New sand plant opens in Dorset

"A NEW £1 million computer-controlled Linatex sand-processing plant — the first of its kind in the UK — has opened at Hanson Aggregate’s Masters Quarry at Binnegar, near Wareham, Dorset. According to Hanson, the plant will help protect the countryside, preserve water resources and create new markets for Dorset sand."

"Masters Quarry has supplied sand for over 50 years but until now the technology had not been available to allow the material to be worked in a progressive manner. ‘The quality of the deposit is so variable that we had to work lots of small areas to allow us to get at the grade of sand we needed,’ explained quarry supervisor Adrian Brown. ‘The new plant will allow a variety of grades of sand to be quarried, purified and blended to create a quality end product. It will allow us to work in a more phased manner from just two or three places rather than 50 or 60."

"‘We will be able to work more efficiently and restore land as we go. In addition, the sand we can produce is suitable for a range of additional uses ranging from plastering to golf-course bunkers and horse arenas. Our main product fits 11 different specifications and opens up a number of new markets for us.’"

The new plant has also increased production from 80 tonnes/h to 140 tonnes/h and is helping to conserve water through a special water-recycling facility. The quarry has a licence to extract up to 45 million gallons of water a year from the river Piddle to use in sand washing. The new plant will reduce reliance on the environmentally sensitive river by allowing over 90% of the water to be recycled.