On the site of Lanxess, in the heart of the Botlek area, Severfield Steel Construction realized a steel structure for a process unit and the associated pipe bridges. Lanxess produces and sells benzoic acid and its follow-up products. These are used, for example, in foods, personal care products and medicines. The contract for this project came from Forteck Infra B.V.
The objective of the Acid Capacity Expansion (ACE) project, as Emerald Kalama Chemical calls it, is to double the production capacity of benzoic acid. The project scope is the supply of vertical barrels, heat exchangers, a cooling tower, pipe bridges, pumps and a substation. The steel structure is about 50 metres high and contains 500 tonnes steel, including slatted floors, staircases, fencing and cage ladders. The bottom part of the steel structure has been provided with a fireproof coating up to 9 metres and the remaining part has been galvanized.
The upper section of the steel structure has been pre-assembled and then fixed as a whole on site. This concerned two parts weighing 45 tonnes and one part of 20 tonnes. We also placed the pipe bridges at the installation. The construction took place on the site of Lanxess in an operational work environment. This not only means that the space on site is limited, but also that high safety requirements must be met.