Everything we use is from animals, plants or minerals. Our standard of living today depends upon products that use rocks and minerals from all over the world. The crushed stone industry supplies construction materials critical in building and maintaining airports, railroads and the world’s safest and most efficient highway system. Aggregate production plays a vital role in the nation's economy and in the quality of life for its residents. Imagine the difference in your life without - highways, paint, plastics, medicines, glass, driveways, concrete sidewalks, bridges, wallboard, vinyl, brick and stone, building and homes, concrete block, roofing tile, asphalt shingles, and minerals for agriculture.

Rocks and Minerals

What are minerals?
Minerals are naturally occurring elements or compounds. Each mineral has its own crystal and chemical makeup and physical qualities such as hardness and color. Rocks are made up of minerals.

What are the three types of rocks?

1. Igneous rocks are formed when melted rock cools and hardens. There are two types of igneous rocks, intrusive and extrusive. Intrusive rocks formed slowly within the earth. The most familiar intrusive rock is granite. Extrusive igneous rocks cooled quickly on the surface and the grains are generally too small to distinguish with the naked eye. An example is basalt.
2. Sedimentary rocks are formed by weathering and the layering of minerals, animals and plants. An example is sandstone.
3. Metamorphic rocks are formed when either sedimentary, metamorphic or igneous rocks are altered by pressure and heat deep inside the Earth's crust. Marble is a common metamorphic rock that is formed from limestone.

Common Questions About Quarry Operations

How do we find, drill & blast rock? First a geologist must locate large sources of rock in the earth with a drill. These sources are called reserves. Reserves are extracted from a quarry and reduced in size by blasting them. We hire experts to help with drilling and blasting because they are trained professionals who specialize in explosives.  The entire blasting process occurs in just a few seconds and varies in the design and size. Vibration and noise testing is conducted to ensure that blasting levels are within safe and legal boundaries.
How do we break rocks? Once the material has been blasted, workers use heavy equipment, such as a front-end loader, to excavate materials. The large pieces of rock are taken to a processing plant where the rock is put into a primary crusher that will break them into smaller rocks; secondary crushers make the rocks even smaller depending on what size we want to make.
How are aggregate products separated and stored? The word aggregates refers to rocks, sand, gravel and other materials that are processed for use in construction.  After the materials have been crushed they are separated into piles of the same size.  Piles of rocks of the same size are called stockpiles. This process is called screening. The crushed stone products are moved from one place to another via moving conveyor belts.  When customers come to our plant for a load of crushed stone, they get the material from one of our stockpiles.
What type of equipment is used in the quarry? Loaders are used to move material from a stockpile into a customer’s truck.  Bulldozers are used to keep stockpiles in place and haul trucks are used to move the blasted shot rock to the primary crusher.
What type of measures do we take to protect the environment? We work hard to reduce the environmental impact of our operations.  These are examples of just a few of the measures we employ: Utilize large water trucks to put down recycled water throughout the plant to keep the dust down on internal roads.  Install tire washing systems which trucks pass through before exiting our facilities. Sweep town access roads. Use high pressure water sprays for process dust control. Build containment tanks around fuel products.  Use overburden to build berms between a quarry and nearby residences to lessen the visual impact.
How does the final product reach the customer? Tilcon does not own a fleet of trucks.  Instead we utilize outside trucking companies to deliver our crushed stone products and asphalt. Since rocks are sold by the ton, trucks are weighed before loading and then again after loading.  The difference is the amount of product the customer will be billed for.  Weighing is also important because it helps make sure that trucks leave the quarry with a load that is of a legal weight. Stone is also delivered via barges that travel on the Hudson River from our Clinton Point and Haverstraw, New York locations.
What entities oversee mining operations? Each mining company must comply with strict local, state and federal regulations such as the Department of Labor, Department of Environmental Protection and Mine Safety Health Administration. These regulations apply to blasting, noise, water discharge, air, soil remediation, permitting and safety.

Common Questions About Asphalt Operations

What is Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA)? HMA is a product which is a mixture of asphalt cement (AC) and aggregates. AC is a thick black petroleum material that acts as the glue that holds the pavement together.  Aggregates make up about 95 percent, by weight, of the pavement mixture and include different sizes of crushed stone, gravel and sand.  Asphalt pavements are smooth, cost-effective to construct and maintain, durable, quiet, environmentally friendly and recyclable.

Why do we need HMA? More than 94 percent of the nation’s roads are paved with asphalt.  Roads take you to the places you want to go to such as school, places of worship, stores and and to visit with your family and friends. Quality roads are important for the timely transportation of goods and services. Hence the product we produce is linked directly to the freedom that we have come to take for granted as Americans.

What happens at an asphalt facility?  The paving aggregates are heated and dried, them mixed and coated with AC.  The HMA is often put in storage silos, then trucked to a paving site.

Why is it important to have an asphalt plant nearby? HMA is usually mixed at about 300 degrees.  The product needs to be placed hot so transporting the mix over long distances compromises the asphalt product. Asphalt plants are located near homes and businesses in order to provide a quality product.