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Canada's “Rock to Road”
Magazine
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Canada's Top 20 Quarries (1999)
A strong economy in most regions of Canada in 1999 helped boost production of crushed stone by Canada’s 20 largest quarries by more than 8 per cent over the previous year. In the latest survey conducted by Aggregates & Roadbuilding, the Top 20 quarries in Canada produced 44.1 million tonnes last year compared with 40.8 million tonnes in 1998. Of the Top 20, ten were situated in Ontario including Dufferin Aggregates’ Milton Quarry, the country’s biggest aggregate operation with 5.76 million tonnes recorded in 1999. These Ontario quarries generated a total of 23.47 million tonnes, up slightly from the 23.17 million tonnes they produced in 1998. The three British Columbia quarries which made the Top 20 for 1999 produced 9.47 million tonnes, a 36 per cent increase over their previous year’s output of 6.97 million tonnes. The four Quebec quarries in our survey produced 6.42 million tonnes compared to the 5.2 millions tonnes reported last year. The two Nova Scotia quarries represented in our survey produced 3.43 million tonnes compared with 2.92 million tonnes in 1998 while the lone Alberta quarry produced 1.29 million tonnes last year, approximately 170 000 tonnes less than in 1998. The Milton Quarry was among the Top 20 plants that invested in new mobile and processing equipment to improve production throughput, product quality and operating efficiency. Last year’s $4.7 million capi tal spending program included the installation of two new Nordberg HP700SX secondary cone crushers and two 5x20 Simplicity brute force pan feeders. (See Aggregates& Roadbuilding, March 2000 for an in-depth report on the Milton Quarry’s new secondary system.)
The Milton Quarry's new secondary system incorporates two Nordberg HP700SX Standard cone crushers fed by two Simplicity brute force pan feeders Dufferin Aggregates also entered into a 10-year outsourcing agreement in 1999 with Toromont/Cat to supply and maintain its fleet of wheel loaders and off-highway haulers at all aggregate sites. As part of this agreement, the Milton Quarry took delivery of four new loaders (three 980G’s and a 992G) and seven 773D haul trucks last year. Milton also took delivery of a new Cat 330B L excavator for stripping and two reconditioned 980C loaders and as well as a 140G grader under the outsourcing agreement. According to the quarry’s operations manager, Trevor McAdam, four new 8x20 double-deck inclined screens comprise this year’s capital spending plans. In a move to significantly extend the life of the Milton Quarry, Dufferin Aggregates acquired a 40 per cent interest in Cayuga Materials & Construction Co. Ltd., near Hamilton, last year. The company was also presented with an award from the Halton Region Conserva-tion Authority for its environmental man-agement practices at the Milton Quarry. Two British Columbia limestone quarries captured the second and third place in our 1999 rankings. Ash Grove Cement’s Blubber Bay Quarry and Texada Quarrying’s Texada Quarry, both located on Texada Island in the Strait of Georgia, rebounded with major production increases over the previous year. With a 1999 production total of 3.98 million tonnes, a 2 million tonne increase over 1998, Blubber Bay Quarry moved from eighth spot in our rankings last year to second place. General manager Ted Thomson said most of the production increase was the result of quarry development work. Shipments of chemical, cement and construction aggregates last year were approximately the same as the previous year. The bulk of the production was barged to the U.S. Although local markets remain soft, Thomson said he expects sales to rise this year and next as British Columbia begins to emerge from its economic woes. In a move to gain better access to construction markets in Richmond, Delta and other Lower Mainland municipalities, the quarry has aligned itself with Ross West Aggregates Ltd. which operates a depot on the south arm of the Fraser River. Blubber Bay also expanded its range of products through the addition of a new stationary washing plant commissioned last fall. The 250 tonnes/h plant, incorporating a 914 mm x 7.3 m dewatering screw and a 6x20 Tyler triple-deck screen, is used to process asphalt aggregates and roadbase materials from 19 mm x 12 mm down to 13 mm x #4 mesh. In addition, a new 12.6 m 3 Komatsu WA800 wheel loader was acquired last year to work the face. Moving up a notch over last year to third position in our Top 20 rankings is Texada Quarrying Ltd.’s Texada Quarry with 3.95 million tonnes of limestone products in 1999. The quarry produced 3.38 million tonnes in 1998. The quarry’s primary customer is Lafarge Canada Inc.’s cement plant in Richmond which recently doubled its production capacity. The quarry also supplies another Vancouver-area cement plant as well as one in Seattle, Wash. Construction aggregates are barged to