Overhaul kit for bunkers at Schaap Biddinghuizen
The Schaap Holland company (Biddinghuizen) asked DT Dijkstra if it would be possible to overhaul their bunkers.
Schaap Holland has a total bunker capacity of 1,500 tons.
The bunkers had been sourced from various suppliers over the years and were showing severe wear in various places due to prolonged and intensive use. Following an inspection and consultation with the customer, it also became clear that the bunkers no longer met the prevailing requirements or food safety and product handling; among other things, the steel walls and pressure-hoods were causing blue spot (internal bruising).
Schaap Holland therefore decided to have their bunkers thoroughly overhauled and upgraded to conform with current and future standards .
Completely worn out through abrasion
In practice we frequently see bunkers in which certain parts have been completely worn out through abrasion; usually the base panels and pressurehoods.
But the affected surfaces represent only a small part of the total bunker construction, and replacement of the entire construction would be a costly operation.
Bunkers are also often integrated, forming part of a comprehensive installation.
Optimal protection
To solve this problem, custom-made bottom panels with pressure-hoods have been developed.
These are assembled in production, pre-mounted and then installed in the bunker as easily manageable modules.
The panels are made from stainless steel, and include a soft landing layer consisting of 4 cm soft foam covered with a 3.5 mm semisolid rubber coating.
This protective layer continues right through to the lateral panels of the bunker discharge conveyor to ensure optimum protection of the product and, depending on customer requirements and the bunker filling system, the pressure-hoods are also either partially or fully fitted with soft landing.
The seams are fully finished to avoid contamination and to prevent the development of blockages.
Bunker overhaul kit
Schaap Holland in Biddinghuizen are particularly pleased with the result. ‘Many of our bunkers were worn and rusted, especially the bottom panels, which is why they no longer met current requirements. In addition, the obsolete construction was causing internal blue bruising of the product’, says Henk van Raalte, Technology & Maintenance Manager at Schaap Holland.
‘Over the past few months, DT Dijkstra, together with Schaap Holland, have explored a potentially viable, effective and financially acceptable solution for overhaul and improvement (avoidance of blue bruising) of the bunkers, and the DT Dijkstra bunker overhaul kit has been created. And that’s not all.
DT Dijkstra can supply these panels for any type and make of bunker. An overhaul of various bunkers has therefore been planned for the oncoming months’.
If you would like to know more about the bunker overhaul kit, please contact the DT Dijkstra Sales department.
