The Mineral Products Qualifications Council is a not for profit organisation and Raymond Brown Quarry Products’ membership will provide the business with valuable resources relating to the industry, including education, training and qualifications. They are also a leading provider of high-quality training, assessment and apprenticeships.
Binnegar Quarry now has its own dedicated visitor footpath and area, thanks to the quarry team building a new viewing platform.
Binnegar’s quarry team have built a wooden decked platform with hand rails and information boards so that visitors can learn about and see the entire quarry operations in action.
Quarry Manager Simon Pinto, said: “Binnegar is such a stunning site and we wanted to build a viewing platform here because of the great views this spot has over the quarry.
Should any community groups or local residents wish to visit our site, please do not hesitate to contact us so we can book you in for a tour.”
Photo: Councillor Cherry Brooks and local resident, Ian join Operations Manager, Marcus Dredge and Quarry Manager, Simon Pinto on the new viewing platform.
We are pleased to announce that quarrying operations have progressed into Phase 2 of Area A with the extraction of soft sand at approximately 150,000 tonnes per annum.
Phase 3 of Area A is currently being felled in preparation for quarrying.
The Round Copse North Area has been restored and soils have been placed, tree planting will commence in this area shortly and Lowdens Copse has been backfilled using inert materials and soils are due to be placed for restoration in Spring 2019.
The current landfill operation is progressing well in Phase 1 of Area A and is planned to receive direct placement of the soils excavated from Phase 3 of Area A.
Binnegar Quarry, near Wareham, Dorset, has seen a £1.6m investment into the site’s processing plant and infrastructure. Earlier this year, Dorset County Council resolved to grant planning permission to erect a new wash plant, weighbridge and improved general infrastructure to the southern side of Puddletown Road.
The area north of Puddletown Road, which Raymond Brown has operated since 2006, has now been vacated and the plant decommissioned, with the remaining area levelled out for restoration. This original wash plant (c. 1980) was at the end of its useful life and did not have the dry scalping capability to remove +60mm.
Raymond Brown moved to the south side of Puddletown Road during 2016 and investment was made to install a new wash plant within the current extraction area. Originally, three articulated dump trucks were hauling mineral approx 1.3km to the northern site for processing. Now, on the southern side, only one dump truck is required. This has a considerable financial saving for the company and significant environmental savings.
The new wash plant has a dry scalping screen installed along with a lignite separator. The screen permits the dry removal of +60mm waste (clays, stones, etc.), making it easy to handle. The lignite separator removes a high percentage of lignite from the coarse sand, allowing a greater end use by customers.
An area formerly used for sand extraction has also been fully lined with clay to provide a new silt management area, which will accommodate silt arisings for the remaining life of the quarry.
The new weighbridge building has built-in air conditioning units and is completely sealed, allowing the operator a dust free environment. The weighbridge also features two external displays, automatic number plate recognition, CCTV and an intercom system permitting the driver to stay in the cab whilst communicating with the weighbridge operator. This saves time and is much safer as it reduces the need for customers to get out of their vehicles.
Civil engineering work took place over the summer of 2018 and the plant is now fully operational and already showing an improved rate of production and quality of product.
Two years ago we introduced three core values to the business: Passion, Responsibility and Engagement. As part of the Employee Satisfaction Surveys, we again asked employees to nominate their colleagues under each of the core value categories.
As a result of these nominations, four individuals were selected for exemplifying our core values within the workplace and acknowledged on 24 November at the Staff Christmas party with an award and gift voucher.
Passion – Simon Pinto, Binnegar Quarry Manager
Simon has been with the business for 11 years, having started as a plant operator. He has worked his way up through the company and most recently, stepped up whilst Felicity Breuning is on maternity leave. In this time, he has overseen the relocation and installation of the new wash plant on site.
Simon’s colleagues have praised his managerial skills and described him as being very professional in the way he communicates with both staff, subcontractors, customers and the local community and that he has a lot of respect from the site team.
Responsibility – Annmarie Read, Senior Site Technician
Annmarie has been with the business for two and half years, having supported the sites and grown her team in this time. Annmarie has been described by her colleagues as a hard worker and passionate about about making sure the company works to very high standards.
