Modern milling in Mexico
Encouraged by healthy construction demand and promising growth potential, two regional cement manufacturers have decided to invest in cement grinding facilities in Yucatán, Mexico. Both Cementos Fortaleza and Holcim México have entrusted Gebr Pfeiffer to deliver these facilities and the required capacity to satisfy immediate demand. By Rodney Pradet, Gebr Pfeiffer Americas, USA.
Figure 1: illustration of a typical Gebr Pfeiffer ready2grind plant
For some, thinking of the Yucatán Peninsula brings to mind student parties, also known as Spring Break. However, for the more discerning tourist, this somewhat remote peninsula holds a wide variety of more cultural attractions. Among them is the Mayan city of Chichen Itza, which was built with limestone blocks chiselled from nearby quarries 1000 years ago. Or there are the ‘cenotes’ (from the Mayan word ‘dzonot’ meaning ‘fountain’), which offered the Mayan people places of worship where they could speak with the gods and receive the divine blessing of fresh water. Today, one can swim or snorkel in these natural sinkholes and marvel at the extensive system of underground caves and rivers formed by rain dissolving limestone over thousands of years.
Plentiful was the limestone that Mayans used to build their cities. But how will the people of Yucatán build for the future? This is where Gebr Pfeiffer comes in with its state-of-the-art material preparation systems, as implemented for two Mexican cement producers discussed below.
