Now open in Pigeon Forge, our newest concrete plant is the most technologically advanced plant in the Smoky Mountain area. From the earliest planning stages, our goal was to construct an efficient, environmentally-friendly plant capable of serving our areas for many years to come. We used a combination of NRMCA Green-Star, NRMCA Sustainable Plants guidelines, and local green building programs to design a plant that minimizes our environmental footprint.
The Plant 7 is the first totally enclosed ready mix plant in this area. It is erected in an 8,000 square foot enclosure the completely covers all bins and silos to reduce air, noise, and light pollution. Fresh water supply to the plant is provided by a computer controlled variable frequency drive and automated well pumps to maximize electrical efficiency for pumping. In addition, the water system is capable of supplying municipal, well, or gray water recycled from truck washout. Numerous other green building design and operation elements were also incorporated throughout the office and plant areas.
Most significantly, we have adopted an Environmental Management System (EMS) based on the Green-Star program developed by the National Ready Mix Concrete Association. This system of continuous improvement addresses all environmental aspects of concrete plant operations and requires participating plants to develop and measure environmental goals over several cycles per year.
In February 2011, Plant 7 achieved Green-Star certification. It is only the 196th Green-Star plant in the world and the second in Tennessee.
For more information on NRMCA Green-Star certification, please visit www.nrmca.org/operations/ENVIRONMENT/certifications_greenstar.htm
