Displaying items by tag: Germany
Schwenk Zement brings 100t crawler excavator into operation
14 October 2015Germany: Schwenk Zement KG has recently brought into operation two new Liebherr R 980 SME crawler excavators at its limestone quarry in Heidenheim an der Brenz. The quarry is adjacent to Schwenk Zement's cement plant.
The SME crawler excavators from Liebherr are particularly suitable for deployment in excavation and are tailored to the tough operating conditions associated with quarrying. SME stands for 'Super Mass Excavation.' A bonus feature is that the excavator is equipped with a reinforced undercarriage, on which the running gear components of the next larger model from the standard programme, namely the R 9100 mining excavator, can be installed. In conjunction with a heavy ballast weight, this undercarriage improves the stability of the machine and, at the same time, enables the use of a backhoe with greater capacity. The equipment, such as the stick and backhoe cylinders, has been adapted to the higher tearing and breaking out forces with a larger diameter and matching kinematics.
At Schwenk Zement KG, the Liebherr R 980 SME crawler excavators are deployed together with a wheel loader directly at the quarry wall. Material is always excavated using two of the three machines. While the wheel loader is more flexible and mobile, the crawler excavator is suitable for sorting the stone and, at the same time, offers higher tearing and breaking out forces. "We used to work with three wheel loaders in production. With the two Liebherr crawler excavators, we have now found the ideal solution as we have a greater output and productivity and maintain flexibility thanks to the wheel loader," said Wolfgang Kuhnt, Quarry Manager. Since the two crawler excavators have been in operation, the number of detonations for stone excavation has dropped. The bed and material can be collected and processed in a dryer state and the loss of raw material at Schwenk Zement KG can be reduced.
The Liebherr crawler excavators achieve an average material handling performance of 350t/hr and ensure optimum supply of the crushing plant, which is restricted to a capacity of 700t/hr. "The crawler excavators are capable of dealing with 500t/hr as well, however, which equates to 1000t/hr when two are in operation," said Kuhnt. Material transport is then carried out by rigid frame dump trucks with a payload of 65t.
Haver & Boecker launches Haver Service department
08 October 2015Germany: Haver & Boecker has launched a new service division in September 2015. Its aim is to bundle competencies and to increase the efficiencies of support services.
The newly-founded department, Haver Service, is based on four sectors: Spare Parts, Commissioning, Support and Assistance. "Every one of our customers should feel well-served. Service cannot be an empty word," said Alfons-Lütke-Cosmann, Head of Haver Service.
The Commissioning sector will organise the commissioning and assembly of machine and plants as well as complex reconstruction and calibration. It aims to increase the efficiency of commissioning. The Spare Parts sector will sell spare parts and implement online sales. The Assistance sector will support the customer for unplanned machine failures and acute technical difficulties. It provides a free 24/7 hotline and a remote service and will organise, depending on requirements, current site service calls. The Support column includes audits, maintenance, standard conversions, customer training and planned service appearances.
SPECTRO Analytical Instruments launches new brief on the use of ED-XRF Spectrometers for the field analysis of soil and sewage sludge
24 September 2015Germany: SPECTRO Analytical Instruments has launched a new application brief detailing the advantages of using energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) spectrometers to perform elemental analysis in the field on soil and sewage sludge samples.
Determining the best course of action when addressing a contaminated environmental site requires precise identification of the contaminating elements and a determination of the amounts present. Traditionally, this elemental analysis has been done in laboratories using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), however, transporting soil and sewage sludge samples back and forth from the field to a laboratory adds considerable time and cost to the remediation process.
The new brief, 'Analysis of Soil and Sewage Sludge in the Field with a Portable ED-XRF Spectrometer,' describes new improvements in portable ED-XRF spectrometers that enable environmental professionals to rapidly characterise samples in remote areas with minimal preparation and with very high accuracy of analysis in environmental monitoring, geochemical prospecting and mining applications. The benefits versus laboratory-based elemental analysis include speed, precision, accuracy and cost-effectiveness.
The brief also outlines key factors to consider when comparing various portable ED-XRF spectrometers and their variations in performance, ease of use and suitability for the field analysis of soil and sewage sludge samples.
Ecuador: Gebr. Pfeiffer Inc, a subsidiary of Germany's Gebr. Pfeiffer SE, was recently contracted to supply a complete grinding unit to replace aging ball mills at the Hormicreto clinker plant in Ecuador.
The new grinding unit helps reduce energy consumption and improves the overall grinding efficiency, allowing the plant to increase production from a single mill. Gebr. Pfeiffer supplied the following components of the new grinding station:
• MPS 2500 BC swing mill with 'Lift and Swing' technology;
• SLS 2250 BC classifier;
• Bucket elevator;
• Reject conveyor belt;
• Chutes and divert chutes;
• Reject silo;
• Weigh feeder;
• Dedusting unit;
• Metal detector;
• Separator;
• Rotary locks;
• Bag filter;
• Mill fan;
• Ducting, expansion joints and dampers;
• HML 1250 Pfeiffer hot gas generator;
• MCC, control and instrumentation;
• Related engineering services.
