Heavy Duty Screw Conveyors for Conveying Calcinated Gypsum

General Description

United States Gypsum (USG) is a leading manufacturer of building materials for the home construction and remodeling industries including Sheetrock and Durock products. The main component of these products is gypsum, a soft, white sulfate mineral. The Fort Dodge, IA plant manufactures gypsum board, joint treatments and gypsum plasters. For this project, USG required five new screw conveyors for capacity upgrades to various parts of their gypsum process. Two of the screw conveyors moved raw materials from a storage bin to a Treater. Another screw conveyor accepted material from kettle overflow and discharged to an Entoleter (crushing) machine. The last two screw conveyors accepted material from the Entoleter and a dust collector and conveyed the material to a bucket elevator. KWS worked directly with the Customer’s engineering team to meet all of their requirements.

Design Parameters

KWS Advantages

KWS and USG have had a successful relationship spanning many years and many projects. USG again was looking for an experienced manufacturer to design and build high quality screw conveyors to meet their exacting needs. KWS is not just a manufacturer of equipment, we are your partner to help you get the most out of your process. KWS has the engineering expertise to understand the project specifications, learn the process, and provide equipment that is superior than initially requested. During the design process, KWS provided valuable engineering expertise to USG and added design features to improve performance and equipment life. The engineers at KWS have the tools and techniques to transfer engineering information to the Customer and ensure an end product that would meet all of their needs.

Special Features

KWS designed and manufactured the screw conveyors to exceed the requirements of the project. Each screw conveyor was designed with special bolted trough covers and purgeable shaft seals to reduce maintenance and prevent dust from escaping. The Treater Screw Conveyor was redesigned with an internal hanger bearing and special chute due to space constraints in the plant layout. Each conveyor was provided with the special bearings, drives, speed switches and paint that USG desired in order to reduce spare parts and provide commonality between screw conveyors. Each screw conveyor also was designed with a special pressure-sensing diaphragm overflow switch to sense upset conditions in the process. The rugged, abrasion-resistant construction will provide many years of uninterrupted production.