Up-to-date Eurosilo technology for sugar storage
ESI introduces the Eurosilo system that future proof sugar production, with conditioned storage and easy maintenance.
Producing white sugar from sugar beets is one of the primary industries in Europe. Consolidation and optimisation of the production facilities are the main strategies for sugar producers. This focus on production has led to less attention for storage. Many outdated and inefficient sugar silos are still in operation. Maintenance issues have become a major concern, while production volumes increased without significant change in storage capacity. ESI introduces the Eurosilo System to provide operational and strategic advantages.
Many sugar storage facilities date back to the 1980s or even the 1960s. Meanwhile, technology has advanced a lot, offering automation and improved efficiency, while original silo manufacturers such as Weibull, ABR, and Spaans, have left the market. This leaves it up to the resourcefulness of technical departments to keep these silos up and running.
Additionally, the regulations for the production environment have become stricter, particularly regarding Health & Safety and CO2 emissions. Forunately, the Eurosilo has a similar working principle as the Weibull systems, only it has evolved to meet todays standards.
Maintaining old silos is one of the main concerns due to the commonly used system with hatches in the silo floor to reclaim the stored sugar. This requires a mobile conveyer belt in the foundation under the silo to move to sometimes over a hundred spots to capture the sugar, falling through the open hatches. Obviously, such a system is liable to defects. The biggest issue however, is silo clean-up using a bottom screw that rests in the stored sugar. The constant pressure of the stored mass often causes the bottom screw to malfunction. Maintenance workers need to enter the silo for repairs as well as to manually remove remaining sugar.
To help you get a better understanding of the Eurosilo system and the possible configurations that meet ATEX and food regulations, while ensuring easy maintenance and controlled conditioning of sugar, we prepared a concise paper with more information. You can download the Sugar Storage Paper through our website at eurosilo.com
One of the growing regions for beet sugar production is Poland. Jacek Kucharski from Ricco International: “There is a huge potential for the Eurosilo system here because the total silo capacity is about 650 thousand to 750 thousand tonnes, whereas the production soared to 2.5 million tonnes per year. A key issue is the lack of technolog to reduce the maintenance efforts and meet all requirements. Investing in automated, large-scale sugar storage provides strategic advantage during price fluctuations of sugar. At the same time, the operational costs decreases significantly. This all leads to a short payback period.”
Building new silos is not necessarily the first step. As Jean-Marie Oheix, director from LS Process in France explains: “The main strategy in France, one of the largest regions for production of sugar, is to upgrade or revamp the existing storage facilities. It is a big advantage that ESI handles Weibull and Spaans silos with conversion, maintenance and upgrade. In case of replacement or expansion, a new Eurosilo guarantees 30 years of hassle free, low maintenance storage.”
Want more information? Just contact ESI Eurosilo in The Netherlands.
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