Update from Berlin-Waßmannsdorf: Four disc dryers for Berliner Wasserbetriebe’s new sewage sludge utilisation plant were successfully lifted into place in the first half of June.

The high-performance dryers from the Huber company had initially been temporarily stored and could now be moved to their final positions in the dryer building once construction of the buildings had progressed accordingly.

The first step was to set up the equipment for the installation – the skidding system, substructure support and towers – followed by setting up the two mobile cranes for the hoist. The first dryer was then transported to the installation site using a Self-Propelled Modular Transporter (SPMT), a special heavy-duty transport vehicle.

Once the cranes had been attached, the most challenging part followed: the hoisting of the 13.8 metre long, 82 tonne dryer onto the skidding system at a height of around 10 metres. Once this was complete, the dryer was moved to its final position in a controlled manner and stacked on the foundation.

After the necessary preparations and modifications to the skidding system, the three additional disc dryers were then installed. On 14 June, the ambitious undertaking was successfully completed with the hoisting in of the 3rd and 4th dryers – a great achievement by the entire team!

Video: The hoisting of the disc dryers in time lapse

We followed the work on film and captured it in a time lapse video.
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The overall project: turnkey and ready-to-operate sewage sludge utilisation plant for Berliner Wasserbetriebe

WTE is realising a turnkey and ready-to-operate sewage sludge utilisation plant for Berliner Wasserbetriebe at the Waßmannsdorf site, which will supplement the existing plant in Ruhleben. With a generous capacity for 64,000 tonnes DM/a plus 4,000 tonnes DM/a of screenings, the modular, extendable design and the overall energy efficiency, the new sewage sludge utilisation plant is designed to be future proof.

The disc dryers form a central element of the mechanical equipment of the sewage sludge utilisation plant, as they are used to further dewater the pre-dried sludge so that it can then be incinerated self-sufficiently (without additional fuel) in the fluidised bed furnace.

Further impressions of hoisting the disc dryers: