FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 10, 2008
Ashross, LLC
530 South 250 West
Pleasant Grove, Utah 84062
Management of Ashross, LLC, a manufacturing company in Pleasant Grove, Utah, announced the availability of a new railcar unloading machine complimentary to their existing equipment line. The new unit is called the RUMcd (railcar unloading machine continuous discharge) and targets customers that want to unload materials from railcars while the train continues to move. It also features the ability to accommodate rapid discharge type railcars. In operation the machine is supported in a relatively shallow pit not exceeding ten feet in depth with steel or concrete piers at each end of the units. The machine serves as a bridge over which the engine and railcars pass. A mechanism in the machine’s deck is synchronized with the rate of movement of the railcars which allows the use of rapid discharge railcars. Conveyors exit the machine perpendicular to the direction of the rails on which the material is transferred. The ability of the RUMcd to move material horizontally in a shallow configuration contrasts sharply with industry practices of using deep pits.
The shallow machine and support pit configuration makes the cost of installation significantly lower than other unloading alternatives. This is true, in part, because the time to prepare the railcar unloading site is as short as a few days ranging to a few weeks, at most, depending upon customer requirements. Further, the machine is mostly assembled at the factory and transported to the site and therefore can be operational very quickly once the support pit is in place and connected with the surface rails. The machine may be raised hydraulically in order to allow for servicing.
Lloyd Ash, managing partner of Ashross, says the new RUMcd is complimentary to existing Ashross railcar unloading machines now in use. However, the new unit significantly increases the unloading rate and is able to handle rapid discharge railcars while the train continues to move, hence the term “continuous discharge.” He expects customers who find the RUMcd appealing to be similar to those now using Ashross railcar unloading machines but who need a higher rate of unloading and on a continuous basis. For example, he says current Ashross railcar unloaders can handle 1,200 to 1,500 tons of coal per hour but this requires each car to be stopped briefly while it is unloaded. The new RUMcd will readily unload 3,000 tons of coal per hour with continuous car movement and is able to be configured to handle tonnage perhaps double that rate because it is scalable. In Lloyd’s opinion, he believes the limiting unloading factor will be the customer’s ability to take the coal or other material away from the RUMcd once it is out of the railroad cars and off the exit conveyor of the RUMcd.
There are several novel concepts inherent in the RUMcd for which patents have been applied. Patents have already been issued for other Ashross machines.
Some industry considerations and demands have lead to the development of the RUMcd. For example, tightening of environmental emission regulations have caused power generating plants to source coal low in sulfur such as that which originates from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming and Montana. This gives rise to the need for new, enhanced or replacement railcar unloading capacity at plant sites. The capital requirements and the time involved in building, remodeling or upgrading traditional deep pit facilities has caused demand for less costly alternatives that can be sourced and installed quickly. The cost effective features of the RUMcd addresses these needs along with the promise of being scalable for future growth requirements. It is expected that the unit will have high up-time reliability. When service or repairs are needed essentially all electrical and mechanical components used in the machines are from sources common to the industry and are readily available. Components are interchangeable between many manufacturers so, if a customer wishes to specify sourcing of components consistent with their particular plant standard, this can be done in most instances.
Ashross has been in business since 1992 and has focused mostly on machines that transfer material coming from railcars, belly dump truck trailers, end dump truck trailers and side dump truck trailers. However, in a departure from this past focus the company recently installed their first coal reclaim unit (RC) at a power plant in the Midwest in part utilizing proven technology adapted from the truck unloading machines. The company’s customer base includes multinational oil companies, power plant operators, mining companies and aggregate handling firms. Materials handled include coal, petroleum coke, blast furnace coke, granular sulfur, gypsum, copper ore concentrate and construction aggregates including roller compacted concrete. These customers are located in as varied locations as Venezuela, Qatar, and Great Britain and in various states domestically including Alaska. A railcar unloading unit is currently being manufactured for installation in Canada later this year.
For more information, contact us at our website at www.ashross.com,
by
e-mail sales@ashross.com or call
801-785-6464.