BULK HANDLING
GRAIN: SYSTEM INNOVATION Grain handling and storage system innovation continues apace. John Bensalhia highlights recent developments in the supply sector
8 The Tilbury Grain Terminal facilities are in the final stages of a comprehensive upgrade
The international grain trades face a new challenging era as highlighted in the earlier article in this issue, Grain a Price to Pay for Conflict. While, however, there are significant structural changes underway at an international trading level, suppliers of grain handling and storage systems continue to innovate in order to meet the latest customer requirements in terms of performance, durability, operational cost and the new eco-conscious era. The companies highlighted below have all recently made Port Strategy aware of advances in one or more of these respects and insight is provided into their recent activities by way of signposting the ‘direction of travel’ of the grain and allied products system supply sector. The range of products discussed is diverse as is the scope of recent project work. BEDESCHI: BUSY WITH R&D AND ORDERS Italy-based Bedeschi, a versatile supplier of bulk handling systems across a range of commodities, highlights the application of pipe conveyor technology to the grain handling business as a most beneficial development. Lodovico Bernardi, Sales Director Asia Pacific & Grain Key Account, Bedeschi, underlines: “This kind of conveyor allows for dust free operations (the product completely sealed by the rubber belt) and also has the big advantage of being cost-effective as a result of requiring fewer sections and supporting steel structures resulting in a much lower weight compared to a standard belt conveyor. The technology also removes the need for transfer towers, not necessary to achieve changes of height or direction of the conveyor – another cost-effective measure. Two other areas of design activity that Bernardi highlights are knowledge transfer from handling other bulk commodities into the grain sector and the automation of vessel loading and unloading operations. In the former
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respect he notes: “Our effort focuses on exploiting our experience with different materials and applying solutions developed for other Industries to grains & oilseeds and vice versa.” On the automation of vessel loading and unloading he states that this is an area of great potential effectively unlocked due to the new generation of sensors and 3D scanning systems. “The technology is ready,” he stresses, “but the challenge is to ,create a system at the same time which is reliable and cost effective: Artificial Intelligence (AI),” he suggests, “may play a crucial role in reaching this target.” In project terms Bernardi cites a busy order book. “In the last six months,” he explains, “we have commissioned a shiploader project for a major grain terminal on the Mississippi River in Louisiana (USA), and are currently working on another one in the same area. We are also completing two shipunloader projects able to operate with both grains or meals, one is in the UK and the other in Israel.” The latter project also included the supply of three ecohoppers to Ashdod Port. At Renova Plant, Rosario, Argentina Bedeschi installed what it claims is the largest pipe conveyor ever commissioned for grains and oilseed, with a capacity of 1500 t/h and 700m length for soya beans. Additionally, at Westwego, a New Orleans area grain terminal, the company has installed a ship loading system. BRUKS SIWERTELL: R&D PROGRAMME Siwertell has undertaken a research and development programme with the aim of improving the lifetime of the vertical screw conveyor. Per Hansson, Sales Director, Bruks Siwertell, explains that as well as delivering performance enhancing product improvements, the purpose of the programme was to make the process of producing the
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