Roller Grinding Mill Foundation Repair and Regrout

During Winter 2011 and Spring 2012, Alphatec Engineering partnered with Cementir Italia Srl in Caserta, Italy, to repair and regrout a critical roller grinding mill foundation at a cement plant.

Our solution focused on addressing excessive vibration levels by enhancing the bond between the mill’s base and its support structure.

Features

Project

1. Raw Mill 2. Foundation Repair and Regrout

Equipment

Roller Grinding Mill, Loesche LM 30.4, Tacke gearbox

Work period

21 – 30th September 2011, 16 – 26th January 2012

01 Challenges

Excessive Vibration

Poorly bonded concrete on a built-up I-beam cruciform structure led to high dynamic loading issues, compounded by the presence of oil.

Foundation Integrity

The mill foundation was grouted with standard concrete that lacked the resilience needed to transmit heavy loads effectively.

Extensive Repairs Avoidance

A complete rebuild was projected to take four months and incur significant costs.

02 Tailored Solution and Procedure

Epoxy Injection & Regrouting
Instead of a full rebuild, we implemented a targeted repair by injecting epoxy resin followed by regrouting with ALPHATEC® 800 high-performance epoxy grout.

Systematic Preparation

Removed drive motors and gearboxes for a clear inspection.
Verified the integrity of all 16-mill-stand M56 grade 3.6 steel anchor bolts using ultrasonic checks.
Drilled 12 major injection holes into the foundation to facilitate deep epoxy resin penetration.

Meticulous Application
After confirming the foundation’s overall condition, we ground and sanded all metal surfaces before mixing and pouring the epoxy grout back to the original level. For the second mill, the inner baseplate was slightly recessed and topped up with ALPHATEC® 170, a self-levelling chock grout.

Efficient Completion
All repair work was completed within 10 days, resulting in a notable 50% reduction in vibration levels and restoring smooth operational performance.

03 Conclusion

Through careful diagnosis, precision repairs, and the strategic use of high-performance epoxy grouts, the project successfully stabilised the roller grinding mill foundation.

The reduced vibration levels ensured uninterrupted cement production and enhanced overall operational safety—a testament to the effectiveness of our foundation remediation strategies.