Webb Bulk Conveyors Help Keep The Lights On In Grand Haven

By Author: John Penn
Total Articles: 24
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The Grand Haven Municipal Power plant in Grand Haven, Michigan, generates power for a large area on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan. Like all coal burning power plants, the Grand Haven station requires large quantities of coal and maintains a stock of 50 to 60,000 tons.

Content: The Grand Haven Municipal Power plant in Grand Haven, Michigan, generates power for a large area on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan. Like all coal burning power plants, the Grand Haven station requires large quantities of coal and maintains a stock of 50 to 60,000 tons.

The Jervis B. Webb Company engineered, manufactured and installed a series of belt conveyors to move coal from the dockside stockyard to the bunkers in the station. Efficient and definitely serving their purpose, these belt conveyors have clearly shown why this company is the best when it comes to coal handling.

Coal arrives by lake freighter in shipments of approximately 10,000 tons. Each freighter is equipped with its own unloading equipment and evenly distributes coal at various piles throughout the yard.
In the stockyard, coal is pushed into ...
... a reclaiming hopper by a bulldozer. The coal is then discharged from the reclaiming hopper onto an inclined belt conveyor. The inclined belt conveyor transports coal to the crusher house where it will be crushed into a more uniform size. In the crusher house, tramp iron particles are separated from the coal by means of magnetic separation.

After crushing, the coal is carried to the top of the station on a 24-inch belt conveyor. At the top of the station, the coal is deposited onto another belt conveyor and dropped into either of two 300-ton cylindrical bunkers.

Chutes carry coal from the bunkers, through individual automatic coal weigh scales to the feeders on the spreader stokers. The stokers use a paddle wheel action to throw coal into the boiler furnaces over a traveling gate.

Some of the fuel is burned in suspension. The remaining larger pieces are burned on the grate. The ashes automatically drop into the ash bunkers located below the boilers.
The Grand Haven Municipal Power plant was designed not only to meet the requirements of today, but the power requirements of the future as well. Webb's bulk handling system will allow the station to meet those future requirements.
Coal handling is something we take extremely serious, our belt conveyors being designed to fit the needs of a very complex industry. Durable and reliable, our bulk handling system have eased the jobs of many people and contributed to making this industry more efficient!