TBA 3000 – Retrofit increases flexibility

TBA 3000 – Retrofit increases flexibility

Innovative asphalt production since 1911

An expansion to the cold feed unit increases the flexibility of an existing TBA 3000, which achieves especially environmentally friendly operation thanks to asphalt recycling and solar power.

Based in Weilmünster in Hesse’s Taunus region, Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG is a pioneer when it comes to sustainability. Formed in 1911, this road construction company has included recycled asphalt as part of its asphalt production for many years now. The company also uses several emission-free and autonomous photovoltaic systems to heat its bitumen tanks.

To increase flexibility in asphalt production in the future with its existing Benninghoven asphalt mixing plant TBA 3000, Schäfer recently invested in a Retrofit project. Thanks to the extension of the cold feed unit for virgin mineral, manufacturing multiple asphalt recipes in quick succession is now considerably easier. This saves time and improves efficiency.

For greater flexibility in asphalt production: the TBA 3000 in Weilmünster has been expanded by two cold feed hoppers.

Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG is a midsize building contractor with a long and successful history. Formed in 1911, Schäfer now employs a workforce of around 120 people. For a long time now, the company has operated an asphalt mixing plant in Weilmünster, situated in Hesse’s Taunus region, which is a key supplier to road construction projects in a radius of some 100 km around the site.

The firm’s partnership with Benninghoven started back in 1974 with a Retrofit project that added a Benninghoven burner to the asphalt mixing plant the company operated at the time. This was followed by an investment in an Benninghoven asphalt mixing plant of the TBA 3000, type, which has since produced the asphalt for both the company’s installation teams and external sales. Schäfer’s installation crews process up to 80% of the asphalt produced themselves – specifically using Vögele road pavers. The company’s machine pool also includes Wirtgen cold milling machines, which are used for renovation projects and the harvesting of recyclable material.

Tolles Produkt

Retrofit implements two additional cold feed hoppers

Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG recently commissioned a Retrofit project from Benninghoven. Effective immediately, two additional cold feed hoppers, which accept the minerals used in the asphalt, now extend the flexibility of the company’s TBA 3000. “This lets our asphalt mixing plant handle a wide variety of recipes over a short space of time,” says the experienced mixing supervisor Dietmar Leinhardt. “In the past, we were faced with the job of running the hopper with mineral grain ≤32 mm empty of an evening, so as to stay flexible the following morning.”

While a total of six cold feed hoppers would have been enough – one additional hopper instead of two – “we ultimately decided on seven overall, to ensure we never run into a bottleneck here.”

The Retrofit project was planned and implemented by the experts at the Benninghoven Technical Office. “Our work together ran like clockwork from the outset. From on-site consultation work to implementation and commissioning, the Benninghoven team really did a great job,” Leinhardt reports, approvingly. The challenging mechanical and electrical integration with the overall plant was also completed to the full satisfaction of Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG.

“Our TBA 3000 lets us manufacture asphalt with up to 40% recycled material. And we make the most of this opportunity.”

Falco Schäfer, CEO, Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG

Tolles Produkt

“When you work together for as long as we have, that really establishes a basis of trust. Our partnership with Benninghoven has been a success factor for our business for decades.”

Falco Schäfer, CEO, Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG

A long-established partnership with Benninghoven

“When you work together for as long as we have, that really establishes a basis of trust,” says Falco Schäfer, CEO of Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG. “Our partnership with Benninghoven has been a success factor for our business for decades.” The partnership was started by his grandfather and former company CEO, Hermann Schäfer.

As a company, Schäfer has long been involved with asphalt recycling: “For many years, we’ve looked to keep our business practices as sustainable and eco-friendly as possible,” Schäfer comments. The Benninghoven asphalt mixing plant lies at the heart of this resource-friendly strategy: “Our TBA 3000 lets us manufacture asphalt with up to 40 % recycled material. And we make the most of this opportunity.” This is all made possible by the cold recycling multi-variable feed system from Benninghoven, which uses gentle, batched feeding to supply the mixer with reclaimed asphalt. This avoids hydraulic shocks, and therefore wear on the mixer and the plant itself.

TBA 3000 – Retrofit increases flexibility

A long-standing partnership: Both companies have developed considerably since Schäfer placed its first order with Benninghoven – for a burner – in 1974. But their successful working relationship has stayed the same.

Current Retrofit project: two new cold feed hoppers increase flexibility at Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG.

Current Retrofit project: two new cold feed hoppers increase flexibility at Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG.

The workplace for mixing supervisor Dietmar Lehnhardt since 2013: the command cab of the TBA 3000.

TBA 3000 – Retrofit increases flexibility
TBA 3000 – Retrofit increases flexibility
TBA 3000 – Retrofit increases flexibility

Photovoltaic system also helps to protect the environment

Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG has also taken a number of other steps to fulfil its strategy of keeping its business “green”. One especially environmentally friendly and sustainable step was to install several rooftop photovoltaic systems to power the production of bituminous mixtures with the TBA 3000. These systems supply solar power and reduce the company’s long-term carbon footprint.

Schäfer uses all of the free power they produce to supply its asphalt mixing plant with renewable energy. As a result, bitumen tank heating is largely autonomous.

Zero emissions and autonomous: several rooftop photovoltaic systems at Schäfer supply the asphalt mixing plant with electrical power.

Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG

Formed in 1911, Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG is a building contractor in the Taunus region with a long and successful history. At its site in Weilmünster, Schäfer produces bituminous mixtures that are mostly used by its own installation crews for road-building projects in the region. Falco Schäfer is now the fifth member of the Schäfer clan to take the helm at the family-run business.

Alongside the production and processing of asphalt, the company also handles earthworks as well as water conduit and sewer construction. The company also offers plot restoration and development services for the property industry. Last but not least, Hermann Schäfer GmbH & Co. KG is also active in a segment with a secure future: infrastructure construction for wind turbine systems throughout Germany.