Delivery of the grinding unit is expected to be complete by December 2015.
Germany/Italy: Italcementi's CEO Carlo Pesenti said that the acquisition of Italcementi by HeidelbergCement is expected to be completed in the first half of 2016, according to Dow Jones. September 2015 will be dedicated to speaking to European and national regulators to receive approval for the deal. Pesenti said that he will join the supervisory board of HeidelbergCement and plans to keep an active role in the company.
Lafarge Germany becomes Opterra with CRH buyout
10 August 2015Germany: Lafarge's assets in Germany, which were recently sold to Ireland's CRH as part of the LafargeHolcim merger, have been rebranded by CRH as 'Opterra.' The assets include two integrated cement plants and one grinding plant.
Italy: HeidelbergCement rushed to buy control of Italcementi after fears that Nigeria's Dangote Cement also showed interest in the Italian cement maker, according to PM News. It has been reported that Dangote did not make a formal offer for Italcementi.
Carl Franklin, head of investor relations at Dangote, said that the company did not comment on specific rumours, but said that "As a large company we examine all options for growth." HeidelbergCement has not commented on whether it had faced competition from Dangote.
According to unnamed sources, the talks between HeidelbergCement and Italcementi began four months ago.
Italcementi chief executive Carlo Pesenti told local media that the deal was 'bulletproof' and there was no space for counter offers. The only outstanding condition was clearance from antitrust authorities. "If it wasn't for the antitrust approval, the shares would have already changed hands," said an unnamed source.
Having already agreed to acquire a 45% stake of Italcementi, HeidelbergCement plans to obtain as many of the remaining shares as possible in the upcoming mandatory buy-out offer, then squeeze out the remaining shareholders and make Italcementi privately-owned.
Germany: HeidelbergCement has reported a double-digit rise in revenue and earnings as its sales volumes of building materials benefited from a continued market recovery in North America and the UK, offsetting concerns about weakness in Indonesia, according to Dow Jones.
Its net profit for the second quarter of 2015, which ended on 30 June 2015, rose by 16% year-on-year to Euro271m, while its operating income before depreciation grew by 15% to Euro752m. HeidelbergCement's revenue jumped by 10% to Euro3.64bn, fed by the weak Euro and low fuel costs. Excluding currency and consolidation effects, its revenue increased 0.4%.
"The sustained recovery in our mature markets, particularly in the UK and the US, has made a significant contribution," said CEO Bernd Scheifele. However, a delayed start of infrastructure projects in Indonesia, HeidelbergCement's key market in Asia, led to a decline in sales volume in the Asia-Pacific region.
On 28 July 2015, HeidelbergCement announced plans to take a 45% stake in Italy's Italcementi for Euro1.67bn. To reflect the positive impact of the deal, HeidelbergCement raised its mid-term targets. It now aims to generate more than Euro20bn in revenue by 2019, compared with the Euro17bn it had previously forecast, alongside an operating earnings of more than Euro5bn, compared with the Euro4bn it had previously forecast. For the entirety of 2015, HeidelbergCement has confirmed its guidance of a significant increase in revenue, operating income and profit.
Germany: HeidelbergCement has posted a 29% rise in core earnings in the first quarter of 2015 as it has benefited from a construction industry recovery in North America and the UK as well as low energy prices and the weak Euro. Operating income before depreciation (OIBD) was Euro299m and sales rose by 4% on a like-for-like basis to Euro2.84bn.
"Business development in the first quarter has strengthened our conviction in our outlook for 2015," said chief executive Bernd Scheifele. HeidelbergCement has reiterated its aim for significant improvements in 2015 sales, operating income and adjusted net profit thanks to strong demand in its core markets, the weaker oil price and Euro and efficiency measures.
HeidelbergCement also anticipates a significant decrease in financing costs due to the decline of net debt to Euro6.1bn from Euro7.8bn, following the sale of its building products business.
Europe: CRH has been approved by the European Commission as a purchaser of assets in the European Union from Lafarge and Holcim. CRH has also received from the European Commission the clearance for the acquisition of these assets. These divestments remain subject to the completion of the merger between Lafarge and Holcim, including a successful public exchange offering to Lafarge's shareholders and approval by Holcim's shareholders.
In France Holcim and Lafarge are divesting all of Holcim's assets, except for its Altkirch cement plant and aggregates and ready-mix sites in the Haut-Rhin region, and a grinding station of Lafarge in Saint-Nazaire. Lafarge's assets on Reunion island are being sold except for its shareholding in Ciments de Bourbon. All of Lafarge's assets are also being sold in Germany and Romania. Lafarge Tarmac assets in the UK are being sold with the exception of its Cauldon and Cookstown plants and certain associated assets. In Hungary all of Holcim's operating assets are being divested and it is selling its assets in Slovakia.