New sand washing system brings increased efficiency

• 
• 21st May 2009
• Quarrying
 

The introduction of new sand washing technology to Poland has seen many quarry operators enjoy substantial increases in efficiency and product quality in recent times.

CDE Ireland, originate from Northern Ireland and have been operating in the Polish market for two years under the management of Mr Roman Gorski. The company has been designing and manufacturing sand washing plants for almost twenty years and in the last five years have made significant progress in opening up new export markets throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

"Over the last two years we have secured major contracts in a number of European countries - Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Lithuania, Sweden and Estonia" explains Mr Eoin Heron, European Sales Manager for CDE. "In addition to this we have also an office in India as well as Qatar and Dubai."

"We have focused on developing markets in Europe in particular for some time now and Poland forms a central part of our strategy" says Mr Gorski. "We know from previous experience that placing a CDE person in country to develop the business is the best way to ensure our customers get the best level of technical support and service available."

Prior to being appointed country manager for Poland, Roman Gorski had developed considerable experience working with CDE as a project engineer. "There are very few people within CDE with a better understanding than Roman of the benefits that our sand washing plants can bring in terms of efficiency and product quality" comments Mr Heron.

Roman had worked on the installation, commissioning and ongoing management of many of CDE's worldwide installations which, according to Mr Heron, left him with the technical expertise required to assist with the company's entry into the Polish market. "The transition to technical sales from a background in design and project engineering is one that we as a company are fully committed to" explains Mr Heron.

Following the decision to place Mr Gorski in Poland, CDE set about clearly defining where their equipment could meet the requirements of the market in Poland. "We know from our experience throughout the world that our Evowash sand plant offers many advantages over what could be described as traditional sand washing technologies - screw classifiers and dewatering wheels" explains Mr Gorski. "Our experience in the market to date shows that using these old technologies results in the loss of substantial quantities of commercial grade material to the ponds."

The first company in Poland to install one of the CDE Evowash sand washing systems was Zaklad Produkcji Kruszyw (ZPK). This plant, purchased in early 2007 was brought in to specifically address the issue of substantial quantities of commercial grade sand being lost to onsite ponds as a result of the inefficiencies of the existing sand washing plant - in this instance a dewatering wheel. Located in Szumowo in the North East of Poland, ZPK operate eight quarries and once the first CDE Evowash plant had proved its capability there were further orders for three more Evowash sand plants to be installed at other sites operated by the company. According to Mr Kazmierz Rupinksi of ZPK the Evowash system offered substantially increased production of commercial grade sand while at the same time reducing the costs of operation by reducing the quantity of material being sent to the onsite ponds.

Another reason for the success of the EvoWash system according to Mr Rupinski is the very low moisture content of the final sand product, which at only 12% means that the sand is ready for market straight from the belts. "The low moisture content of the final sand product ensures that operators can turn their products into revenue much more quickly than is the case with some of the alternative sand washing systems on the market" explains Mr Gorski.

"On paper the CDE plant offered the best performance available and once installed we realised that this level of performance was indeed possible" says Mr Rupinski of ZPK. "The further orders we placed with CDE are recognition of the success of the Evowash system in increasing production and decreasing costs for our business."

Another company experiencing a similar situation to ZPK were Wolimex, located near Krakow in the south of Poland. Once again, Wolimex employed a dewatering wheel at their site when Roman Gorski first made contact. CDE were able to demonstrate through their previous experience at ZPK that the EvoWash sand washing plant would allow Wolimex to increase their current production capacity while also reducing the costs of maintaining their on site ponds.

"Our previous washing system was sending a large volume of good quality sand to the ponds and the costs of maintaining these ponds and reprocessing the material were escalating to such an extent that we needed to find a solution" explains Eugeniusz Wojak of Wolimex. "Having seen the Evowash sand plant in operation we were convinced that it offered us a solution to this problem. Since installation the plant has performed as promised and has increased the efficiency of our operation significantly"

The key to the superior performance on the Evowash system lies in the customisation of each plant to the specific requirements of the project according to Mr Gorski. "While other sand washing systems on the market are offered as off-the-shelf systems, we design and manufacture each plant based on the individual feed characteristics and output requirements of the customer. Essentially, no two quarries are processing exactly the same material. By making adjustments to plant set up based on detailed analysis of the feed material and the required final product specification, we can ensure an optimum level of plant performance for our customers."

With the successes that the company has enjoyed to date they expect to add to their list of completed projects in the coming months and years. "We are not here in Poland for a short term fix" explains Mr Heron. "We see Poland as forming a major part of our business for years to come and we have shown our commitment by placing Roman here to manage the business for us as we continue to grow. Getting the first few projects under your belt is always the hardest thing to achieve in any new market and now that we have achieved this we look forward to developing further business."

With Roman Gorski as country manager for Poland, supported by Mr Eoin Heron in his role as European Sales Manager, CDE are currently working on a large number of potential projects throughout the country. There has been obvious interest in the areas surrounding the existing plants as others become aware of the successes being enjoyed by both ZPK and Wolimex and in addition to this Roman has covered large parts of the country to spread the word on how the CDE Evowash sand washing system is delivering major efficiency benefits for existing customers.

"Our systems are ideally suited to tackle the problems being experienced by those employing inefficient sand washing technologies" explains Roman. "Now that we are able to demonstrate real and positive experience within the Polish industry, we look forward to developing the business further in the future." Judging by the successes being enjoyed by ZPK and Wolimex, all the signs are that CDE will be a name that will become increasingly familiar to the quarrying industry in Poland.

Further information on the range of products and systems available from CDE can be obtained from their web site at http://www.cdeglobal.com/. You will also find an extensive library of brochures, case studies and videos available for download from the web site at www.cdeglobal.com/downloads.

Associated Links

• Hub-4 Profile of CDE Ireland Ltd
• CDE Ireland Ltd Company Website