Tula project major milestones

In May 2015 Cementos Fortaleza SA de CV awarded Fives with an EPC contract for the design, supply, erection and commissioning of a new complete 3300tpd production line to be installed in its existing Tula cement plant, in Mexico.

The project features Fives’ latest technologies in terms of energy savings and environmental footprint:
-    FCB kiln, FCB Zero-NOx precalciner, FCB preheater and Pillard NovaFlam® burner for the burning line
-    FCB Horomill® and associated FCB TSV™ classifiers for the raw meal and cement grinding plants
-    FCB B-mill and associated FCB TSV™ classifier for the petcoke grinding plant.

Since the construction start-up of the plant, the project has met major achievements. On 11 December 2016, the first FCB Horomill® for cement grinding was commissioned. Then, on 31 January 2017 the second unit was successfully started. The next steps are the commissioning of both the FCB Horomill® raw meal grinding plant and the FCB kiln.

This project is an expansion of the Tula plant where in 2006 Fives delivered a 1500tpd production line to former owner Lafarge. The first clinker was produced in December 2005 and cement was produced in January 2006 – only 24 months after the contract was signed. The plant was commissioned four months ahead of the contractual schedule.

As construction and commissioning of the plant were a real success in terms of industrial performance and safety, the Tula plant was rewarded the “Grand Safety Prize” from Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social.