Urgent Auger Repair

There are several bits of equipment common on every site.  One such is the screw auger.

Shafted, shaftless, tubular, tapered, paddled, short pitched, variable pitched, horizontal, inclined, vertical, fixed at one or both ends, chain driven, belt driven or motor driven (not to mention, gearboxes, soft-starters and VFDs).  The simple “worm” conveyor is essential and is almost always a single point of failure.

PPE:	PERMITS:	MAINTAINED ITEM:
Standard Site + Personal Gas Monitor Welding hand & arm protection Welding helmet Fire resistant clothing	Permit to Work Hot Works (Fire Watch) LOTOTO	450 Stainless steel shafted screw auger, fixed at the base end, with stainless trough (no liner)

We were called to a very old inclined screw auger, set in a sump, in a basement – with no access to lift, remove and replace it.  A hole in the trough had formed (photo bottom left) and material was being pushed through.  Feeding was stopped.

The priority was to restart feed in order to maintain gas production and prevent biological issues.  A temporary repair was considered the best option, meanwhile access and removal options were considered for a longer term solution.  RAMS were quickly issued in digital form – along with the standard works pack – allowing a quick, safe issue of the Permit to Work and Hot Works Permit. 

The area was cleared of material to allow for hot works to take place. The augers had their covers lifted and were then also cleared of material and wetted down to ensure safety during the hot works. With all components electrically isolated, our welders entered the sump and started cutting away the broken steel and preparing a flat surface for the new stainless steel sheets.

The first sheet was tack-welded to hold in position before full welding could take place. With the first sheet fully attached, the process was repeated for the second sheet. The two sheets created a seal to prevent material spilling through the auger trough.

Post-fire watch was conducted for 1 hour, with the 2 auger covers reinstalled and system de-isolated. The feed was restarted and all systems demonstrated to be fully operational through 2 feed cycles.

Happy client.  Back up and running in less than 8 hours.  Well done ADAM.