Nu-Iron Unlimited Facilities Upgrade
Keeping things on track at a world-class DRI plant.
Location
Pt. Lisas, Trinidad
Beston's Role
Structural Design, Inspections
Beston's Team
Kevin Granger, Lendel Bethelmy, Matthew Maundy, Julien Dalrymple, Ria Westfield-Peters, Jade Brown, Colin Sinarine, Marc Ramdath
Collaborators
Nu-Iron Unlimited
Nu-Iron Unlimited presents a unique challenge for the Beston team. Based in Pt. Lisas, Trinidad, this company produces Direct Reduced Iron (DRI), the main raw material that is processed in the making of steel. Nu-Iron is the largest shipper of cold DRI in the world, and part of the company’s success can be attributed to how invested they are in ensuring that their plant is continuously optimised to keep increasing productivity.
Since 2008, Beston has been working closely with the Nu-Iron team on the adjustments that need to be made at the plant. When, for example, equipment has to be updated or modified, we determine how the new machines work within the existing structures, which are quite unlike the structures we typically deal with in the traditional building sector. This requires an extremely high level of design and analysis to identify the changes a building can safely take.
Sometimes, a solution will call for the elimination of major structural elements, in which case we have to redefine the load path, while maintaining the existing footprint. Beston also designs the systems that need to be put in place to facilitate the changing out of equipment (how it is lifted in, what happens to the old machines), as well as the installation platforms where work can take place out of harm’s way – which is sometimes 300 feet above a furnace.
Twice a year Nu-Iron schedules a shut down of the plant. When that happens, the plant stops producing material and focus shifts, exclusively, to the modification of the plant. This takes months of careful planning; because of the strict time frame, we work 24 hours a day for the duration of each shut down, which usually lasts for roughly a week. At least one Beston team member is stationed on site for the duration of this process, so that any problems can be solved immediately, and everything can be back up and running in good time.
In addition to those larger projects, we are simultaneously working on three or four smaller projects that help keep operations moving efficiently and safely along, so that Nu-Iron can maintain their status as a world-class producer.