Instead of importing coke for an Illinois steel mill site, United States Steel wanted to move it there from its Clairton Works facility in Pennsylvania. Using special dump trailers, a new material handling system, and barge services, RiverLift has helped the company transport 200,000 tons of coke per year.
Background
United States Steel (USS)'s Granite City, IL site produces coke, but not enough to keep up with the steel orders on hand. To keep the furnaces running at full capacity, USS imported up to 200,000 tons of coke per year, mostly supplied from overseas through the Port of New Orleans. With supplies tight and ocean freight rates increasing dramatically, the company decided it was time to switch to a domestic source: its Clairton Works facility near Pittsburgh, PA.
Challenges
USS wanted to move 200,000 tons of furnace coke from Clairton Works to the Granite City steel mill site. All production coke was shipped out of Clairton Works by rail; more specifically, the site was designed to out-load coke into "high-top" rail cars. This presented a challenge because high-top rail cars were too tall to pass under a low highway bridge en route to Granite City.
Solution
RiverLift helped USS solve this transloading problem by enabling delivery to Granite City by barge, something Clairton Works had never done before. To do so, RiverLift purchased special dump trailers that were compatible with the rail car out-loading system at Clairton Works. Next, RiverLift installed a material handling system to transfer the coke directly from the trucks to barges. With the new system in place and 12 trucks assigned to the project, USS can now out-load barges at a rate of 2,500 tons per day. As a result, USS has increased furnace coke sales out of Clairton Works while simultaneously reducing import needs by more than 200,000 tons per year.
