Mobile Unloader - France

Advanced alumina ship unloading delivers wide-ranging benefits

Trimet France needed a new ship unloading solution for its alumina-handling facility in Marseille, France. After leasing an older model, Trimet decided to order its own Siwertell next-generation road-mobile unloader. It is now operational, exceeding capacity expectations and its remote control and digital capabilities are also proving beneficial.

Customer need 

Trimet France, part of Germany-headquartered, Trimet Aluminum SE, is one of the largest aluminum producers in Germany and France. At the company’s busy alumina import facilities in Marseille, France, vessels, predominantly from Greece and Ireland, are received; the largest stands at around 14,000gt and the smallest close to 6,000gt. 

Shipments of alumina are discharged, via a pipe system, to silos, which are situated on the quay. From here, alumina is loaded onto rail wagons, destined for a long-established aluminum-producing factory in Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, south-east France.

Trimet needed to replace an older pneumatic system that was no longer operational and turned to alternative ship unloading technology for handling its alumina imports.

One of the company’s biggest challenges was to reduce the time that a vessel stays at the berth. The faster vessels can be turned around the higher the utilization rate of the jetty, delivering better profitability for the terminal. With an expected alumina intake of around 50,000 metric tons into the port in 2022, the majority had to be handled by any new system.

The ship unloader also had to meet very strict environmental regulations relating to dust, noise and exhaust emissions. 

Our solution

Initially, the company undertook a 20-month lease of an older Siwertell 10 000 S unloader from another Bruks Siwertell customer. Following this, it ordered its own Siwertell 10 000 S next-generation road-mobile unloader.

The new unloader is an electric-drive version, eliminating exhaust emissions and offering quiet, extremely efficient, dust-free alumina handling with minimal material degradation and very low energy consumption. 

It also features advanced digital technology including remote control and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) device, Compulab, which enables extensive monitoring, follow-up service support and troubleshooting through safe, remote access. 

Since becoming operational, Trimet France highlights that the remote control is particularly useful. Operators are able to see precisely if the unloading is efficient, so even higher discharge capacities, of around 150t/h, are being reached. This is exceeding expectations. Furthermore, the mobility of the equipment’s conveying arm allows Trimet to operate everywhere in the holds and helps to achieve faster vessel turnarounds.

The Siwertell 10 000 S next-generation road-mobile unloader has a design rated capacity of 130t/h, discharging vessels up to 10,000 dwt. Its connecting chute is cone shaped and designed to meet a range of sizes of receiving equipment openings. Additionally, the road-mobile ship unloader can be folded down and relocated in under an hour; something that Trimet is planning to trial.