The plant’s mixture of coal and shredded tires (TDF) hangs up on the feed hopper grizzley. The plant has removed several of the grizzley bars, creating a larger opening but material still hangs up. This bottleneck forces plant personnel to push the fuel mixture over the pit, and then get out of the loader to poke the pile through the grizzley with a shovel. 

To improve material flow, a Cougar^® Thumper Series Timed Impactor from Martin Engineering was installed to cover half of the grizzley’s four sections. Controlled by a pneumatic timer, the Cougar^® Thumper Series Timed Impactor delivers powerful “sledgehammer-like blows to stimulate material flow and prevent bottlenecks. 

When the plant is moving fuel, the operator turns on the air supply to the Cougar^® Thumper Series Timed Impactor. The device operates at a rate of 30 to 40 impacts per minute. With the Cougar^® Thumper Series Timed Impactor operating, there is continuous material flow, with no shoveling required. The operator can stay in the loader, to get the fuel moved more efficiently.