Displaying items by tag: optimisation

Yemen: Pakistan-based Reon Energy has won a contract to build a microgrid equipped with a 13.5MW solar power plant and a 5.59MWh battery energy storage system for Arabian Yemen Cement. The energy storage system will employ Reon Energy’s SPARK Intelligent Energy Management product. The supplier said that the project aims to reduce energy costs by 20% and lower CO₂ emissions from Arabian Yemen Cement’s operations.

Arabian Yemen Cement chief executive officer (CEO) Waheeb Al-Azab said "Our partnership with Reon Energy signifies a monumental stride towards sustainable energy practices, enabling us to harness solar power, significantly reduce our carbon footprint and optimise fuel efficiency in our operations."

Reon Energy CEO Mujtaba Khan said "This collaboration marks a significant step in our commitment to delivering practical, efficient solutions, tailored to industry-specific energy challenges. We look forward to driving positive change in the energy landscape of the cement industry with Arabian Yemen Cement."

Mexico: Holcim Mexico has concluded a deal to set up a trial of hydrogen injection in kilns at one or more of its seven cement plants in Mexico. The producer says that the technology will optimise combustion processes and facilitate the increased substitution of alternative fuel.

Japan: Tokuyama Corporation has installed ABB’s Expert Optimizer automated optimisation system in the kiln line of its Nanyo cement plant. The system controls the line’s calciner, kiln and cooler processes. The supplier says that the technology will reduce the Nanyo cement plant’s thermal energy consumption by 3%.

Tokuyama Corporation "We selected ABB's Expert Optimizer to equalise operations and improve operational efficiency. As expected, we have significantly reduced the number of the operator manual operations normally spent on manual tasks.” It added “We believe that this solution will also support our young operators in learning the know-how of our operations efficiently."

US: ThyssenKrupp Polysius, a subsidiary of Germany-based thyssenkrupp, has delivered a Polysius booster mill to Mountain Cement's Laramie grinding plant in Wyoming. The Eagle Materials subsidiary will take delivery of further ancillary equipment, including material handling, process gas management and machine protection systems, throughout mid-late 2023. The supplier said that the mill will help to increase the Laramie plant's flexibility. It will also provide site services and technical support for optimisation and maintenance for two years after commissioning, also slated for 2023.

ThyssenKrupp Polysius' project manager Matthew Burchfield said "This is a very important and interesting project for ThyssenKrupp Polysius. This is the first booster mill system sold in the US and one of the first booster mills worldwide. We are tasked with a very tight engineering and supply schedule. ThyssenKrupp Polysius is working closely with Mountain Cement and its engineering teams."

Tanzania: Tanga Cement has advised investors that it expects a ‘significant improvement’ in its results to a profit before tax in 2021, compared to a loss in 2020. The Daily News newspaper has reported that strong sales during the year contributed to the forecast result, along with a drop in finance costs due to a restructuring of debt facilities.

Tanga Cement said “The improved performance is a result of Tanga Cement’s initiative to optimise the sales, logistics and distribution, as well as its continued cost optimisation initiative.” It added “The company has been able to achieve this despite the challenging global economic and operating environment conditions.”

Colombia: Cementos Argos has announced its new commitment to reduce the CO₂ emissionsfrom its cement operations by 29% over a period ending in 2030. The company has additionally committed to producing all of its concrete CO₂-neutrally by 2050. It said that its strategy will comprise several carbon mitigation techniques, including maximised alternative fuel (AF) substitution, clinker factor reduction, energy optimisation, clean technology upgrades and a diversification of its range of its cement range to include more sustainable products.

Chief executive officer Juan Calle said "We are determined to face this important challenge and we are convinced that we can build the future we have planned and achieve a more prosperous, inclusive and low-carbon world if we work together with determination to accelerate this transition." He added "We will continue to strive to implement tangible actions, achieve measurable progress each year and deliver information about out opportunities and progress transparently."

France: Lafarge France has awarded a contract to Germany-based Inform for the supply of its transport optimisation software across its 160 aggregates locations and 900-truck fleet. The software uses algorithms to analyse scheduling decisions in real-time and identify those that are ideal for minimising costs and maximising service and on-time performance.

Supply chain projects head Kevin Perrault said “We have been using Inform’s transport optimisation software for over 25 years in our aggregates business.” He added “We pride ourselves in delivering the best possible service to our customers, and upgrading our operations to the latest version is a key element to help us achieve our goals and to remain competitive in the industry.”

Canada: Testing specialist Giatec has launched SmartMix, a web-based software product for concrete ingredient optimisation. It is intended to help concrete users lower their cement construction for jobs. The supplier estimates that the tool could lower the CO₂ emissions of concrete production by 400Mt/yr, the equivalent carbon footprint of 110m cars.

Head of research and development Andrew Fahim said, “Artificial intelligence (AI), machine-learning algorithms and advanced analytics on construction jobsites are going to pave the path forward for our industry to meet increasing infrastructure demands. I am proud to provide contractors and producers AI tools to make impactful decisions and get ahead of the competition by bringing more value to their customers while reducing the carbon impact of their products.”

Belarus: Belarusian Cement Company subsidiary Krasnoselskstroimaterialy has reported total costs savings across its operations of Euro1.34m in 2020. Belarus: Daily News has reported that the company undertook several and diverse measures to achieve the reduction.

The company said, "We have replaced imported bottom ash mix with high-aluminium clay from our own deposit.” It added, “The coal content of the fuel mix rose to 85%. We have also optimised the use of raw materials in the production of cinder blocks. This has helped to reduce the cost of their production by means of decreasing the usage rates for cement, lime and thermal energy."