Bulk material handling involves developing systems to move, process, and package bulk materials such as minerals and grains. Engineers collaborate with companies to develop efficient systems, including heavy equipment, conveyor belts, and containerization. Automation is used for efficiency and safety, and companies design equipment that can expand and accommodate changing uses.
Bulk material handling is a field that encompasses the development of systems to move, process, and package bulk materials such as minerals, grains, and so on. It involves a variety of activities, from developing systems for transporting bulk materials to designing safety protocols to reduce the risks of contamination during the handling process. Engineers play an important role in bulk material handling, collaborating with companies at every stage of the supply chain, from origin to final destination, to develop lean and effective systems for handling bulk materials.
Such systems include heavy equipment, often mobile and configurable, for moving bulk materials around a site. Conveyor belts, hoppers, trucks and similar equipment provide a means of getting bulk materials from the source to where they need to go. With grain, for example, this may include developing rail cars to transport bulk grain, grain silos to move grain into silos, and so on.
Some bulk material handling considerations include the composition of the materials, how companies use them, and where they need to go. Many bulk goods have to be transported by truck, train and boat at various points in their journey. Containerization streamlines this process by moving materials in containers, rather than bulk loading and unloading at each stop. Cranes are needed to move the containers, along with equipment such as conveyor belts for unloading at their final destinations.
Engineers working in bulk material handling are often interested in automation for efficiency and safety. The use of automated equipment can improve working conditions by keeping workers out of dangerous environments with a high risk of injury. It also increases efficiency, as it is often faster to use automated equipment than manual workers to perform tasks such as loading a cargo hold. Automation tends to shift the nature of field employment from requiring manual workers to requiring technicians to supervise, maintain, and repair automated bulk material handling equipment.
Companies that specialize in bulk material handling design equipment of various sizes for different tasks. This can include everything from fermentation tanks in cellars to bulk storage holds for ships. One concern is the ability to expand; companies operate on the assumption that their loads could increase over time and they need systems that grow with their needs. This may include designing systems that are configurable to accommodate changing uses.
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