Essroc Gears Up to Begin Mechanical Installation of West Virginia Cement Plant Modernization

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas). Essroc Cement (Nazareth, Pennsylvania), a subsidiary of Italcementi Group (Bergamo, Italy), is progressing with a major modernization and expansion of a cement plant in Martinsburg, West Virginia. The $320 million project involves replacing three wet process kilns that produce about 800,000 tons per year with a new dry process kiln pyroprocessing system supplied by FL Smidth Incorporated (Bethlehem, Pennsylvania). The new plant will boost capacity up to about 1.8 million tons per year. The new pyro processing system will feature an ILC 5-stage preheater with a low NOx and low CO calciner designed to burn coal (80-100%) and petroleum coke (0-20%) and a two-support ROTAX-2 kiln and an SF 4x6 SF Cross-Bar cooler.

Demolition work on the project began last summer. Currently, Essroc is completing the civil work and foundations and will release the first mechanical and electrical installation bids in two months. Essroc is building its subcontractor bidders list and is performing procurement of the equipment. The company has hired three engineering firms to complete the structural and mechanical engineering drawings - River Consulting Incorporated (Columbus, Ohio), Penta Engineering Corporation (Saint Louis, Missouri) and Pany & Lentz Engineering Company (Allentown, Pennsylvania). The project is scheduled for completion toward the end of 2008.

Italcementi/Essroc has been on an expansion tear as of late (See related July 16, 2006 news article - Italcementi Continues North America Cement Capacity Expansion ).

Industrial Info first reported on this project in 2000, when then owner Capital Cement Corporation performed a market study for an expansion. In 2002, Essroc purchased the plant. In 2005, the company finished a similar modernizations and expansions at its plant in Nazareth, Pennsylvania.

View Plant Profile - 1040557
View Project Report - 24000734

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