Benninghoven Recycling Priority Asphalt Plant champions Green Technology
A double première in the Swiss Confederation: September 2022 saw the start of production at Switzerland’s first Benninghoven Recycling Priority Plant (RPP) – but this was not the only première. The new plant not far from Geneva was also the first of its kind in the country to be equipped with hot gas generator technology. Above all, the RPP 3000 Plus impressed new customer SAPA with its high RAP feed rates, low emission values and clearly defined quality standards.
The SOCIÉTÉ ANONYME DE PRODUITS ASPHALTIQUES, in short SAPA, is a subsidiary of Implenia, Switzerland’s biggest construction and construction services company, and a valued customer of the Wirtgen Group. SAPA supplies asphalt mixes of all kinds not only to its parent company, but also to other customers, mainly for use in smaller and medium-scale road construction projects.
The Swiss take sustainability and energy-efficiency very seriously. In view of this, the company planned the replacement of the old facilities at its headquarters in Satigny, not far from Geneva, with a new, next-generation asphalt mixing plant.
High-tech from Benninghoven enjoys an excellent reputation in Switzerland
Benninghoven plants set benchmark standards in terms of technology and, in view of increasingly tighter environmental regulations and increasing demands on asphalt mixing plant operators to realise higher RAP feed rates, are also a cost-efficient and sustainable alternative. In 2019 alone, three plants of different types were sold to customers in Switzerland.
Until recently, our company had had no direct dealings with SAPA, so we were particularly pleased to receive the request for information from Geneva in November 2019. After initial discussions and a tour of the manufacturing facilities at the state-of-the-art Benninghoven factory in Wittlich, the customer’s needs and specific requirements became clear, and we were able to define the size and type of plant that would fulfil them.
Benninghoven in Switzerland – a story of success
Benninghoven has been an active player on the Swiss market for 40 years. With the takeover of Benninghoven by the Wirtgen Group in 2014, Swiss dealer Gurtner Baumaschinen became the local representative.
Working with Gurtner enabled us to offer a perfect symbiosis of a local service infrastructure, fast availability of service technicians and spare parts and the latest recycling technologies from Benninghoven. The results of this collaboration are quite impressive: Since its market début in 2019, Benninghoven has become established as the leading supplier of new asphalt mixing plants to the Swiss market.
The RPP 3000 Plus HG Is the ideal choice
It soon became clear that a RPP 3000 Plus with hot gas generator technology would be the ideal solution for SAPA’s needs. In September 2020, we were able to offer the customer a plant of the required size with an end of service life horizon of 30 years. The concept was convincing – but not only that. The customer was also seriously impressed byBenninghoven’s high commitment to quality, working methods, clean production processes and fast service.
The initial contact to Benninghoven was arranged by Jonas Jaggi (right), Head of Customer Support at Gurtner Baumaschinen.
Gurtner Baumaschinen has been a respected partner on the Swiss market for construction equipment for 60 years and is the authorised representative for the Wirtgen, Vögele, Hamm, Kleemann and Benninghoven brands in Switzerland.
As soon as the decision was made, progress began at a rapid pace. The entire process, from the start of construction of the plant in March 2022 to its commissioning in September 2022, took only six months.
Good reasons for choosing the RPP 3000 Plus HG
On average, asphalt mixing plants in Switzerland produce 60,000–80,000 t of material per year – up to 40,000 t less than is typically produced in other countries. Nevertheless, Swiss regulations with regard to recycling, sustainability, conservation of resources and carbon emissions are just as strict as in the rest of Europe. Asphalt mixing plants must produce qualitatively flawless mix with minimal environmental impact and set a tight focus on the recycling and reuse of material – regardless of the volumes produced. The RPP 3000 Plus HG perfectly fulfils these requirements.
The RPP also offers high RAP feed rates in the production of smaller batches
A minimum RAP feed rate in excess of 60 % was one of the highest priorities for SAPA. A figure that the RPP 3000 Plus can easily top, as RAP feed rates of up to 100 % are no problem at all for an RPP-type asphalt mixing plant with hot gas generator technology.
Green technology assures compliance with all legal requirements
The significant reduction of carbon and VOC emissions from the new plant was to be achieved through the high RAP feed rate, the fuels employed and the use of hot gas generator technology. Another important factor for the new operators was full compliance with the legal requirements of the new Swiss CO₂ Act and all stipulations of the stringent Ordinance on Air Pollution Control (OAPC). The recycling drum with a hot gas generator enables compliance not only with currently applicable threshold values, but also with those of potentially even more stringent future legal requirements.
The Revised CO₂ Act and the new Ordinance on Air Pollution Control (OAPC) in Switzerland
Switzerland’s target for 2030 is a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by one-half. In order to achieve this target, the new CO₂ Act focuses on investments in climate protection and advanced technologies and the combination of these measures with financial incentives.
In addition to strict compliance with emission thresholds for asphalt mixing plants, the new Ordinance on Air Pollution Control (OAPC) also prescribes constructional and operational requirements such as e.g. continuous temperature monitoring of mineral aggregates and asphalt granulates in the recycling drum.
Source: www.asphaltsuisse.ch
Greater Cost-Efficiency through High Plant Performance
That the customer naturally also expected a plant that achieves high productivity and cost-efficient asphalt production – and that under consideration of highest quality standards –goes without saying. The RPP 3000 Plus perfectly fulfilled all these expectations.
The new plant fulfilled the customer’s expectations in every respect and went into production in September 2022 after a set up time of only 6 months: despite the corona pandemic, despite strict regulation of working hours and despite difficulties in the logistics chain due to traffic infrastructure problems in Germany.
More highlights of the plant
- 4 t mixer
- The design and construction of the drying line for white mineral for a capacity of 240 t/h enables higher productivity
- Three hoppers are ideal prerequisites for the production of future RAP mix recipes. All three are usable for hot recycling, two of them optionally for cold recycling.
- Feed systems for hot and cold recycling