Engagement – Wayne Read, Fortis IBA A303 Processing Facility Assistant Site Manager
Wayne has worked with the business for seven years and was this year promoted from Plant Fitter to Assistant Site Manager for Fortis. Wayne has been described as always looking for ways to improve both operations and the business.
Overall – Vanessa Smith, Shift Manager at the A303 Materials Recovery Facility
Vanessa stood out across all areas with a remarkable number of nominations. She was also nominated last year and was the winner of the Responsibility Award.
Vanessa has been described as being very helpful and wanting to progress and develop site staff whilst putting safety first. Employees have said that it is a privilege to work with her and that she is:
“A very experienced manager with great people skills, very health and safety conscious and always looking for ways to improve.”
“She is always very helpful to everyone, takes care of details and always gets the job done in the best possible way.”
17 Safety Representatives from across the Raymond Brown Group took part in a Safety Training Day earlier this month at the A303 Enviropark.
The Safety Representatives were appointed this year from across each of the group businesses and their role is to raise awareness in health and safety and to help improve safety culture across the sites.
The training day was run by Heather McLintock, Health, Safety & Audit Manager, and its aim was to help recognise and control hazards within all aspects of the workplace environment as well as giving the representatives the opportunity to engage with each other and share feedback.
The course covered responsibility, workplace equipment, site set ups, signage, near misses, incidents and injury types.
The group were also given exercises on site which were focused around hazards and they were joined for lunch by Don Coates, Chief Executive Officer and Steve Clasby, Chief Operating Officer.
The feedback received after the event was extremely positive, with representatives stating that it was both enjoyable and a good opportunity to meet other staff and managers and understand safety across the business, not just in their own working environment.
Heather McLintock commented: “The safety reps are all volunteers and their role is much appreciated and vital to continue to promote safety within our sites. The day was a good opportunity for them to meet each other and discuss safety issues and solutions that may be similar throughout the group.”
A rain water and silt storage area has now been created and is located in Phase 1B of the quarry.
The ponds act as rain water storage for the site, allowing the water to then be used to operate the plant and for dust suppression.
The silt from the plant is also stored within the ponds, enabling the site team to stop using the centrifuge which was both costly and inefficient.
The silt now gets pumped via pipes direct to the ponds in Phase 1B, rather than being transported around the site by plant, meaning it is more economic and ecologically friendly.
The newly constructed phases 2 and 3 of the quarry have now been lined with clay and are ready for tipping with inert construction arisings.
Tipping will commence this week, with the first area containing 35,000 cubic metres and the second phase to contain 15,000 cubic metres of material.
It is intended that the cells will be filled and the topsoil laid in the new year, with the first crop of grass sown in spring.
Raymond Brown are delighted to announce Don Coates as the group’s new Chief Executive Officer.
The appointment is a key part of Raymond Brown’s future growth strategy, which will see Don steering the business through its growth and expansion plans.
Don commented: “Raymond Brown is a well-respected business and I am excited to be joining at a key time in the Group’s development when there are many great prospects. I will ensure that we remain committed to our employees, customers, local communities, health and safety and improving the environment, which underpins our core values. I look forward to supporting the senior team in leading the group through this next phase.”
Don has 30 years’ experience in manufacturing, working across a variety of sectors, and has led several businesses as CEO in both private and public company environments, including 17 years with DS Smith Plc, where his responsibilities included running the UK’s largest waste paper recycler.
Don will be working closely with Chief Operating Officer, Steve Clasby, Chief Financial Officer, Wayne Roberts, and the management team.
Steve Clasby commented: “On behalf of the Raymond Brown team, I would like to welcome Don, who we are thrilled to have on board. I very much look forward to working with Don to make the most of the opportunities ahead as we continue our success into the future.”
Roke Manor Quarry has received a number of oak tree saplings which have been grown by a local resident over the last few years with the help of her grandson.
The oak tree saplings, which are being nurtured by the site Weighbridge Operator, Beverley Rutter, will be planted within the quarry woodland over the coming months, with the potential for some to be planted at the nearby Brickworth Quarry as well, where around 5,000 trees are being planted as part of the site restoration work.