Start of production at the Gral plant
in Filo d’Argenta

»1 Process diagram of the preparation and extrusion plant

»2 General layout of the plant

»3 Händle pan mill

»4 Double-shaft filter mixer

»5 Extruder with 700 mm auger

»6 View of a die

»7 Die outlet bench with production of
9 cm x 25 cm partition blocks

»8 Loading plant for the wet shaped products

»9 Air distribution ducts on the roof of the dryer

»10 View of the dryer

»11 Comparison of energy consumption for drying with three different temperature conditions

»12 The packs on the kiln car are set by means of a 12-head gripper

»13 A car laden with dry material waiting to enter the pre-kiln

»14 Pneumatic sealing systems on the kiln cars

»15 Burner system on the vault of the kiln

»16 Internal structure of the kiln car

The new Gral plant in Filo d’Argenta is one of the largest Italian manufacturing units working with only one production line. The D’Agostino family and Unieco had commissioned the Sacmi Group, Imola, to carry out the construction of the plant which has meanwhile gone into production. This report describes the innovative aspects of the project regarding the dryer, as well as the new dry purification and recuperation system for fumes, which will contribute considerably to reducing the consumption of thermal energy.

1 Introduction

The new plant of the Gruppo Ravennate Laterizi (Gral) was built jointly by the Divisione Laterizi di Unieco – an influential industrial group founded in 1904 and organized as a cooperative – and by IBL – a long-established company with factories in Cotignola (Ravenna) and Bentivoglio (Bologna) belonging to the Gruppo Dafin, run by the D’Agostino family. The design and construction of the complete production plant was entrusted to the Heavy Clay Business Unit at Sacmi.

The plant, which uses the sector’s most advanced technologies, is one of the most important investments made...