One of the
project's parameters was that the new facility's loading chute
had to
be capable of loading 40 lb/ft3 of product into a ship's cargo
hold
at 1,900 t/h with less than 1 percent fines generation.
Columbia, as a
project consultant to help establish the facility's equipment parameters and
specifications for handling the friable products. CMC Engineering specializes in
designing facilities that handle agricultural products. BCR Marine also
conducted market research with potential customers to find out what they were
looking for concerning product handling, storage, certified weighing, and
sampling.
One of the project's parameters was that the new facility's
loading chute had to be capable of loading 40 lb/ft3 of product into
a ship's cargo hold at 1,900 t/h with less than 1 percent fines generation. In
addition, it had to clean easily between product runs to prevent
cross-contamination. BCR Marine's market research also found that potential
customers were looking for a facility that could handle their product while
maintaining product quality --peas splitting and feed stuffs degrading while
being loaded into a ship's cargo hold were of particular concern.
"We use loading
spouts with our sulfur and fertilizer operation and the product falls some
distance before it hits the cargo hold's bottom. We knew this type of loading
spout was not an adequate product delivery device for the specialty agricultural
products. So we started looking for a loading chute to meet all of the
product-handling parameters and specifications," says Susan Forbes, marketing
manager with BCR Marine.
BCR Marine considered many loading chute options and contacted
several loading chute manufacturer's for information. Company representatives
also traveled to several of the manufacturer's installation sites to view each
loading chute under working conditions.
Based on CMC Engineering's
recommendation, representatives visited two of PEBCO®'s installation sites in San Diego and
Portland, Oregon., to view the company's Cleveland
Cascade®
Mark
To clean the
chute, an operator positions the fully retracted chute over the cleaning pole in
the foreground.
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