customers in the Lower Mainland and the west coast of the U.S. The main production improvement last year was achieved when the quarry retired its fleet of 14 veteran rigid-frame haul trucks and replaced them with five new 63.3-tonne capacity Caterpillar 775D trucks. The quarry also commissioned three new 430 hp Cat 988F Series ll High Lift wheel loaders equipped with 6.1 m 3 buckets and a Cat 322B L excavator fitted with a Svedala Reedrill rock drill. Another major production improvement, stated Texada Quarrying’s manager, Harold Diggon, was the redesign of the primary crusher feed station to allow direct truck dumping from both sides of the feed hopper at will. Previously, the primary crusher was either flooded or starved creating uneven material flow through the plant. The quarry also carried out a diamond drill program last year to help develop a 30-year mining plan. In fourth position with 3.954 million tonnes is Lafarge Canada Inc.’s Manitoulin Quarry on Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron. The tonnage was up 154 000 tonnes over the previous year. According to Perry Newman, area manager, the low water conditions in the Great Lakes during last year’s shipping season meant that the self-unloading vessels servicing the quarry were reduced to transporting partial loads. He said the quarry shipped 10 per cent more stone than the previous year with 25 per cent more vessels. Water levels remain low this year, he added. The quarry’s production last year was split evenly between Canadian and U.S. destinations. The quarry acquired a new 8.5 m 3 Cat 990 Series II wheel loader as a backup machine for the two Cat 992C face loaders as well as for yard duty. A new Cat 775D rock truck was also added to the haul fleet bringing the number of 775Ds and 775Bs at the property to four. The major item acquired this year is a 54-74 Allis Chalmers gyratory crusher to replace the existing 4860 Traylor jaw and grizzly primary stage. The 54-74 gyratory is reducing the slabby feed rock to 177 mm minus at the rate of 1650 tonnes/h. Lafarge Canada’s Dundas Quarry earned fifth place with 3.5 million tonnes. Quarry manager Wally Fownes outlined several capital projects that were completed in 1999 to improve productivity while optimizing the fit between the quarry’s reserves and the product application. The quarry processing plant is fed with two grades of stone, either metallurgical or granular according to demand, from the north quarry via a 3 km long cable belt conveyor.
Lafarge Canadas Dundas Quarry added two new 200 tonnes surge bins to the secondary plant in 1999 to provide a more balanced material feed to the secondary cone crusher. A new 10 000-tonne live capacity surge pile was added early in 1999 to allow the secondary plant to run independently from the primary crusher and cable belt. Also in the secondary plant, finished product handling conveyors for both metallurgical and granular products were upgraded in 1999, while a Canica 125 vertical shaft impact crusher (VSI) replaced a Canica 105 to increase crushing capacity. More recently, three extra feeders, two Syntron 680 tonnes/h feeders and a Jeffery 450 tonnes/h model, were installed in the secondary surge pile reclaim tunnel, to maximize its live capacity and provide evenly sized feed. Two new 200 tonne surge bins, each with a 900 tonnes/h Syntron feeder, have also been added to the secondary plant to provide more balanced material feed to the Nordberg 7-ft cone secondary crusher as well as improving the recovery of metallurgical stone. The main piece of mobile equipment acquired last year was a new Ingersoll-Rand DM25SP (Single Pass) blasthole drill. The 24.4 m high tower on this rig enables it to drill up to 15.2 m in a single pass and Fownes reports that the elimination of multiple drill steels saves a significant amount of drilling time on each blast hole. Fownes says he anticipates both sales and production numbers for 2000 to be higher than last year. The quarry is a major supplier of aggregates to the nearby 407 ETR western extension and both production and shipments could see a sharp increase later this year. In sixth position is Blue Circle Aggregates’ Acton Quarry. Located 45 km west of Toronto, the quarry has enjoyed significant growth in recent years. Its 1999 production of 3.3 million tonnes compared to numbers in the 2.0-2.5 million tonne range during the mid 1990’s and in order to accommodate this increase in volume the company added 500 000 tonnes to the licensed production limit last year. Operations manager Don Barr attributes this growth to a combination of supply contracts for Lester B. Pearson International Airport together with the quarry’s location near to the Region of Peel, the fastest growing region in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). He reports that demand so far this year is on par with 1999 levels, but sales may be see a dip in the short term as a result of the ready mix driver’s strike affecting some of the GTA’s construction projects.
