Heyl & Patterson Blog

Even in today's "paperless" world, there continues to be a huge demand for paper.  Paper is made from wood pulp, which is also used to manufacture a wide variety of products from diapers to particle board to textiles. The pulp itself is the cellulose, lignin and hemicellulose components of wood fibers, which are separated from one another through steaming, cooking or mechanical grinding processes.  Most pulp is made from a mixture of sawmill residue, logs, wood chips and recycled paper, and it is interesting to note that practically all of the fibers that end up as pulp originally existed as trees.

Man has been mining stone, metals and minerals since prehistoric times.  The world's oldest known mine site is located in Swaziland in Africa, where the first mining of metals was recorded via carbon dating as 43,000 BC.  Mining of metallic minerals occurred in ancient Egypt, Greece and the Roman Empire, and metals such as iron ore contributed to the industrial growth of Europe during the Middle Ages.  Iron is the fourth most abundant mineral in the Earth's crust, at about five percent, and it also represents 95 percent of all metal used in any given year.

Railways have existed in India since 1853, and several organizations have enforced standardization among the various railway systems over time.  Since 1957, the Research Designs and Standards Organization (RDSO) has been the sole authority operating under the India Ministry of Railways.  The latest rule to standardize Indian railways is the RDSO's G-33 Rev 1 Requirements.  The "G-33" part of the title represents a mix of new and existing rules that are specific to Wagon Tipplers along the railroads.

Bulk cargo is a commodity that is transported unpackaged in large quantities.  The main purpose of bulk material handling systems is to transfer the material as quickly and cleanly as possible as it is moved from one place to another.  Loading and transporting are just two stages in the process of transferring bulk materials from the producer to the consumer.  When transporting by rail, they must be unloaded from railroad cars, which is usually done with rotary dumpers or turnover dumpers, which discharge loads parallel to the rails.

Heyl & Patterson manufactures Rota-Side Wagon Tipplers and side arm chargers for the Indian market through an exclusive relationship with FLSmidth India.  While some tippler manufacturers are capable of offering either Turnover Wagon Tipplers or C-Frame Rotary Tipplers, Heyl & Patterson offers both models.  Either style can be installed at a customer's site, depending on the site conditions, and both tippler designs comply with the latest RDSO specifications, G33 Rev 1.

Rotary Railcar Dumpers, also known as Wagon Tipplers in some parts of the world, are the primary mechanisms used for unloading open-top railroad cars.  A dumper holds a railcar to a section of track and rotates the track and car together in order to spill the car's contents.  Together with bottom discharge railcars, the rotary dumper is one of only two accepted methods for unloading these types of railcars.

Heyl & Patterson's Dumper User Group Conference is now available online via LinkedIn social media.  Linkedin is a business-oriented social networking website that connects people with their trusted contacts and helps users exchange knowledge, ideas and opportunities with a broad network of professionals.  This functionality makes Linkedin a great way for Heyl & Patterson to keep in continuous communication with railcar dumper users.