Want to learn more about aggregate equipment? Do you have an asphalt or mining job on the horizon? If so, using the right aggregate equipment could save you both time and money.
But what type should you use?
If you’re uncertain, we’ve got you covered. Below you’ll find a guide for beginners just like you. When you’re ready to learn what you need for the job, so you can knock hours off your job and reduce your bottom line, read on.
Who Uses Aggregate Equipment?
Aggregate equipment is used by folks in the concrete and mining industries. In those industries, aggregate refers to granular material, like gravel, crushed stone, and sand. These machines convey, crush, sort, and transport such granular materials.
Those materials are then used as the building blocks to create concrete, cement, and asphalt. Engineers use these to construct roads, driveways, buildings, and bridges. Such general aggregate equipment is the building block of modern urban architecture.
Aggregate Mining Equipment
According to the United States Geological Survey’s Annual Publication, our nation crushed 1,460 billion tons of stone in 2020. That stone must be mined, moved, and processed. Can you imagine how much time a process like that would take if we had to do it by hand?
The Great Pyramid of Giza only weighed about 5.75 billion tons and took about 20 years to build. At that rate, it would take about 5,000 years to move 1,460 billion tons of stone. Fortunately, we have better technology today.
- Buckets
- Conveyers
- Feeders
- Stackers
- Crushers
- Scrapers
- Excavators
- Washers
Now, suppliers like Stone Equipment can provide you with portable stone quarry plants to use at your construction site. The aggregate equipment for rent includes machines for screening, washing, and crushing the stone you mine.
Equipment Used in Asphalt Paving
Once the stone has been mined, it’s ready for transport and distribution. Manufacturers repackage some of these aggregate materials, but miners send most in their raw form to those who specialize in laying concrete.
Once there, specialists use a different set of equipment. This construction equipment blends these components, building materials that act as a solid base for more complex building blocks.
- Asphalt compactors
- Backhoes
- Motor Graders
- Rollers
- Reclaimers
- Planers
- Coaters
When specialists lay asphalt, little more is needed than the basic aggregate building blocks and petroleum products to lend the aggregate some flexibility. This ensures the roads can take the wear and tear of heavy vehicles.
A more rigid combination is used when constructing concrete floors and walls in buildings. Though the mixtures might be different, the effect is the same. Experts combine sand, stone, and adhesives to create the building blocks for other architecture.
What’s Next?
Now that you understand the most important types of aggregate equipment on the market today, it’s time to decide which is right for you. Begin by running through your entire job, from start to finish. Then consider which pieces of equipment listed above would be right for each part of your job.
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