Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/145964
A long conveyor carries material from the bottom of the pit up to the primary processing plant above. Las Vegas Paving continues to pave the way with high hopes for a better, busier tomorrow. by Kerry Clines, Contributing Editor E veryone knows the saying, "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." Well, that could very well be used to describe Las Vegas Paving's Blue Diamond Pit. While this pit is cranking out sand, gravel, and rock by the ton, most of what it produces stays right in Las Vegas. As a matter of fact, most people who live there or visit the town are driving on it. And many who recently bought new homes in the area are actually living on and in it. "We bought this place in 2001," says Rondo Nielson, purchasing agent for Las Vegas Paving. The operation was purchased from Rinker Materials, which had bought it from the original owners, Blue Diamond Materials. Hence, the operation's name: Blue Diamond Pit. When Las Vegas Paving purchased the operation, there was a large washing system and a clarifier with settling ponds. Rinker also left a batch plant on site. "It was too costly for them to pull it out, so we just took ownership," Nielson says. Since the batch plant isn't being used anymore, the company has started dismantling it. Las Vegas Paving spent quite a bit of time and energy cleaning up the pit after it was acquired. One major problem was the clay that was left behind in piles. This is slowly being removed. "We really take pride in this place," Nielson adds. "It's a nice plant. The entire plant is automated, and there are cameras everywhere. We can see everything on the screens in the control tower. I was the manager of this plant when we first bought it. We made a few changes when we took ownership. We 14 AGGREGATES MANAGER August 2013 PlantProfile_AGRM0813.indd 14 7/17/13 2:00 PM