Saudi Cement Concrete Silos

Saudi Cement Company
Al Hofuf, Kingdom Saudi Arabia
2023-2025

Saudi Cement Company commissioned Structural Technologies (ST) and SIMCO Technologies to evaluate the condition of the storage silos and kiln foundations at its Hofuf plant. This initiative followed the observation of structural deterioration.  

A clear diagnosis for rehabilitation planning

SIMCO’s mandate was to determine the nature and extent of the damage and propose a sustainable repair strategy:

• Visual inspection & NDT testing
• Corrosion evaluation
• Core samples
• Laboratory testing
• Vibration monitoring
• Thermal modeling
• Degradation mechanism identification & root cause
• Load-bearing capacity analysis & dynamic behaviour
• Repair option recommendations

Data collection with minimum impact on the plant operation

A two-phase approach for condition assessment was implemented to minimize the impact on the operations. The first phase included minimal testing and sampling to establish; the type, cause, and extent of any ongoing concrete deterioration and potential risk of concrete deterioration. The first phase results were used to determine and specify the areas in which the second investigation would focus on to get a detailed assessment of the structure and provide repair recommendations. 

Image credit: Saudi Cement Company