Modernisation of an overburden conveyor installation at ThyssenKrupp Fördertechnik

Modernisation of an overburden conveyor installation

Our client:
ThyssenKrupp GmbH / Lafarge Cement UK

ThyssenKrupp Fördertechnik machines, equipment and systems are used all over the world at opencast mines and storage depots, at port terminals and coal-fired power stations and in stone and limestone quarries, where they are employed for mineral and raw materials extraction and processing and for product handling and transport. Lafarge Cement UK operates 8 cement production plants and has a market share of about 50 percent, making it the country’s largest cement producer. The company produces more than six million tonnes of cement a year.

The commission

Cement producers Lafarge operate a widely spread raw-materials extraction facility at Dunbar in Scotland. The rock waste produced during the mineral processing stage is transported back to the extraction point on a transport system whose stacker boom alone has a width span of some 145 m. The commission required the replacement of electrical equipment on several machines serving a conveyor system for site reclamation and recultivation. One of the most demanding challenges involved the synchronisation of the various caterpillar drives, which would ensure uniform and reliable operation of these giant machines and their full coordination and interaction.

Project scope

  • synchronisation of different crawler drives to provide coordinated interaction
  • complex PLC programming and adapted drive parametrisation
  • delivery of high-comfort operator cabs, a remote control system and associated surveillance cameras
  • MS switchgear
  • MS motors

PLC Control system:

  • supplied by: Siemens
  • PLC type: 3 x S7-315
  • inputs: 840 digital/analogue
  • outputs: 300 digital/analogue
  • user interface: 3 x OP 177
  • operation: local and video-supported remote control

Mechanical data:

  • conveyor output: 2800 t/h
  • travel speed: 0 … 5 m/min
  • travel drive: hydraulic
  • total conveyor length: > 200 m
  • total weight: > 1000 t

Electrical data:

  • power supply: 3.3 kV
  • operating voltage: 415 V
  • power feed: 1300 kW