Home News From Sweden to America: First of Two Dryers Arrive at Sofidel Plant

From Sweden to America: First of Two Dryers Arrive at Sofidel Plant

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PICKAWAY COUNTY –

It started at just before 10:00 AM on Monday near Williamsport, Ohio and ended at approximately 4:30 PM on Tuesday, but the journey of the 170-ton dryer has finally finished, and is now ready for installation at Sodifel in Circleville.

Built by Valmet of Finland in their Swedish plant, the dryer journeyed over 10,000 kilometers (or 6,400 miles) to arrive in its final destination of Circleville, Ohio. Rather than being shipped by rail or air, it was sent first by cargo ship to Ohio by way of the Mississippi river. It then journeyed over the course of a week through the backroads of Ohio to Circleville.

Since it landed in Ohio, the dryer has been the subject of multiple stories, pictures, and videos from both newspapers, media outlets, and citizens bewildered by the lineman’s pomp and circumstance of the delivery. Crews from power companies, ODOT, the Ohio State Patrol, local Sheriff offices, and transport companies joined together to deliver the cargo to the new plant which is scheduled to be completed in 2019-2020.

Our first video contained the turn from SR 22 onto SR 104 near the Goody Nook gas station. Rather than go straight into Circleville, the massive 22-foot tall dryer could not go under the railroad underpass near the Scioto River, and was diverted north to SR 762. The journey of the dryer required it to make a giant U-turn in Pickaway county due to its requirement of not going under many overpasses in Pickaway County.

 

The Sofidel 170-ton Dryer is preparing to cross SR 762 and Ashville Pike, just north of Ashville proper.

Posted by Scioto Post on Monday, January 29, 2018

Approximately 2 hours later, the convoy was seen at SR 762 and Ashville Pike where it began its journey into Ashville. We covered both its entry onto Ashville Pike, as well as its turn onto SR 752. Initially, it was believed that the massive 520,000 pound truck and dryer would camp at Teays Valley Highschool, but a decision was made to continue onward towards SR 674 on the Pickaway-Fairfield border.

 

Ashville! Sofidel Dryer

Posted by Scioto Post on Monday, January 29, 2018

The turn at Ashville Pike and SR-752 was a delicate balance, requiring approximately 30 minutes of work by crews and drivers to get the vehicle onto the the road, while many onlookers got their first peek at the massive dryer coming through town at approximately 1:00 PM on Monday.

For the next four hours, the vehicle slowly made its way eastward to SR 674, and then southward to the intersection of SR-22 and SR-674 where it weathered for the night, as onlookers took pictures of the sitting truck, with many other road crews encamping nearby.

Submitted: Youngster Quinn Adams stands in front of the Sofidel Dryer, showing the size and scale of the 170-ton dryer. The entire truck rig weighed in at over 520,000 pounds according to ODOT.

Starting again on Tuesday at approximately 10:00 AM, the convoy shortly faced problems from the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office for an alleged violation of signage on the vehicle. Although the vehicle was situated in Pickaway County at the time of the stop, it took a significant amount of time to resolve the issues, with the convoy only getting underway again hours later.

Sofidel Dryer stopped on US 22 for inspection by Fairfield County

170-ton Sofidel Dryer stopped on US 22 for inspection by Fairfield County

Posted by Scioto Post on Tuesday, January 30, 2018

After the inspection, which according to ODOT was within parameters for weight, the vehicle finally made its “Triumphant” entry into Circleville, with dozens if not hundreds of onlookers lining Lancaster Pike, from Speedway to Zanzis, located on the corner of Main and Lancaster Pikes. Other media groups were on hand providing information concerning the event as well, and our own Jeremy Newman may have been seen in their videos.

More coverage Route 22 to Main Street turn.

Posted by Scioto Post on Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Dozens of vehicles lined Lancaster Pike for the turn onto Main Street, as the traffic lights located at the corner of Main & Lancaster Pike required multiple bucket trucks to alter the height of the poles to allow for the truck and its cargo to go through. Although traffic was put to a standstill for 15 to 20 minutes, the maneuver onto Main Street went according to plan, and traffic was allowed to return to normal at approximately 2:30 PM.

From Main, the vehicle zig-zagged onto Pickaway Street, then Ohio Street, then Court Street, then finally Huston Street to send the vehicle onto US 23. Streets were shut down one by one as the convoy made its way through the twists and turns of Circleville, being met by onlookers at nearly every intersection.

Dryer coverage continued. Main to Pickaway turn.

Posted by Scioto Post on Tuesday, January 30, 2018

She’s coming home! After a little over a week on the road Sofidels Dryer is making its final trip to the plant.

Posted by Scioto Post on Tuesday, January 30, 2018

With the successful delivery of the first dryer, the second one is currently located near the Ohio River, and is slated to be picked up and delivered again to Sofidel via convoy in approximately a week.

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