Der 800-t-Puffer.

In 2017, Luxembourg-based construction company Julien Cajot S.e.c.s. invested a huge sum in the expansion of their BENNINGHOVEN mixing plant in Leudelange, close to the capital. One of the key elements of the project was the construction of a large long-term storage silo with a capacity of 800 t of asphaltic mixture that can hold up to eight different types of asphalt. It was supplemented by an entirely new cold feed unit comprising 12 covered hoppers, each holding around 5,000 t of aggregate and an underfloor extractor that transfers the material to the mixing plant. For both subprojects, Cajot relied on the expertise and support of BENNINGHOVEN.

Cajot has operated a BENNINGHOVEN mixing plant of type BA 3000 with a mixing capacity of up to 240 t/h in Leudelange since 2005. At this location, the company produces asphalt for roads of all sizes, car parks, industrial sites, private premises and airports. The plant previously had one silo with a storage capacity of 300 t of asphaltic mixture. That was no longer sufficient for Cajot because “it’s not uncommon for us to receive orders for volumes of 3,000 –4,000 t per day. The new silo now gives us a larger buffer for supplying 400 t per hour all day long,” explains Marco Claus, Managing Director. To ensure that its 15-strong team could produce and supply the various mixtures economically, Cajot had the mixed material loading silo designed and built by BENNINGHOVEN. Although no project of this type had ever been implemented on this scale, it did not faze either Cajot or BENNINGHOVEN. Cajot can now produce mixture in advance and store it in the eight bins each with a capacity of 100 t from which four trucks can be loaded simultaneously. “That gives us greater latitude at the planning stage and ensures greater process reliability for large construction projects,” says Achim Keller, Sales Manager from the sales and service company of the WIRTGEN GROUP in Windhagen, Germany, pinpointing two key benefits.

Despite its unprecedented scale, the project was realized at an impressive speed: BENNINGHOVEN delivered the first components to Leudelange just six months after signing the contract. The completion date more or less developed naturally since the construction industry in Luxembourg has a fixed holiday period: four weeks in the summer when nothing is built anywhere in the country and no asphalt is produced either. “Everyone had this period and hence the completion date in mind at all times,” explains Marco Claus, adding: “Our team and the people at BENNINGHOVEN all played their part in completing the installation and commissioning work on schedule. It meant the plant was ready to use on time. And not only that: the professional work carried out by BENNINGHOVEN ensured that there were no real problems during planning, construction and assembly.” He is also delighted that “everyone involved pulled together. That was essential because a project of this magnitude can only be successful if people cooperate and everyone shows a little bit of flexibility.”