunctions such as broken drive gears or belts, over-worked motors, belt overload and other problems before serious damage occurs.

The Model MSD is comprised of two distinct components: a control unit and a speed sensor. The Model MSD-800 control unit has a set up menu that can be programmed to indicate two under-speed points or two over-speed points, or one of each. The control unit acts as a digital tachometer that constantly displays the actual rotary speed of the equipment being monitored. The control unit is installed remotely in a control panel where it is free from dust, dirt and vibration and allows the operator to monitor equipment from one central location.

For more information, contact sales at (810) 679-4211.

Keep Overweight Trucks off the Highway

By Robert Monroe, Fairbanks Scales

New technology simplifies the weighing process, while also allowing maximum flexibility in where a scale can be installed and how it is used. Quarries, trucking companies, logistics facilities and farmers are prime examples of users who would benefit from on-site weighing.

While quarries likely already have a static scale as the trucks exit, that can easily be miles of driving from where they are loaded. Preventing overloaded trucks is the most important and expensive need, but at the same time, routinely under loading the trucks can cost the quarry plenty of lost revenue, too. Having the ability to easily install a scale that can maximize loading and ensure legality, near the truck loading zones where adjustments can be made can be a major benefit to the operation.

Taking an in-motion axle scale one step further, the AxleSurance system can also be used to help prevent rollovers during the dumping process. An axle scale setup in a side-by-side configuration can ensure the loads are distributed evenly across the truck, preventing the trucks from tipping over when the loads are raised to dump.

New to the market is a cost-effective slow-speed axle scale system for those who need to check-weigh loads but lack the space or need for a full-size truck scale.

While not a legal-for-trade scale, the technology is a good investment for customers who want to better manage inventory and reduce their overload risks.

Called the AxleSurance Weigh System, the new technology is typically less than half the cost of a new standard 70-foot static truck scale.

The new weigh system focuses on simplicity in design and use, reliability, and repeatability. First and foremost, the manufacturer states it is easy to install and easy to use. Many of these scales will be used in remote locations, and users can maintain the scale and make use of its features on their own, without specialized technical personnel. The standard AxleSurance scale is 11 feet wide and arrives in a precast base that measures 12-feet by 8-feet 5-inches by 11-feet 5-inches. The full system comes with an unattended instrument console, remote LED display, data and homerun cable.

The scale base’s relatively small footprint allows customers to place the scale in the most convenient location for maximum throughput, not just where they have the space for the long approaches to the static scale. Full concrete approaches are not required, but improve system accuracy. Once installed, the system works best at slow, consistent speed (around 3 miles per hour) and will calculate, display and capture each individual axle as it rolls over the scale. It then sums the weights and prints individual axle and gross weights on the tickets. Tare weights can be pre-stored into the database or recorded with an in/out operation. The system provides axle and gross truck weights that can be displayed, printed and saved. The unattended console is essentially a self-contained control unit that drivers can operate independently.

For more information, visit Fairbanks Scales here.