After being called early one
morning by Louis Grundel, Civil Engineer for The Amalgamated Sugar Company’s
(TASCO) Mini-Cassia plant in Paul, Idaho, asking if we would be interested
in helping them with the structural design for a new beet washing plant, we
immediately scheduled a meeting for 3:00 that afternoon even though the
plant is over 170 miles from our office. We discussed the project with them
and had a purchase order by 5:00 that evening to start the project.
The project was divided into
two phases and completed on a fast track schedule. The south end design was
completed and released for fabrication and construction while design was
beginning for the north end. The project included the design of support
structures, access, enclosures, and foundations for the beet washing plant.
The south end included the beet washer, a large drum rock catcher, a small
drum rock catcher, two weed catchers, and screens. The north end included a
weed catcher conveyor, two final washers, and a small and large beet worm
screw. Also included in the design was the support structure for piping,
flume, chutes, and the belt transfer conveyors.
The beet washing equipment
was supplied by Maguin, a French Company. All of the Maguin drawings were
drawn using metric dimensions and weight units which had to be translated
into English. Leavitt's has completed several international projects using
metric units which helped to speed the project. TASCO was very appreciative
and complimentary to Leavitt & Associates for their ability to quickly come
to understand and design the project so expeditiously. After completion of
the beet washing plant, TASCO showed their appreciation by awarding
Leavitt's a contract to design and provide a 10,000 square foot metal
building to enclose the facility, and provide two 5-ton overhead bridge
cranes.
The Amalgamated Sugar Company
has been a good friend to Leavitt Engineering for many years. Their
projects have allowed us to do what we do best: design plant facilities
combining our expertise in civil, structural, mechanical, welding, and plant
engineering.
