FirstEnergy Corporation selected Roberts & Schaefer to provide design and engineering, procurement, construction, startup and commissioning for their new rapid discharge rail unloading (RDRU) facility at the W. H. Sammis Plant in Stratton, Ohio.

This new facility unloads railcars of coal at a rate of 4000 TPH to an open stockpile using a third (hot) rail system, which allows continuous railcar unloading. Vibratory feeders reclaim coal from the open stockpile to a new 1900-foot long 1000 TPH overland conveyor to another open stockpile. From there the exiting material handling system reclaims the coal and sends it to silos at the power plant.