Automated cement loadout-technology and experience

The Permanente Cement Plant was built by Henry J. Kaiser in 1939. The original wet kilns were replaced by a dual string RSP pre-calciner in 1980. The finish mill operation was modernized in 1991 with the installation of a roll press and high efficiency separators. The bulk loadout facility remained old and inefficient. To access the loadout bins, customers had to drive through an obstacle course of old structures. In 1994 Hanson PLC (which had purchased Kaiser Cement) decided to modernize the bulk cement loadout facility. State of the art equipment would be installed to improve efficiencies and benefit our customers. Hanson decided to build a system that would be 100% automatic. Layouts and plans were made but the equipment that was required for the spout to locate the cement truck hatch was as yet unavailable. 1998 a materials handling equipment manufacturer, developed a system using an electronic eye to locate the cement truck hatch. The arrangement included a spout that could move side to side, back and forth as well as up and down. The manufacturer had developed hardware and software that could process data from the electronic eye and control spout positioning accurately enough for the spout to locate and drop into a hatch opening. The prototype in their shop worked well and Hanson's project was completed in 2001.