Global Refractories Conference CEMENT and LIME 8-9 December 2008 Cologne, Germany

Who's in Charge anyway, You or Your Kiln?

Speeding kiln refractory maintenance while keeping it safe
Xavier d'Hubert, Bricking Solutions

Safety Issues for Kiln Maintenance

Kiln Access Kiln Safety

Removal of Old Refractories

Materials Handling Installations of New Refractories Components, Innovation and Training

Introduction
Sadly, we still have accidents in the Cement Industry during the maintenance of the Kilns / Precalciners / Coolers; and some are fatal. Lets not forget that the kilns, preheaters/calciners, and coolers are hostiles places to work. These are confined spaces, often still hot, with difficult access, dusty, dark, but more critical with potentially falling bricks, coating or foreign objects. In addition there is the pressure to complete the job quickly as a single day outage cost an average of 100,000 Euros of lost production. What are the issues: Installing and moving the necessary equipments (bricking machines, access ramps, ) outside and inside the kiln, Removing and bringing inside the kiln hundred tons of debris, coating, old and new bricks, Do a quality job when installing the bricks as it is as important as the bricks quality itself in ensuring a long life, Do everything safely.

Introduction
FLORIDA ROCK Winter 2005

Aalborg Cement Fall 08

Kiln Access Ramp

KEY FEATURES FOR THE KILN ACCESS RAMPS: Safe & ease of installation, good procedures, light weight Strength, to handle heavy load, to handle demolition machine operating from the bridge Accessories: V-rail to prevent fall while keeping wide passage, protection from bricks falling from hood roof Quality of manufacturing (6061 T6 aircraft grade aluminum, welding,) Yearly inspection (cracks, welds, .) Cavities, lifting rings & eaves for easy kiln installation and removal Designed to support almost 7.000 kg with a 3:1 safety factor Easy to assemble with bolt & pin connections

Kiln Access Ramp

Safety Inspection Cages & Tunnels

KEY FEATURES FOR THE SAFETY CAGES/TUNNELS These are widely used to a/ Allow walking inside the kiln with coating on or when bricks are loose to make inspections, walk through to the kiln outlet to reach the inlet side. b/ Can withstand 1.2 m fall of a 120 kg rock with a 3:1 safety factor, c/ Provide a safe passage under the coated zone (under certain conditions) The main criteria is the optimum mix between weight (light) and sturdiness (high) Features that make the cages/tunnels easier to carry inside the kiln: Shoulder harnesses, use of Bobcat/forklift for motorized transport Lightweight aluminum construction allows for tunnel sections to be moved easily Legs can be adjusted for uneven terrain inside of kiln Side can be lifted for easier inspection Foldable cages when necessary

Safety Inspection Cage & Tunnels

Safety Inspection Cages & Tunnels

Materials Handling Port-A-Track, Bedding Cart, Conveyor

KEY FEATURES FOR THE CONVEYING SYSTEMS 1. Limit the need for motorized engine inside the kiln, use conveyors instead (manual or pneumatic) (for safety reasons but also to protect the bricks on the floor) 2. While inside the kiln, limit the handling of heavy loads, 3. Insure movements are predictable using railing, Modular system for transporting full pallets of brick into kiln (Port-ATrack) with Brake system holds cart on track Easily assembled and advances with a leap frog method using 1.5m and 3m track sections Modular elements, hydraulic drive (Conveyor) Near 3.000 kg capacity platform with large working space (bedding cart) Stair step design reduces worker fatigue (bedding cart)

Materials Handling Port-A-Trac, Bedding Cart, Conveyor

Demolition Machines
KEY FEATURES FOR THE DEMOLITIONS MACHINES Compact, can operate in low headroom Tracks give excellent mobility can cope with 30o gradients, move over and work on rubble Designed to work with powerful hydraulic hammers Flexible three-part arm ensures precise and quick positioning of hammer moil point Long reach Accuracy Subtle operation with no damage to shell or refractory to be retained Remote control safe for the operator Electric drive = no noise when hammer is not active and requires less maintenance than diesel engine

