Ellicott Customizes Dredge for Extreme Conditions

In response to a customer who wanted a customized electric bucketwheel dredge that could withstand desert-like conditions, Ellicott Dredges built a customized, easily transportable dredge. As the dredge had to travel halfway around the world, the Ellicott team designed a dredge that could be disassembled, easily transported over road and sea, and reassembled on-site. It is equipped with the company’s patented dual-wheel excavator 94, cutter engine, but unlike traditional 94’s that have 150 hp engines, this one has a 600 hp engine producing four times the power. The project site consists of mostly sand beneath the first few feet of water but under that is a deposit of halite mineral that is nearly 90 percent salt. The dredge therefore had to be constructed for a highly corrosive environment. Options included on the dredge included bolt-on-zinc-anodes, radiators to cool hydraulic fluid, and stainless piping and fasteners.

In May, a crew from Ellicott Dredges completed disassembly of the dredge. Various dredge sections and components were shipped breakbulk and crated in containers and then placed on a vessel that set sail for delivery from the Port of Baltimore.