Council / Scord quarry mixing plant only expected to be back up and running in mid August
THE MIXING plant at the Scord quarry is now only expected to be back up and running as normal by mid August after delays in replacement parts arriving following a fault a couple of months ago.
Operator Shetland Islands Council (SIC) said it should be back in full operation by Monday 19 August – which is around one month later than previously anticipated.
A spokesperson for the council said the engineering company providing the replacement parts told the SIC that there had been “manufacturing issues”.
In a later update the SIC said: “In the short term however, we have been able to find an engineering solution that allows us to produce quantities of asphalt for current road works, and we are able to supply these to local contractors as well as for council works.”
The failure with the mixing equipment at the Scord quarry a couple of months ago has caused delays to road maintenance projects in Shetland.
For example surfacing of the new Sandwater-Kergord road, which was created for Viking Energy wind farm construction traffic but is being turned into a public road, has been delayed from late May.
Contractors involved in cable laying work from Sandwater to Lerwick have also had to use temporary concrete patches.
Lighting work at the Linkshouse pier has also been affected, while planned jobs at Tumblin, Punds, West Baila, Baila and Braefield in Lerwick have all been delayed.
It is understood that other small contractors/works will have been affected too.
A spokesperson for the council said replacement parts should now be delivered by 16 August.
“Installation of the new equipment will take a couple of days, so the plant is now expected to be back up and running by Monday 19th August,” they added.
The Scord quarry, located near Scalloway, produces materials like asphalt, grit and aggregate.
The largest customer of the quarry is the council’s own roads service, but it also serves the wider construction industry. It is the only local supplier of bitmac, which is used in road surfacing.
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