Demolition Machines

Bricking Machines
KEY FEATURES FOR THE BRICKING MACHINES Light weight for easy installation but extremely robust, capable of receiving 4,500 kg load, Can me moved by hand, Flexible to accommodate diameter variations, Quality of constructions with aviation grade aluminum, certified welders, certified design engineer, worldwide certifications Adjust the arch in minutes with up to 4 easy arch adjustments utilizing screw jacks or hydraulic jacks no tools required Each arch has its own 3-way Master Valve that can be operated independently or in unison Large working platform 4.2m (4,500kg) or 5.2m (5,500kg) Complete range of machines from Mini-Econ-O-Ring (1.2 m dia.) to FDEF (4.2m to 6.8m dia, double arch, adjustable)

Bricking Machines

Bricking Machines

Debris Removal
FEATURES: Quick-Hitch for most style loaders Radiused leading edge to penetrate rubble and reduce machine and operator impact Wear Plates on sides and bottom ensure long life

Brick Alignment

FEATURES: It ensures precise placement of brick It produces a continuous light laser parallel in the axis of kiln A penta-prism device refracts the laser perpendicular onto the kiln circumference The line can be marked on kiln as an exact reference for brick installation

Important Components
Accessories are designed to facilitate the safe operation of the equipment, reducing handling, heavy lifting, reducing time to set-up and use the equipments .
ARCH CARRIER Designed to carry assembled Bricking Machine arch in and out of kiln with a fork lift Enables ring and scaffold frames to be moved without being disassembled. LASER TARGET Designed to allow easy and fast setting of the burner in its position inside the hood/kiln.

Angled conveyor with access to the rig.

INOVATIONS & TRAINING

Bricking Solutions are specialists. Consult with them whenever a situation occurs that requires an innovative approach. We have the right engineering and manufacturing team to design specific equipment

The best designed and built equipments when poorly used wont help reduce accident rates. It is very important to set in place procedures for yearly inspection of the equipments (looking for welds, cracks)

Transfer for pallets of brick to the burn floor or Preheater Inspection.

New equipments should only be used after proper training.

Other Developments
KEY FEATURES FOR OTHER SYSTEMS: Are developed with the clients, often to solve a safety issue, Are often inexpensive solutions to old problems,

EXEMPLE: (under development): SCAFFOLDING FOR PREHEATER CYCLONES

Conclusion # 1
Beware of the imitations, not all bricking machines are created equal

Conclusion # 2
There have been many innovations and progresses made in the field of kiln refractory installation and maintenance over the years

Conclusion # 3
Safety and work conditions are key.

Conclusion # 4
Trust the expertise.
Mr. Jacques at St. Lawrence reported the first usage of a Kiln Refractory Maintenance System not only resulted in a 24 hour tear out time savings, but installation production rose from the typical 1.5m of tops and bottoms per 8 hour shift to 6.1m of tops and 9.15m of bottoms per an 8 hour shift.

The Aluminum Kiln Access Ramp, designed for Holcim Holly Hills, was easy to install, despite its length, using the over-head sling installation method. One would expect a long aluminum bridge to have more flex than steel, however what flex was there while in use, was minimal & not a concern, Bobby Compton, Industrial Services Company. With the use of a bricking machine and pallet mover system, Mike Kelly of Ash Grove Midlothian reduced their downtime, increase kiln usage factor, lowered lost time accidents, and increased morale. In Dec. of 2006, Mike reported that in 10.5 hours his crew of 10 installed 70 rows of brick. R&D Partner, Tom Van Cott, Safety Manager, needed a safe passage for men and material under coating to effect repair and inspections in the upper transition zones. His inquiry led to the design of a Personnel Protection Tunnel System incorporated from Safety/Inspection cages. Essroc Picton has been successfully using the tunnel system since 2003.

Xavier dHubert 33/ 9 52 80 55 93 brickingsolutions@earthlink.net