That's the opinion of 64 percent of Americans interviewed for the 2007 Saint Index survey of attitudes toward real-estate development. To put that in startling perspective, 65 percent said they would oppose a nuclear power plant in their hometown. Only landfills and casinos -- both with 76 percent opposition -- are more opposed. Read More.

On The Web
Got a Technical Question?
HELP IS ON THE WAY! Currently Featured: Chuck Hendrickson, Product Engineering Manager, Columbia Steel Casting Company.

Chuck Hendrickson has been a crusher wear parts engineer and product manager for Columbia Steel Casting Company for 39 years. His background includes a wide variety of jaw, gyratory, cone and roll crusher makes and models, as well as their specific industry applications and equipment conditions. He applies his extensive experience to developing wear parts in direct response to user requirements. When his customer has a problem with a crusher, "We do what we can to fix it," says Chuck, "then apply that experience and knowledge to solutions for others with similar needs." Ask Chuck your technical questions regarding crusher wear parts. Pose your question today on our Home Page.

Calendar
Upcoming Events
21st Annual Best in the West Drill and Blast Conference
April 16-18
Casper, Wyo.
Contact: Ron Eastman
Telephone: (307) 687-3352


Coal Prep 2008
April 28-May 1
Lexington, Ky.
Contact: Sam Posa
Telephone: (800) 525-9154
E-mail: sposa@coalprepshow.com
Web: www.coalprepshow.com

IMA-NA 2008 Spring Meeting
April 30-May 2
Washington, D.C.
Telephone: (202) 457-0200
Web: www.ima-na.org

New Products
Cat Equipment Tracking
Caterpillar is now equipping most of its new core, mining and industrial machines with EquipmentManager/Product Link, a remote asset management solution. It will be a standard feature in U.S. and Canadian markets; since 1998, it has been optional. Caterpillar will phase in EquipmentManager/Product Link beginning with wheeled hydraulic excavators and articulated trucks. The remaining machines will be phased in throughout 2008, arriving to dealers and customers with Product Link as standard equipment, along with a three-year subscription to Asset Watch, the remote asset management portion of EquipmentManager.

EquipmentManager/Product Link is a system that provides full-depth asset management, maintenance and health information for fleet management. It is a secure, Web-based application that uses key indicators from equipment such as hours, location and diagnostic codes. Combined with powerful tools such as mapping, maintenance scheduling and troubleshooting instructions, EquipmentManager quickly sorts through machine data to identify events that need attention.

Using satellite technology, Product Link is the hardware that enables information flow between on-board systems and the Web-based application, EquipmentManager. The remote management system provides machine location and hours as well as time and geo-fencing capabilities. Caterpillar

Extec S6 Double Screen
The S-6 includes the high-capacity hopper and spreader designs used on Extec's S-5 and S-4 Doublescreens, but also offers a screening area with two individual 10- x 5-foot screen boxes, each with a drive and each independently angled. The screen box arrangement, according to Extec, presents a massive screening area yet allows for a very clean product and the patented screen box lift mechanism eases mesh change. Longer, chevron-belted side conveyors feed directly into a cone crusher and/or stockpile. Faster running belts facilitate high rates of production. A new, stronger chassis design offers longer life in tough ground conditions, and longer tracks provide a stable screening platform. Extec

Milltronics' BW500
Milltronics' latest product is the BW500, a full featured integrator for use with both belt scales and weighfeeders.

The BW500 operates with any belt scale with up to four load cells. It processes belt load and speed signals for accurate flow rate and totalized weight of bulk solids. According to the company, it can handle lower-level control functions traditionally handled by other devices, and it supports popular industrial communication buses. A load-cell balance function eliminates matching of load cells.

The unit's PID function can be used for rate control on shearing weighfeeders--where belt loading is constant -- and can also control pre-feeding devices. Operating in tandem with two or more weighfeeders, the BW500 may be used for ratio blending and controlling additives. Batching, loadout and alarm functions also are provided. Siemens

Pilot Crushtec VSI Crusher
Pilot Crushtec introduced its tracked VSI unit, called the TwisterTrac, to the U.S. The TwisterTrac, manufactured in Boksburg, Gauteng, South Africa, debuted at the 2007 Associated Equipment Distributors convention in Las Vegas earlier this year. The unit comprises a variable-speed belt feeder, a Twister VS-AC VSI crusher, a discharge conveyor and a diesel hydraulic power pack, all mounted on a heavy-duty track undercarriage, with dual-speed configuration and 25-degree-incline gradability. According to the manufacturer, a major feature of the TwisterTrac is that the entire machine is controlled via a PLC, which automates all the crusher's features and facilitates ongoing monitoring of all aspects of its operation. Pilot Crushtec

ROCK Bits
Global Demand for Aggregate to Grow
Global demand for construction aggregates is expected to grow 4.7 percent annually through 2011 to 26.8 billion metric tons, valued at $201 billion. These and other trends are presented in "World Construction Aggregates," a study released by The Freedonia Group Inc., a Cleveland-based market-research firm. Some of the strongest sales increases will be registered in India, already one of the largest national markets, as well as in China. Smaller markets such as Indonesia, Thailand, Iran and developing countries in Asia also will record strong gains, spurred by industrialization and continued growth in infrastructure construction. Growing environmental and land-use concerns will spur above-average sales gains for aggregates composed of recycled materials such as crushed hydraulic and asphaltic concrete and waste materials such as fly ash and blast-furnace slag. Read More.

Lafarge Acquires Orascom Cement
Lafarge, a world leader in building materials, has acquired Orascom Cement, the leading cement group in the Middle East and Mediterranean Basin, in a transaction valued at $12.8 billion. Orascom Cement reportedly operates 10 facilities, with a production capacity of 35 million tons. Several plants also are under construction, which will bring total capacity to 45 million tons by 2010. According to Lafarge, Orascom is a market leader in Egypt, Algeria, United Arab Emirates and Iraq, with strategic positioning in other growth markets in the same region: Saudi Arabia, Syria and Turkey. It also is well positioned in high-potential markets in Africa and Asia, which include South Africa, Nigeria, Pakistan and North Korea. Read More.

MSHA Approves Wireless Tracking Device
The U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration has issued its first official approval of a wireless-tracking system for underground mines. The approval was issued by MSHA's Approval and Certification Center to Venture Design Services Inc. for the MineTracer Miner Location Monitoring System.

"Since the Sago Mine disaster, MSHA has received dozens of proposals from manufacturers and distributors of emergency communication and tracking systems," said Richard E. Stickler, acting assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health. "This approved system provides a wireless means for mine operators to track miners underground both before and after an emergency event." Read More

Copyright 2007, Penton Media. All rights reserved. This article is protected by United States copyright and other intellectual property laws and may not be reproduced, rewritten, distributed, re-disseminated, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast, directly or indirectly, in any medium without prior written permission of Penton Media.