The new asphalt mixing plant SWIETELSKY can produce regardless of the season

It replaced its older operating unit, the SWIETELSKY Magyarország, with a development completed at its site in Fejér County. The new asphalt mixer uses technology from a Swiss manufacturer to significantly reduce environmental impact and production costs.  

The plant was inaugurated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the plant's grand opening.

"An optimist plants a tree, an optimist plants a mixer even in times when economic conditions are not the best"

- stressed Zoltán Hegyi, Managing Director of SWIETELSKY Magyarország Kft. at the inauguration ceremony of the mixing plant.

"The investment would not have happened if the Hungarian subsidiary had not been backed by the owners. This shows their confidence in us. It is part of our way of thinking that if we don't keep up with the technical and technological developments in the market, we will not be able to keep up. That is why we have set up our 9th asphalt mixer in Székesfehérvár, Hungary."

The CEO added that the investment was driven by an environmentally conscious approach, as a result of which SWIETELSKY Magyarország Kft. is reducing its ecological footprint. He also emphasised the laboratory and technological background that can ensure the constant composition of the blends.

Zoltán Hegyi mentioned in his retrospect that the company started asphalt production in 1991, and its mixing units produce 300-500 tons of asphalt per year. This year, they will reach 9 700 050 tonnes, which, he said by way of comparison, could be used to build 40 200 km of 1 metre wide, 10 cm thick roads, just enough to circle the equator.  

Arpád Bognár, Managing Director of SWIETELSKY Magyarország Kft., said in response to a question from our newspaper: "In the 21 years I have been with the company, we have made many decisions that have not yet been taken, but we trusted ourselves to implement them. Even in the current economic climate, there doesn't seem to be a straight path to continuous production from the asphalt plant we just opened, but we are confident that in the short term, the facility will have enough work to not only sustain but produce results."

Klaus Bleckenwegner, group director of SWIETELSKY foreign companies, said that the completion of an investment of this magnitude is also an important milestone in the life of the Austrian parent company, as one of its main areas of activity is road construction. He stressed that the Hungarian team, whose expertise the parent company trusts, and the infrastructure background available in Székesfehérvár were necessary for this. He expressed the hope that the range of investors and customers would expand in the future and that orders would secure the operation of the asphalt mixer.

A 28-metre mixing tower helps production

The construction of the new mixing plant was motivated by the need to increase efficiency in addition to the above-mentioned aspects, László Hegyi, SWIETELSKY Magyarország's Area Manager told our portal. The construction works started in December 2023 on a one-hectare site within the company's premises in Székesfehérvár.
By March, the assembly of the 28-metre-high mixing tower and the construction of the various production units were completed.

Preparing for the test run

Construction then continued with the installation of the electrical cables and the pneumatic system. The next stages of the works included the installation of the bitumen piping and fittings and the installation of the automatic control system.
In the pre-testing phase, the installation of the so-called auxiliary units, including the foamed bitumen, the slurry spraying equipment and the additive dosing system, was carried out.

The plant can produce 210 tonnes of asphalt per hour in four seasons

The plant started production with a capacity of 210 tonnes per hour after a successful test run and the completion of the licensing process.

 

Currently, the new plant at the Székesfehérvár site supplies asphalt for the Adony-Dunaújváros section of the M6 motorway and the M8 motorway, but like the other units of SWIETELSKY Magyarország Kft., the Székesfehérvár plant also sells asphalt mix to external partners.

The plant can be operated independently of the season by heating with natural gas and fuel oil, which means a 12-month asphalt production capacity.

New mixer also recycles Mart asphalt

Another advantage of the mixing machine is that its technical solutions allow the production of WMA type asphalt mixes, i.e. moderately hot asphalt mixes. The equipment is technically suitable for REC batching of reclaimed asphalt up to 40 %. Both processes result in significant cost savings and reduced environmental impact.
Compared to conventional asphalt, WMA asphalt is produced at a significantly lower production temperature using foamed bitumen as a binder. Its mixing and placement temperature is 30-40 degrees Celsius lower than conventional asphalt mixes, which significantly reduces the production costs and energy requirements.
The WMA technology also has the advantage of further enhancing the quality of the asphalt produced and can be
compacted at lower temperatures with fewer roller passes than conventional hot mix asphalt.

The structure must be able to withstand an earthquake

László Hegyi stressed that the new facility will operate in accordance with the strictest environmental standards. We also learnt that, as this part of the country is seismologically active, the new blending plant had to meet the strictest standards. This had to be taken into account when sizing the steel structure, and it was also important that the plant could be relocated to any part of the country.