Assinck 1371 mm x 39.6 m radial primary surge conveyor with 6.1 m telescopic section in operationat Blue Circle Aggregates Acton Quarry. Capital investment in mobile and fixed equipment at Acton has totalled over $7 million over the last three years. On the mobile equipment front, additions last year included a 9.2 m 3 Caterpillar 990 Series II High Lift face loader and a 6.1 m 3 980G shipping machine, while a 90-tonne Caterpillar 777D was added to the primary haul fleet. Fixed plant improvements included a new 1371 mm x 39.6 m Assinck radial primary surge pile conveyor complete with a 6.1 m telescopic extension, replacing a fixed unit. The increased swing and reach of the new conveyor has improved the live capacity of the surge pile as well as the consistency of the feed to the secondary plant, compared to the old conveyor where the three feeders in the reclaim tunnel drew variable material from the conical pile. Productivity improvements in the existing secondary plant included two new 8x20 Deister triple-deck screens in the Number 1A tower of the secondary plant, two 6x16 Tyler screens in Tower 1 as well as increased crushing capacity in the re-crush plant. Here, the production of HL8 asphalt aggregate was increased from 200 to 400 tonnes/h by replacing an existing Hazemag APK50 with a Hazemag 400 in closed circuit with a 7x20 Telsmith screen. The larger Hazemag was moved from another location in the secondary while a 1620 Hazemag, transferred from one of Blue Circle Aggregates’ U.S. operations, took its place. Three new 100-tonne capacity load-out scales were also installed last year, complete with truck wheel wash systems consisting of grizzly bars, water spray and a closed circuit water system. Another major project, approved late in 1999 and nearing completion, will optimize primary crusher production as well as utilizing undersize material in the shot rock as feedstock for the existing wash plant. This innovative design adds two new 6x24 Simplicity vibratory brute force feeders to the existing set up in order to regulate material flow into the 54-74 Allis Chalmers gyratory primary crusher. The feeders are a split design with a 4.8 m pan section followed by a 2.4 m grizzly bar section to scalp off 127 mm minus from the primary feed. Assinck Ltd. has been responsible for the design and supply of the feeder structure. The improved control over material flow will also reduce the risk of crusher damage in the event of plug ups as, like many quarries, the haul fleet has outgrown the original crusher installation over time - the smallest truck in the haul fleet carries 85 tonnes compared to the 30-tonne capacity of the surge hopper under the crusher. The new installation also incorporates a 1371 mm x 23.7 m reversible belt under the two feeders. This will give the option of directing the scalped material, 127 mm minus, to either the secondary stockpile conveyor or towards the wash plant. In this event material will discharge onto a 914 mm x 183 m long channel field conveyor, transfer to a further 152 m long section and feed 25-tonne capacity surge bin. This will in turn feed a 8x20 Simplicity triple-deck screen with a Hazemag 1620 impact crusher in closed circuit, reducing all material from 127 mm minus to 25 mm minus. Material will then be conveyed to a 36.6 m radial stacker discharging directly into the existing wash plant bins that are currently truck fed. The wash plant produces a range of sizes from 19 mm coarse concrete aggregate to high stability asphalt sand. In seventh place in this year’s survey is Martin Marietta Materials Canada Ltd.’s Porcupine Mountain Quarry at Auld’s Cove, Nova Scotia. The quarry’s 1999 production of 2.5 million tonnes compares with an output of 2 million tonnes in the previous year. Robust construction markets along the eastern seaboard of the U.S. and the Caribbean are credited with the increased demand for its products. Manager John Ferguson told that 2000 is off to an excellent start and he is looking forward to increased shipments this year. All of the quarry’s offshore shipping is handled by the Canadian and U.S. divisions of Canada Steamship Lines and Marbulk Shipping which is based in