Tarlton was selected as General Contractor to complete design-build services for a multimillion-dollar railcar unloading and material handling system for the Prairie State Generating Company. The system was designed to process 4.6 million tons of coal combustion waste (CCW) annually over a 40-year life.
Tarlton contracted with EDEC Inc. and Wolf Material Handling to provide the client with a complete design for the hoppers, feeders, chutes, belt cleaners, loading points, belts, drivers, incline conveyor, radial stacker, excavation, de-watering, foundations, rotary dumper enclosure and controls for an operational railcar unloading and material handling system.
The system was designed to handle coal combustion waste materials transported from the Prairie State campus by unit trains consisting of 110 railcars. Material would be unloaded into a rotary railcar dumper and then passed through a feeder system onto an incline conveyor. The incline conveyor feeds a radial stacker that discharges the coal combustion waste through a telescopic chute.
The Tarlton team was responsible for all construction activities, including soldier pile and lagging shoring, concrete placement for the rotary dumper pit, incline conveyor tunnel, rotary dumper structure foundations and radial stacker foundations. Work also encompassed structural steel erection, pre-engineered metal building erection, radial stacker erection, dust suppression, ventilation, electrical and controls, rail work and the installation of the rotary dumper.
