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Rail served Concrete products plant?

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  • Member since
    October 2010
  • From: outside of London, Ontario
  • 389 posts
Rail served Concrete products plant?
Posted by lone geep on Friday, September 20, 2013 4:34 PM

I have been thinking of adding a concrete products plant on my railroad. I would receive powdered cement in by rail and ship out concrete girders and culverts on flatcars. Are there any prototypes for this kind of operation? And if so, could rebar also be hauled in by rail?

Lone Geep 

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  • From: 4610 Metre's North of the Fortyninth on the left coast of Canada
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Posted by BATMAN on Friday, September 20, 2013 5:41 PM

Absolutely! This plant is just South of Vancouver and it is massive. It incorporates rail, trucks and as you can see barges. You would need a large room just for the plant.

You could model a small operation where they simply ship raw cement and you could do it justice on a layout. However once you get into shipping finished structures that is a different beast altogether. You would be modeling the plant that have tracks as part of it. Not modeling a railroad that has a cement plant on it.

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Some things are just too big for our home layouts. Just my opinion.

Brent

"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."

  • Member since
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  • From: Corpus Christi, Texas
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Posted by leighant on Friday, September 20, 2013 5:43 PM

Southern Pacific Transportation Co. Freight Tariff 1517-F, issued June 11, 1973.

Austin Texas businesses with no spur served by team track: Precast Concrete Products Co

San Antonio, Texas- F. Redondo Co. Stone Cutting & Ornamental Concrete Works w railroad spur west side of MoPac.  corner San   Marcos and Poplar.

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Posted by "JaBear" on Friday, September 20, 2013 6:27 PM

"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."

  • Member since
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  • From: outside of London, Ontario
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Posted by lone geep on Friday, September 20, 2013 6:35 PM

Thanks for the ideas and pictures Big Smile. Keep them coming. I only have around 4 square feet for one. My modelling plan is to have Walther's Medusa Cement as the cement receiving and have another track for unloading rebar and loading up the products. I'll just try to make it look like the main buildings are in the background. Thanks again. 

Lone Geep 

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  • Member since
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  • From: Denver, CO
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Posted by Motley on Friday, September 20, 2013 7:25 PM

You could build a bunch of background buildinigs to make it appear larger.

Michael


CEO-
Mile-HI-Railroad
Prototype: D&RGW Moffat Line 1989

  • Member since
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  • From: Corpus Christi, Texas
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Posted by leighant on Friday, September 20, 2013 10:13 PM

Caps from certain Elmer's Super Glue containers resemble concrete box culverts when arranged so you only see into the end with the rectangular hollow space.  These are for N.  For HO-- would be a smaller culvert.  When a city needs to install several miles of concrete sanitary or drainage sewers, transportation of the commensurate quantity by rail becomes practical. 

 

I plan a city street and utility service facility on my layout which can receive large shipment of various supplies on a "project basis" (NOT random car-card generated)  Over a dozen operating sessions there might be 2 or 3 dozen gondolas of culvert delivered.  At other times, the facility would receive multiple carloads of utility poles, and on a one or two car-at-a-time basis, cable reels, chlorine for water purification, even a rare heavy-duty electrical transformer.

Not exactly a concrete products plant.  A block from my bedroom when I growing up in the 1950s, there was a small company called Houston Art Stone that made concrete bird baths, benches, lawn furniture, sculpture, etc.  They backed up to a spur that entered a major lumber company.  I think they may have received bagged concrete and plaster by boxcar.  I saw white dust constantly at the railspur adjacent to them and at their trackside entrance.

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Posted by denveroutlaws06 on Saturday, September 21, 2013 8:13 PM

here is a pic of rail tie plant that used to be in Denver.

https://maps.google.com/?ll=39.786543,-104.994712&spn=0.003801,0.006539&t=h&z=18

 a plant up the street that makes highway overpass sections

https://maps.google.com/?ll=39.799948,-105.009057&spn=0.0038,0.006539&t=h&z=18

and a plant that makes pipes and culverts. zoom in for a better view

https://maps.google.com/?ll=39.867514,-104.878364&spn=0.005369,0.013078&t=h&z=17

second pipe and culvert plant.

https://maps.google.com/?ll=39.552248,-105.04068&spn=0.003814,0.006539&t=h&z=18

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Posted by leighant on Sunday, September 22, 2013 3:20 PM

Any indication that any of these plants received or shipped by rail?

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Posted by denveroutlaws06 on Sunday, September 22, 2013 6:07 PM

the cement rail tie plant  (the first image) used to ship out ties for BNSF.

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