929 Park Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15234 800-562-5010 412-563-5556 sales@go-iec.com IEC TO REBUILD AERIAL TRAMWAY SYSTEM FOR MECHEL BLUESTONE, INC. Interstate Equipment Corp. (IEC) of Pittsburgh, PA has renegotiated a contract with Mechel Bluestone, Inc., new owners of the former Bluestone Coal Group, to rebuild an existing aerial tramway system for the company's premium quality hard coking coal operations. Located in Keystone, West Virginia, near Bluefield, thel project is designed to completely refurbish an existing tramway that was engineered and built by IEC for previous owner, Eastern Gas and Fuel Associates, in 1957. The new contract includes a rebuilt loading terminal, including new rails,tail sheave and spillage hopper system, as well as new pivot tower, breakover tower and discharge terminal. The Mechel Bluestone, Inc. facility is a continuous 20-car aerial tramway system designed to convey coal refuse at a rate of 350 tons per hour. During operation, material is transported by 40 cu. ft. tramcars from the loading terminal at 1680 ft. elevation to the discharge terminal located at 2219 ft. elevation. This represents a dramatic vertical elevation incline of 639 feet over the 1140 ft. length of the tramway system. When in operation, this system also features completely automatic controls requiring minimal supervision. Although situated in some of the most rugged terrain in rural West Virginia, the existing Keystone tramway system is proof of the design ingenuity, construction quality and low maintenance and operating cost of IEC tramway systems. For instance, after 50 years of service, many of the track cables installed in the 1957-built system are still in solid working condition today. This exceptional cable life is due to the fact that the original towers featured pivot approach rails for smoother breakover, less wear and longer cable life. In addition, many of the original steel structural components have proven as sound as the the day they were installed and, with minor refurbishing, will provide many more years of continued service. The Mechel Bluestone, Inc. project represents the latest in a 105-year legacy of revolutionary tramway designs that have helped earn IEC recognition as an industry leader. The company also offers a diverse line of innovative barge and material handling products, specialized engineered products, and design, engineering and installation services for customers in the power generation, petrochemical and metal/mining industries who routinely transport bulk materials by barge over inland waterways. Backed by over a century of continuous operating experience, IEC strives to benefit its customers by providing a wide range of proven alternatives to increase productivity and handling capacity, reduce energy consumption and minimize operating costs. Interstate Equipment Corporation 929 Park Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15234  (800) 562-5010 sales@go-iec.com Home     IEC Profile     Capabilities     Markets     Why IEC?     News Makers     Contact Us · INTERSTATE SHUTTLE BARGES SET NEW EFFICIENCY RECORDS AT TWO AmerenUE ELECTRIC GENERATING POWER STATIONS During the spring of 2007, AmerenUE, Missouri’s largest electric utility, launched new shuttle barges at both its Sioux and the Rush Island Power Stations’ coal unloading facilities on the Mississippi River near St. Louis. Designed and manufactured by Interstate Equipment Corporation (IEC), Pittsburgh, PA, these unique new vessels allow AmerenUE to effectively offload coal barge deliveries in record time…saving as much as 50% of the time previously required to perform the same operation. At the Rush Island Power Station, a typical 1500-ton coal barge, that previously required 1-hour and 20- minutes to unload, can now be offloaded in as little as 40 minutes…50% less time than the previous method. Similar savings have also been realized at AmerenUE’s Sioux Plant, where the IEC shuttle barge has helped reduce offloading time by as much as 1-hour and 10-minutes per barge…40% less than the previous time required. In fact, these results have been so impressive that one AmerenUE senior spokesman was prompted to state “the IEC shuttle barge has been the single most important improvement we’ve made at both plants as far as improving unloading efficiency.” The custom-designed shuttle barge and access system supplied by Interstate allows operating personnel to accommodate two coal barges at a time connected to the shuttle. As the first barge is fully offloaded, the unloader can immediately begin offloading the second, and the empty barge can be switched out for another loaded barge from the fleet, while unloading continues. Switch-out delays and downtime are minimized, and the unloader production cycle is rarely interrupted. The system also reduces manual labor normally required to connect and disconnect cargo barges, and safety conditions for operating personnel are greatly improved, especially during hazardous conditions such as high water or ice storms. AmerenUE is a subsidiary of St. Louis-based Ameren Corporation. The Ameren companies serve 2.4 million electric customers and almost one million natural gas customers in a 64,000- square mile area of Missouri and Illinois. Interstate offers a diverse line of barge and material handling products, specialized engineered products, and advanced design/engineering services for customers in the power generation, petrochemical, and metal and mining industries who routinely transport bulk materials by barge over inland waterways. The company’s innovative products and technology benefit customers by providing a wide range of proven alternatives to increase productivity and handling capacity, reduce energy consumption and minimize operating costs. · IEC  Contracted to Replace Haul Cable at Johnstown Inclined Plane The Cambria County Transit Authority (CamTran) has contracted IEC to replace the 2" haul cable on the Johnstown Inclined Plane November 2004. In service since 1891, the Johnstown Inclined Plane is the "The Steepest Vehicular Inclined Plane in the World" with a 70.9% grade. For more information on IEC's Passenger Handling and Service capabilities, please visit the Passenger Handling and Services pages of our website. · IEC to Perform Aerial Tramway Engineering for Alcoa World Alumina & Chemicals  IEC has been contracted to complete a continuous aerial tramway engineering study for bauxite handling at Alcoa Minerals of Jamaica, Inc. (Jamalco) Unit 3 Mine. IEC has been the recognized leader in continuous aerial tramway systems for over 50 years, and continues to provide service work on a majority of these systems, which are still in operation to this day. · Interstate Floating Dock System Helps Marathon/Ashland Reduce Fuel Unloading Time by 30 Percent  IEC, partnering with Aquarius Marine Inc. and HBC barge, engineered, manufactured and installed a custom built 100 ft. x 24 ft. floating dock barge, featuring today's latest equipment for tank barge lightering. Turnkey scope of supply included dock barge, walkways, mooring guides, cell construction and electrical. Ameren’s Rush Island Plant Shuttle Barge Ameren’s Sioux Plant Suttle Barge