Abbema selects crushing plant with low decibel level for improved working environment

Metso delivered quickly

Abbema first contacted Metso three years ago when the company purchased a Lokotrack® LT105 mobile jaw crusher from Metso. “Skanska wanted to do a crushing assignment. Our tender was accepted and we got the contract, so we quickly needed to find a suitable mobile crusher,” says Benth Winqvist. “Micael Larsson at Metso helped organize immediate delivery, which meant we could complete the assignment we had committed to perform” he continues. This is how Abbema got underway with its crushing business, in addition to its other contracting services.

Healthy environment a core issue

Crushing assignments increased in 2016, and a new crushing plant needed to be purchased. The new  Lokotrack® Urban LT106™  had recently been introduced to the market, and satisfied Abbema’s specific requirements for a new crusher.

The crusher offers large crushing capacity, low noise level and good dust control, which ensures minimal dust particle dispersion. One key feature of the Lokotrack Urban, is that it has an advanced dust suppression system. The dust is funneled to stay inside the mobile crushing plant, and a high-pressure water spraying system absorbs dust particles from the air.

“It was not only on behalf of the nearby buildings and their inhabitants that I found these machine characteristics to be of interest. I also want my employees to work in a healthy environment,” says Benth.

With a strong interest in environmental issues, Benth also performed measurements on his own, and compared a machine offered by a competitor with Metso’s Lokotrack Urban. There was a significant difference of 6 dB which – in theory means doubling the distance at certain sound pressure limit.

Abbema also signed a Life Cycle Services (LCS) agreement with Metso in conjunction with the purchase, to ensure the maintenance and performance of the equipment. The LCS contract comprises wear parts, spare part kits and comprehensive inspections every one thousand hours. Abbema also decided to install Metso Metrics Services, Metso’s cloud based monitoring and reporting solution for mobile crushers, to receive timely data on machine performance and ensure full control over operations.

Noise level impacted by many factors

Safeguarding the environment is more important than ever before. SBMI, Swedish Aggregates Producers Association, has already demonstrated its interest by making a video about Metso’s Lokotrack Urban. The video is available on Abbema’s website. A sequence from the video showing the urban-friendly mobile crushing plant was shown at SBMI’s trade association meeting last spring, and Micael Larsson, a salesperson at Metso, says that after the SBMI meeting, he received several calls from customers who are interested in receiving more information about the crusher.

Crushing operations and their noise levels are naturally regulated. “Each municipality handles its own environmental permits, and the administrators here in Mjölby and Västervik, where our Lokotrack Urban has been in operation, have been very positive,” says Benth. “There are different rules for different times of the day as well as for the distance of the noise, but I am familiar with environmental permits and the related problems since I specifically worked with noise issues for so many years,” continues Benth.

From health and safety perspective, ear protection is generally required from 85 decibels. With Lokotrack Urban, the protection distance drops by up to 60%, from 23–25 meters to 9–11 meters. It is important to remember, however, that process noise is highly dependent on process parameters such as feed material, feed size, crusher setting and ambient temperature. Actual values may vary depending on operation conditions and other equipment used on the site.

Ad hoc jobs and plans for secondary crushing plant

“We have chosen to work on an ad hoc basis, which means we take contracting jobs that arise. Short notice works well for us. Rock materials and end products vary depending on the client. Consequently, having a mobile plant is a necessity, and it is a major advantage if we can crush rock in densely populated areas,” Benth explains.

“If everything goes according to plan, the next machine from Metso will be a secondary crushing plant. The model of greatest interest right now is Lokotrack LT220D, but it will also have to maintain a low noise level,” says Benth decisively. “Metso offers many solutions for noise level control during crushing; using rubber lining on the side conveyors and conveyor belts is just one example,” says Micael Larsson.

Abbema – a growing family-run business

Abbema is purely a family-run business with 16 employees. Sales are over EUR 3 million a year, and 900,000 metric tons of rock are crushed a year on contract. The company has been in operation since 2005 and it has 30 machine units in its fleet, including excavators, loaders, crushing plants, sorting plants and trucks.

Abbema’s field of activity includes southern Sweden as a whole, from Stockholm and southwards. The jobs they accept comprise either pure crushing work on contract or machinery leasing, with or without an operator. One important issue for Abbema is to ensure that its employees, who are spread out over a large area, are happy and feel a sense of fellowship with one another. “There is a shortage of workers in the industry, but people are actually standing in line to work for us, which is extremely gratifying,” says Benth.