press release

release detail

Holcim Ltd is one of the world's leading producers of cement and aggregates. (1) At the Holcim (Deutschland) AG Lägerdorf  site in Northern Germany, employees working in cement production have switched from wearing disposable garments made of SMS material to wearing limited use type 5/6 chemical protective garments made of DuPont™ Tyvek® Classic to protect them from dust and dirt.

The kiln technology adopted in modern cement plants increasingly supports the use of substitute fuels such as tyre chips, plastic waste, provided their chemical composition is deemed suitable for the combustion process.

DuPont

To keep the flames in the kiln continually burning at a temperature of up to 2,000°C – which is necessary to enhance the quality of the compound and the end product (2) -  the fuels are fed into the rotary kilns as finely dispersed powders, flakes and/or fluff. These substances are highly prone to creating dust.

At Holcin’s Lägerdorf site, chemical protective garments are required to protect employees who, on a daily basis, inspect a large number of secondary or substitute fuel metering and conveyor systems or carry out routine maintenance work on such systems.

DuPont™ Tyvek® garments provide a solution
It became apparent that an alternative to the previous protective garments was required as employees were dissatisfied at the frequent low tear resistance of the material. Problems had arisen when the barrier layer was no longer intact. This was especially so when employees were carrying out physically strenuous activities such as cleaning work on the highly soiled metering and conveyor systems.

“Tyvek® garments were selected because they met the important criteria of barrier protection, comfort and strength. Tyvek® material has a high liquid and particle barrier, low specific weight and high resistance to tear, tear growth and abrasion, while ensuring an effective level of permeability to air and water vapour. The garments have proven their worth in terms of their reliable barrier protection against air-borne, even very small particles with a diameter of as little as 1 μm and in terms of comfort and tear resistance, and subsequently have now been selected for use in the company’s second plant near Hanover.”

What is Tyvek®?
Tyvek® material is made from spinning 100% extremely fine continuous high density polyethylene (HDPE) fibres that are then fused together to form a strong uniform web by applying heat and pressure. Protective Tyvek® garments are available with varying degrees of barrier protection (type 6 to type 4: chemical protective garments). Tyvek® Classic, as used by Holcim, is typically used to protect against liquid mist (type 6) and airborne solid particulate chemicals (type 5). Type 4 chemical protective garments made of Tyvek® Classic Plus also have overtaped seams, and offer an additional protective barrier against liquid inorganic aerosols. As protective garments made of Tyvek® do not contain any “critical” additives (e.g. no halogen compounds), they can also be disposed of without any problems in incineration plants – obviously complying with the applicable guidelines for the contaminating substance in question.

For more information, please visit www.dpp-europe.com.

ENDS

Notes to editors

1. Holcim (Deutschland) AG is based in Hamburg and is the leading producer of building materials in Northern Germany. The company’s core business is the production of cement and clinker based on its own raw material production at its sites in Lägerdorf (Schleswig-Holstein) and Höver (Lower Saxony), the processing of blast furnace slag at its sites in Salzgitter (Lower Saxony) and Bremen and the manufacture of ready-mixed concrete. Each year, the corporate group produces approximately 3.9 million tons of binder, approximately 1.4 million cubic metres of concrete and approximately 2.6 million tons of aggregates.

2. The use of secondary or substitute fuels enables the cement industry to contribute significantly to the conservation of natural resources, while thermally utilising waste materials – making sense from an ecological and economic perspective. All fuels are continually monitored and documented without interruption - not just in terms of their gross calorific value, but also the substances they contain and any harmful substances therein.

DuPont Personal Protection leverages the experience of DuPont as one of the safest companies in the world as well as its recognised scientific and technological expertise and knowledge of key markets, with the aim of developing solutions to protect people, goods, businesses and the environment.

DuPont (www.dupont.com) is a science company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential for a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, communications, safety and protection, home and construction, transportation and apparel.

For further information on DuPont in the regions of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, visit: www.emea.dupont.com.

X X X

The DuPont Oval, DuPont™, The miracles of science™ and Tyvek® are registered trademarks or trademarks of E. I. du pont de Nemours and Company or its affiliates.

Photograph Usage:
Please contact Wendy Hennem
The McOnie Agency
Tel: 01483 237230
Fax: 01483 237234
Email: Wendy@mconieagency.com

For Additional Information (excluding photograph usage):
Contact Andi Cowan
The McOnie Agency
Tel: 01458 833 347
Email: andi@mconieagency.com

To download the accompanying HIGH RES image, please click on the link:
Photo 1, Photo 2 or Photo 3
Please wait a few minutes until the photo appears, then follow instructions from no. 4 below.
Alternatively, go to www.mconieagency.com,
1. Roll your mouse over to “press releases”, then drop down to Arco and click.
2. Find the press release intro with chosen photo.
3. Click “more” to bring up the whole press release.
4. To download the hi-res photo to your desktop, right click the link and choose “Save link to disc” or “Save Target As….”
5. Open the photo in your chosen application and convert to CMYK for printing.
If you need any help or would like a high res image emailed to you, please contact Wendy Hennem.

This image is the property of Arco, for use solely to illustrate the text within this press release. Use of this image for any other purpose is prohibited.