UK: Ribblesdale plant begins GBP25m upgrade project

Hanson is implementing a seven-year project at Ribblesdale cement works in Clitheroe, Lancashire, to improve production efficiency and emissions. In the first six months of the GBP25m project, GBP11m is being spent on improvements and maintenance to enable the plant to meet and exceed new dust emission regulations.

This project represents the plant's biggest capital investment programme since the 1990s and includes a GBP2m replacement of the dust filters on two cement grinding units.

Plant manager, Terry Reynolds, said: "The permitted dust level is being reduced by 66 per cent in April, from 30mg/m2 to 10mg/m2 – the new grinding plants will perform much better than this, running well below the new maximum after the installation."

At GBP6.5m, the replacement of the wet gas scrubber – the house-sized unit that removes sulphur and odour from kiln gases – is the largest investment.

While the three-month scrubber installation starts in March, 75m of ducting has already been replaced as part of a five-year improvement plan for the site’s exhaust gas handling system.

Environment Manager, Nick Sharpe, said: "The ducts dated back to the 1980s so needed to be replaced. They range in in size from three to five metres in diameter and the new lengths prevent fugitive emissions leaks and improve overall efficiency since cold air is not sucked into the process, so there’s a double benefit."