Spenner Zement has started production of slag cement from its new blastfurnace slag grinding plant at Hüttenheim, Germany. At the end of February, the first truck with blastfurnace cement, produced with slag from the Krupp Mannesmann metallurgical plant and cement from Spenner’s Erwitte works, set off to deliver the product to customers.

"We are in the commissioning phase," said Dr Heinrich Sievers, production director at Spenner. By the end of May, the remaining work on the facilityare expected to be completed.

The new plant consists of a 70m silo with 11 chambers to hold slag and cement blends. The heart is a Loesche roller mill, driven by a 1000kW motor. Energy is fed to the mill to ensure drying of the product, reducing an initial residual moisture content of eight per cent to less than 0.3 per cent. In addition, noise insulation and vibration prevention measures as well as a state-of-the-art filter help to reduce the environmental impact of the plant.