Here is the real reply, and my 3rd attempt at trying to thank you Nick and Paul for your feedback on Thermo Master plant functionality.
Also I wanted to let you guys know, in case you were interested, that I got some feedback from Laurel at BBS about this same subject. In the ir August 10 issue of *Bay $treet Byte$*, she wrote "As the two Ontario plants are filling rapidly to capacity and over-capacity, engineering problems have been discovered and expensive retrofitting is required to fix the problems as well as to increase plant capacity....." I asked her what she thought the extent of these problems were, And if she thought it merely a capacity issue?
Her response was:
"It is a dryer problem discovered as tonnage increased plus the expense of extra equipment needed to increase capacity to 300 tpd. Thermo Tech went with a custom built dryer system rather than purchase more expensive commercial equipment avilable from several manufacturers. It has proven to be an expensive mistake, but not altogether unexpected when using unproven equipment. The systems being negotiated now have been tested before hand and will come with a form of guarantee."
"While I take a lot of information from the company with a grain of salt, I do have a lot of confidence in JD Hole of Lockerbie & Hole, with whom I spoke Monday. He believes Thermo Tech has made tremendous strides "in the last 8 months" and appears to be very confident the planned retrofit will be successful. While the new dryer system is more expensive, it can take the extra capacity and also removes the need for peletizing the end product, resulting in reduced costs. The animal feed comes out in flakes - much like corn flakes - and requires no further treatment before resale."
Also, I wanted to let you guys know that I just got an invitation in the mail from Thermo Tech to come visit the demonstration plant that they are touring the U.S. with. It is coming to the Portland, OR area August 23, 24 & 25th, so I will be able to witness first hand how the Thermo Tech process works. I am looking forward to it!
Regards,
--Wayne-- |
