Haith Industrial of Worksop have recently played an important role in the supply of equipment for the independent, and privately owned Rotherham Sand and Gravel Co Ltd (RSG) at their flagship site at Scrooby Top, near Bawtry.
Following continued company expansion over a period of 20 years which included an increase to the range of products and services available planning permission was sought to extend Scrooby Top Quarry. Approval was eventually granted by Nottinghamshire County Council for an estimated 15 years of new reserves on the condition that a new access road was built and the processing plant re-sited at a lower level to reduce its visual impact.
Following the receipt of planning approval the company made the decision to invest in a new processing plant which included a complete new washing and grading plant and an associated sand processing facility, weighbridge, new ready-mixed concrete plant, pre-pack bagging facilities and a new office block. Including the Scrooby Top Quarry the total landholding of the company amounts to some 400 acres with a number of other RSG sites supplying sand and gravel which is stockpiled on site prior to processing.
As part of the new plant Haith were successful in the manufacture, supply and commissioning of the pre-pack bagging plant. Operated by RSG subsidiary Batchpac Ltd products are sold in 25kg and 40kg polythene bags. The plant is fed via a 10 tonne side feed hopper complete with adjustable flow control gate and feeds onto a 7 metre long discharge conveyor which feeds a 10-50 weighing machine. Complete with load cells and adjustable electronic control system material is fed through the machine by a rubber belted conveyor.
Complete with an automatic control for start/stop of the bag filling and clamp/unclamp of the bags, the filled bags are then presented to the bag sealer via the infeed device. Bags are then fed onto a bag transport conveyor and are presented to the bag kicker which in turn offers the bag to a flattener unit.
Conveyed along a second transport conveyor to a powered pick off table the bags are sorted and stacked by a Kawasaki ZD 130 robot. Fitted with a pneumatic grab hand the powerful and heavy duty robot can stack 25 or 40kg plastic bags of up to 16 to 18 bags per minute on pallets for dispatch.
With their new robot driven bagging plant plant RSG are now well placed to meet the demands of the market.