Indianapolis Power & Light Harding Street Station

Prior to this project, Indianapolis Power & Light (IP&L) only had the capability to unload and stockpile low-sulfur coal and reclaim it back to its plant. The project owner wanted to be able to stockpile and reclaim – through a series of conveyors – both high-and low-sulfur coal.

In completing this nearly $15-million design/build coal handling project, Kokosing reached three milestones.

• The first milestone was reached during a 26-day shutdown of the station’s existing low-sulfur conveyor system, so modifications could be made to allow both low- and high-sulfur coal to be accepted at the same loading point. In this phase, Kokosing assembled and erected a 221-foot, 42-inch-wide conveyor and partial erection of Transfer Tower 1.

• The second milestone provided the facility the capability to stockout high-sulfur coal. To accomplish this, Kokosing installed a 22-foot deep, 300-foot-by-16-foot cast-in-place reclaim tunnel, with three drawdown hoppers; a 305-foot-long, 7-foot-diameter escape tunnel; one drive and two transfer towers; and a 1,018-foot, 42-inch-wide belt conveyor.

• The third milestone provided the facility’s ability to reclaim high-sulfur coal, which Kokosing achieved by constructing a 1,275-foot, 42-inch-wide belt conveyor; modifying the existing crusher tower; and installing a belt scale and coal sampling system.

Kokosing’s design/build capabilities and experience with similar material handling projects benefited this project’s on-time completion.