ProAll Commander takes charge of volumetric mixers’ quality control essentials

72 Proi 400ProAll International will arrive at World of Concrete 2016 with the Commander, a new control system elevating Reimer Mixer performance. For construction contractors and concrete producers, the manufacturer notes, volumetric mixers have long been a solution for quality, cost-effective, on-site mixing. All of the mix components—stone, sand, cement and water—are loaded into separate compartments on one truck, metered, and mixed into fresh concrete in a high-production auger for a fresh mix anywhere.

Volumetric mixers have been susceptible to inconsistencies throughout a load, however, and require much technical skill to maintain mix specifications, ProAll officials note. Without a careful eye on the mix, slump could change and delivering a consistent pour could take constant, inexact adjustments to several aspects of the mixer. The Commander’s automated functions and digital controls net unprecedented accuracy and consistency, engineers contend. For the first time, elements of a mix are precision measured several times a second, and auto-controlled by an advanced PLC system. Unique to the Commander, all weighing, dosing and transfer functions of the mixer are connected, including belt speed, water, and cement. Hence, belt speed will always be constant and precisely linked to variable cement flow, water flow, and auger speed—yielding target slump and strength consistency. After operators set a water-cement ratio, the Commander does the rest.

“This new setup removes a large human error factor,” says ProAll Vice President Steve Fillmore. On typical volumetric mixers, he adds, “When you’re putting out a load your slump could change, but with the Commander your mixer stays at a constant rate and you’re not worried about your machine speeding up on you or something falling out of whack. Throughout the entire load—wheel barrow to wheel barrow—you know your mix will be accurate and consistent. Once you choose your mix specifications, nothing will change.”

Beyond the accuracy and consistency provided by automated mixer functions, operators can now take total command of pours with fully digital controls, all on one dashboard. All mix measurements are displayed together on one screen where production can be tracked in real time and warning messages appear if mix proportions become incorrect. All mix adjustments can also be made on the same panel. A single turn of the dial enables operators to change the concrete design strength, tweak water-cement ratio or adjust production and discharge speed. The Commander’s control panel will also track mix information for thousands of jobs, so operators can access job activity records daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly. Users can auto-set elements to a past mix design with the push of a button.

“There are so many distractions on a construction site, and while you’re pouring concrete there are a lot of things to worry about,” Fillmore explains. “With the Commander, one quick glance will show that all elements of your mix are in check. If you should need to make an adjustment, for example to add more water, it only takes a small, simple [move] on the dial. So you not only have more dexterity with your water control and an exact measurement on the screen, but you only have to make one adjustment because the belt and cement settings and everything else will automatically change according to the water adjustment you just made. Completing a pour will involve less strain, less stress, and inspire more confidence.”

World of Concrete attendees will also discover many other helpful features of the Reimer Mixer’s Commander control system, he adds, like a washout setting for quick and easy cleanup and joystick chute controls for ultra-responsive auger movement. “The way an operator now pours concrete with our mixer is unparalleled. It’s a more capable, more functional, more precise, and more responsive mixing experience,” Fillmore concludes. — ProAll International Manufacturing Inc., 403/335-9500; www.proallinc.com