Gelita USA Inc
RP Constructors Overhauls Railway System for World’s Largest Gelatin Manufacturer
The Client
Located in Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, Gelita USA Inc. operates the largest gelatin factory in the world. Its 30,000 square-foot facility supplies collagen proteins for the food, health and nutrition, and pharmaceutical industries.
As a global supplier, Gelita relies on its railway system to transport its products. The company’s system uses a rail spur, a series of track comprising of several thousand feet of rail spur. RP Constructors was hired by Gelita to analyze this system and reconstruct all rail at the facility.
What We Did
When the world’s largest gelatin manufacturer needed its entire railway system reconstructed, RP Constructors stepped up to successfully complete the job, while minimizing downtime. Gelita USA Inc. contracted RP Constructors to overhaul the entire system and collaborate with another firm to get the job done. The project was a starting point for a long-term working partnership between Gelita, RP Constructors and also CEC, RP Constructors’ in-house engineering firm.
In 2017, Gelita USA Inc. retained RP Constructors/CEC for an analysis of its existing rail system, comprising of more than 3,000 linear feet of linear track, along with reconstructing all rail at the facility. Gelita’s manufacturing facility is in an area with an existing infrastructure and the reliable availability of raw materials. An updated railway system helps the company capitalize on this prime location.
RP Constructors and CEC worked in a design-build capacity to develop staging plans that allowed the work to continue, without impacting daily operations. In the end, Gelita received an entirely updated rail system that allows the company to move product and keep up with its increased production capacity.
Services Provided
Topographic survey
Rail design and layout (horizontal and vertical)
Approximately 3,000 linear feet of track
Drainage improvements
Concrete paving improvements
Construction
RP Constructors delivered the project and kept downtime to a minimum. Due to our ability to work smoothly and efficiently, we cemented a partnership with Gelita, which led to additional emergency rail work and annual rail inspections through a partnership with Rhinehart. Gelita also retained our sister company, CEC, to design improvements for its wastewater treatment facility.
CEC Ensures Compliance for Wastewater Treatment Improvements
The plant utilizes several wastewater treatment lagoons that were constructed more than 20 years ago, far outliving their useful design life. Because the discharge is into the Missouri River, Gelita must obtain an NPDES Permit issued by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Gelita has developed a close partnership with Iowa DNR to upgrade the system, so compliance is essential.
CEC provided design, permitting, and a large amount of ancillary work for this enormous undertaking – Gelita’s wastewater facility generates an approximate organic loading equivalent to a community of 300,000 people; it generates 2 to 3 million gallons of wastewater per day.
CEC took DNR NPDES Permit limitations into account to develop improvements to the project in two phases. CEC also provided an expedited timeline to reduce the impact on Gelita’s daily operations.
CEC excels at wastewater pretreatment and final tertiary treatment evaluation and design. Our value is our experience and our ability to work within mandated regulations, keeping companies compliant, and on schedule. RP Constructors’ experience as civil contractors – we’ve constructed miles and miles of sanitary/process sewers, lift stations, and more, makes us a unique, valuable partner.
