Features

The energy market may have served the UK well for many years, but energy security and climate change objectives have spurred a review which has resulted in the proposed Electricity Market Reforms. These may prove to be beneficial to the extractive industry, Sonya Bedford of Stephens Scown Solicitors paints the current and future pictures of the UK and European landscapes with this in mind.

The Mayor of London and Transport for London (TfL) have introduced a targeted Lane Rental scheme. It allows TfL to charge companies a daily fee for undertaking roadworks on the UK capital’s busiest roads at the busiest times. This scheme should encourage more efficient working and reduce disruption from roadworks. One way to help minimise the amount of time that works disrupt traffic is to clarify the early-age strength requirement of concretes, and other cement bound materials, used for the reinstatement o

The Belgian city of Antwerp is regarded as the world’s main centre for diamond cutting and the diamond trade. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, it is the third largest seaport in Europe, and is the ideal gateway for goods shipped to and from Europe. However, to cope with ever-increasing freight traffic volumes in the greater Antwerp area, it is of vital importance to drive the development of infrastructure and improve maritime accessibility. High-level infrastructure measures are already well underway in Antwe

German company Erlau celebrates 70 years since the first chain link designed for tyre protection. A small drawing registered by Erlau in 1943 marks a pivotal moment in the history of bulk materials handling. At that time mining methods were changing as the lumbering steam shovels, rope-operated excavators and horse-drawn rail tubs, which had themselves superseded the pick and shovel, were being replaced by wheeled, hydraulic loading shovels and tipper-bodied trucks. Based on the technology recently develope

Empty environmental commitments from governments, falling bitumen quality and the impact of the economic crisis led DenimoTech to ask its global distributors about the challenges of today’s markets. Kristina Smith reports. These are challenging times for DenimoTech’s distributors - whose goal is to sell the firm’s bitumen emulsion and polymer modified bitumen plants around the world - with competition from Chinese manufacturers highways abandoned half-built and the worst period for road building in the last

There are more manufacturers competing in the wheeled loader sector than in almost any other area of the plant market. Dan Gilkes looks at some of the options available. The wheeled loading shovel remains one of the mainstays of almost every quarry operation around the world. From the smallest family-run business to the largest multi-national, wheeled loaders can work as prime movers, digging at the blasted face, or as rehandling machines operating in a stocking and loading area.

There are various ways in which to move overburden and quarried material from the digging face to the crusher, and from primaries to secondary and tertiary crushing and screening operations. For many, the rigid dump truck remains the machine of choice, a range of sizes capable of carrying anything from 25tonnes to many hundreds of tonnes efficiently and consistently is a persuasive argument. However, the articulated dump truck (ADT) has become an increasingly popular option in smaller quarries, particularl

The Middle East’s largest aggregates producer, Stevin Rock, is demonstrating that improved safety management and updated equipment can result in massive productivity gains. Stevin Rock is no stranger to big numbers: the company produces more than 60 million tonnes a year from its quarry No. 2 in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah. Formed in 1975, Stevin is the largest producer of high-grade limestone, Gabbro rock, concrete and asphalt aggregates in the region, acquiring the adjoining Ras Al Khaimah Rock Company

In Thailand the Sila Sanon limestone quarry is playing a key role providing high quality aggregates for the country’s expanding construction industry. The quarry in Saraburi Province, some 100km north of the capital Bangkok, celebrates its 30th anniversary this year having been established in 1983 by the father and grandfather of the current owners, Chayuth and Bhisanu Busitarnuntakul. The family owns and manages some of the biggest quarry operations in Saraburi Province, with Sila Sanon being one of 12 qua