Double the Output: A Smarter Approach to Sand Plant Expansion

Case Study

Double the Output: A Smarter Approach to Sand Plant Expansion

Location Hawarden, IA

Industry Aggregates: Sand & Gravel

The Challenge

This existing plant wasn't keeping up with demand.

Operating at 350-400 tons per hour, it limited how much finished product the Midwestern aggregate producer ship in a day.

At the same time, the company typically handled expansion projects in-house. But, this one brought added complexity:

Coordinating design, scheduling, and installation across multiple systems
Managing timelines while keeping up with production demands
Avoiding gaps in responsibility between contractors

Taking it on internally would have stretched their team thin and made it harder to keep everything moving.

Equipment

Spirit® Sand Plant
Anthem® Inclined Screen

The Solution

To increase production, they partnered with Superior and it's local dealer, General Equipment & Supplies, to deliver a new wash plant plant through a turnkey construction approach.

The focus was on adding capacity where it mattered most: processing and screening.

The upgraded system includes:

A split-feed setup to distribute material evenly across both screens
Two 8x20 Anthem® Inclined Screens to screen high volumes
Two Spirit® Sand Plants for sand classification and dewatering

The Spirit Sand Plant replaces traditional screw-based systems, allowing sand to be sized and dewatered in on a smaller footprint. They also reduce the need for additional equipment and cuts down on maintenance.

Throughout the build, having one team coordinate the work, from planning through installation, kept the project moving and avoided slowdowns that come with multiple contractors.

The Results

The upgrade delivered exactly what the operation needed, more tons, without more complexity.

Production capacity more than doubled, increasing from 350-400 TPH up to 850-900 TPH.

Beyond throughput, the plant is now:

Easier to run, with fewer pieces of equipment to manage
More efficient, with improved sand classification and dewatering

The construction management approach made a noticeable difference. With a single team responsible, communication stayed clear, issues were handled quickly, and the work kept moving.

The end result is a plant built to handle higher demand, without overcomplicating the operation or stretching internal resources.

OptimizeU

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