Conveyor part quarry trucks and generates electricity
Business
In Saalfelden (Pinzgau), the renovated diabase quarry was officially opened on Thursday. In the quarry, the crushed gravel is now brought to the loading station by conveyor belt – this saves thousands of truck journeys and even generates electricity.
The quarry has been completely modernized technically over the past two years – due to the pandemic, the official opening did not take place until Thursday. Diabase is mined in Saalfelden – a particularly hard rock that is an important component for asphalt, concrete or track ballast.
Braking is used to generate energy
Ten million euros were invested in the dismantling under the leadership of STRABAG. Miles of conveyor belts and dust-tight, encapsulated systems bring many advantages for the environment and local residents, says STRABAG CEO Klemens Haselsteiner: “We dismantle the hilltop and transport the whole thing down to the valley via conveyor belt. We generate electricity through the braking effect of the conveyor belt. This enables us to quickly operate the system independently.”
At the loading station of the quarry, the diabase gravel is now loaded into a new type of special container from ÖBB-Rail-Cargo, says the board member Gottfried Eymer: “Containers are not handled here using the classic method – with a crane and a terminal – the point here is that the truck actually drives alongside the Mobiler and loads the container sideways via a hydraulic system with rods that extend. In principle, only the normal track and an asphalt surface next to it are necessary to make this shift from road to rail possible.”
Around 2,000 fewer truck journeys per year
When transporting 25,000 tons of diabase per year, the new technology supports the company and the Saalfelden residents around 2,000 truck trips per year.