Shaftless Screw Conveyor for Tyson Foods Zeeland, MI

General Description

Tyson Foods is the world’s second largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef, and pork. The Tyson packaging plant in Zeeland, MI produces finished goods for brands such as Ballpark and Jimmy Dean. Many large industrial plants perform their own onsite wastewater treatment and the Zeeland plant treats 2.2 million gallons per day (MGD) of industrial wastewater. After treatment, the wastewater is discharged to a sanitary sewer.

Food processing produces wastes from cooking often rich in organic material that may also contain salt, flavorings, coloring material and acids or alkali. Very significant quantities of oil or fats may also be present. Wastewater generated from food processing operations has distinctive characteristics that set it apart from common municipal wastewater managed by public or private sewage treatment plants throughout the world: wastewater is biodegradable and non-toxic but has high concentrations of BOD (biological oxygen demand) and suspended solids (SS). Thus, certain types of plants are required so the discharged wastewater doesn’t overly tax the existing municipal system demand.

The Zeeland plant wastewater stream includes cleaning water from the processing floor, sewage, and stormwater from outdoor drainage. The wastewater is pumped from around the facility via a lift station. A new precast building was erected that contained a rotary drum screen. The screen removes most of the water from the stream and the resulting screenings solids are discharged into a single shaftless conveyor with three drop points. The shaftless conveyor runs when the screen is running to evenly fill dumpsters for disposal.

Design Parameters

1. Product Type: Screenings
2. Material Density: 60 Lbs. per Cubic Foot
3. Max Capacity: 340 Cubic Feet per Hour
4. Duty: 7 days a week, 24 Hours per Day

KWS Advantages

KWS Environmental helped the consulting engineer early the in the project with conveyor sizing, layout, and features. The project was awarded to KWS by the contractor due to KWS’s competitive pricing, overall quality and quick delivery. The design submittal was approved after a few minor changes to the controls and structural supports. KWS utilizes the latest 3D CAD modeling techniques to provide very accurate and detailed drawings. The KWS equipment arrived early to the jobsite ahead of the installation schedule. The conveyor was installed with no issues. A licensed professional engineer from KWS conducted the site commissioning and maintenance training.

Special Features

The new KWS shaftless screw conveyor was constructed from 304 stainless steel for corrosion resistance. The shaftless spiral was made from high strength alloy steel designed for applications requiring optimal impact and abrasive resistance. The troughs were lined with UHMW-PE to provide a wear-resistant and resilient surface for the shaftless spiral to ride on. The conveyor had multiple discharge locations with electrically actuated slide gates to provided even distribution of the screenings in the roll off containers.

KWS provided a drop chute from the screen to the conveyor with guarded inspection ports. The conveyor was fully enclosed for safety and to completely contain the messy screenings. Safety interlocks including cover switches, emergency stop switches and a zero speed switch help keep operations and maintenance personnel safe.