Massachusetts. Capital equipment purchases in 1999 included a 5.3 m 3 Cat 980G wheel loader and a Bobcat skidsteer loader. While small in comparison to their other loaders, Ferguson said the skidsteer unit is a key piece of equipment in the quarry fleet. In eight place and retaining its title as Quebec’s biggest quarry is Les CarriČres St-Eustache with 2.27 million tonnes in 1999. Located 20 km west of Montreal, the dolomite quarry has been seeing its yearly production numbers steadily climb as construction picks up momentum in the Montreal region. Following a major capital investment program in 1998 which comprised the installation of two Barmac (Svedala) B9000 Duopactor crushers and six 5x16 Svedala Tripl-Flow screens, the only major equipment purchase last year was a Cat 990 Series II wheel loader. For 2000, the quarry plans to purchase two Cat D350E articulated dump trucks. Strong building markets in the western half of the Greater Toronto Area moved Nelson Aggregate Co.’s Burlington Quarry from tenth place in our 1998 rankings to the number nine position. The quarry produced 1.7 million tonnes in 1999 with most of the shipments going to a large number of sub-division and commercial development projects. Company president, Bob Albrough, told Aggregates & Roadbuilding that he foresees healthy aggregate demand in the Oakville-Burlington region for the next several years. New to the Burlington quarry of Nelson Aggregates last year, the Tamrock Driltech Gator top drive rotary blasthole drill is one of three Tamrock drills in Nelson’s fleet.
The long reach of this Driltech Gator top drive rotary blasthole drill rig at Nelson Aggregate Co.'sBurlington Quarry facilitates front row drilling. As superintendent Chester McComb, explained, it was acquired primarily for safety reasons as its long reach boom allows the operator to position the crawler type under-carriage away from the edge of the face while drilling. The face height at Burlington varies between 18.3 m and 23.7 m, and the rig typically drills a 3.66 m by 4.27 m pattern of 114 mm vertical holes with 914 mm of subgrade drilling. Drilling time is typically about 35 minutes per hole and the absence of jacks on this rig helps to reduce set up time. The rig has a hole size range of between 127 mm and 171 mm and is powered by a Caterpillar 3406E engine producing 400 hp at 1800 rpm. Nelson is utilizing Driltech Mission standard button bits that have a wear life of about 6100 m in this limestone. Other equipment purchases in 1999 included two new Cat wheel loaders, a 980G and a 988F. In tenth position with 1.54 million tonnes in 1999 is the Cox Station Quarry of Mainland Sand & Gravel Ltd. While most sectors of the British Columbia’s construction industry were very weak last year, the quarry managed to hold its own in the marketplace. Production was off by less than 10 per cent from the record tonnage produced by the quarry in 1998. Mainland’s president Ted Carlson said he expects this year’s shipments to remain about par with 1999. In British Columbia, the Cox Station Quarry is the only one exclusively dedicated to the production of construction aggregates. The granite formation on Sumas Mountain is quarried to produce a wide range of high quality materials including asphalt aggregates, roadbase, riprap, drainage stone and washed fill sand. New mobile equipment acquired in 1999 included two Cat wheel loaders, a 972G and a 980G, a Cat 345B excavator for stripping, clearing and sorting rocks, a Cat 205 kW gen set and an Ingersoll-Rand DM45E drill with a long mast. New processing equipment included a 7x20 Simplicity double-deck screen and a 44-in Eagle Iron Works fine material washer. Other Top 20 quarries who made significant capital purchases in 1999 were: Lafarge Canada’s Montreal East Quarry (Cat 980G wheel loader); Inland Cement’s Cadomin Quarry (Cat 775D truck); Amherst Quarries’ McGregor Quarry (Cat 980G wheel loader); Lafarge Canada’s Brechin Quarry (Cat 980G wheel loader) and Conrad Bros.’ Dartmouth Quarry (Cat 375 excavator, Cat 980G wheel loader, Ingersoll-Rand DM 30 drill, Nordberg HP400 cone crusher, 6x20 ElJay screen).
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