Complete Document - K+S Aktiengesellschaft

The magazine for employees of the K+S Group
2
2014
ZKZ 24832
WWW.K-PLUS-S.COM
ENGLISH EDITION
Intense Activity
in Canada
Legacy – The vast project
in Saskatchewan that will
help secure the future of
K+S is progressing at a rapid
pace. The construction site
is transforming on a
monthly basis.
TRANSPORTATION
EXPERTISE
INFRASTRUCTURE
From the Hamburg port to
countless global destinations
K+S experts provide help
to Ugandan farmers
How the Erie Canal
brought salt to NYC
WORLDWIDE
2
WELTWEIT / MONDE / MUNDO / MUNDO
Our industry has finally stabilized itself
over the past months following ‘Black
Tuesday’ in July 2013 and the upset this
caused in the global potash market. The
lowest point of the price dip is most likely
behind us now, and demand for our products is reassuringly high. However, in order to maintain our long-term competitiveness, we still need to take a closer
look at our cost structures and business
processes. We’re doing this right now –
and I’m certain there still is a lot of room
for improvement across the group.
I am very pleased that our milestone Legacy Project project is progressing as
SCOOP 2/2014
planned. Currently, the first groundbreaking ceremony is two years behind us, and
the commencement of operations is two
years ahead – the perfect time for scoop
to dedicate the main story of this issue to
our Saskatchewan project. It’s impressive
to witness the energy and professionalism displayed by our Canadian colleagues
working together with us despite linguistic and cultural barriers, and to see the
amazing pace at which the Legacy Project is progressing.
The K+S Group will celebrate its 125th anniversary this October, and we have
many special events planned. Firstly, we
will hold a ‘Future Food Forum’ in Berlin
on October 9th; this will underline our
expertise in the area of global food security. Secondly, we will publish a book containing personal portraits of 20 K+S employees from around the world. This is
definitely something to look forward to!
Kind regards,
Chairman of the Executive Board
AWARD
WORKSHOP
CONFERENCE
K+S Potash Canada
Wins Safety Award
Brainstorming
at K+S Chile
Annual IFA Conference
in Australia
SASKATOON, CANADA / The
Saskatchewan Mining Association (SMA) presented K+S
­Potash Canada with an award
for its efforts and commitment
towards workplace safety. SMA
recognized the company’s success in preventing work-related
accidents. “This award was
earned by each and every employee of the Legacy Project,”
says Colin Braithwaite (center),
Vice President of Health, Safety
and Security at K+S Potash
Canada. The award was presented by Tim M
­ cMillan (l.), the
Provincial Minister of the Economy, responsible for Industry
and Resources, and SMA President Steve Fortney.
PUERTO MONTT,
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA / The annual conference of the International Fertilizer Industry Association (IFA) was held in Sydney
this May. 1,200 representatives
from the international fertilizer
industry converged for the 82nd
time. Chairman of the Executive
Board Norbert Steiner and
Member of the Board Dr. Andreas Radmacher welcomed
more than 160 customers and
partners from all over the world
at K+S KALI GmbH’s well-established customer reception. “This
event is a great opportunity for
us to strengthen our relationships with our international customers,” says Radmacher.
SMA, a non-profit organization,
annually awards member companies for the achievment of
safety milestones. As well as
KSPC, five other companies
from S
­ askatchewan received
the award this year. Eligibility is
based upon company statistics
for work-related accidents and
the frequency of injuries that
keep employees out of their
lines of work.
PERSONNEL
Management Team at K+S KALI GmbH
is complete again
KASSEL, GERMANY / As of July
1st the management team at
K+S KALI GmbH is once again
complete. In addition to Dr. Ralf
Dieckmann (right), who is
responsible for production and
technology, Alexa Hergenröther
already took over the Marketing
and Sales departments in early
June. ­Hergenröther previously
was the Chief Executive Officer
for K+S Chile S.A.. Dr. Ralph
Jäger, former CEO of the REW
Holding in Turkey, acts as
Commercial Director and Industrial Relations Director. “I’m
very much looking forward to
some exciting challenges and
in-depth dialog with our
employees,” says Jäger.
CHILE / K+S Chile held
an innovations brainstorming workshop for
its employees to contribute ideas and suggestions towards resource optimization.
The event in Puerto
Montt was attended
by representatives
from all company sites
in Chile. The insights
gained here are intended to help improve
planning and product
control processes, optimize storage capacities, and make the factory workflows more
efficient. The management team from K+S
Chile is currently assessing how the collected ideas can best
be implemented.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Gross profit decline in the first quarter lower than forecast
KASSEL, GERMANY / Chairman of the
Executive Board Norbert Steiner had
some very good news for the shareholders assembled at the 2014 AGM of
K+S AG. “The demand for our products
remains strong,” he announced to an
audience of more than 1,100 at the Kongress Palais Kassel. Steiner’s second announcement was that the gross profit
decline in the first quarter turned out
lower than the analysts had previously
forecast. Steiner also mentioned good
prospects for the future: “We are a
company with a very clear strategy.”
This, he explained, includes a strong
commitment to the Legacy Project as
well as the extensive range of measures
stipulated by ‘Fit for the Future.’
Cover: Kristopher Grunert (7) Photos: Bernd Schoelzchen, K+S AG (5) | Illustrations: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
NEWS
3
SCOOP 2/2014
GERMANY
Werra
WERRA PLANT
Virtual
Reality
CONTENTS
WORKING
4 Cover Good progress is being
made at the K+S construction
site in Saskatchewan, Canada.
9 K+S Chile is developing a salt
mixture to speed up copper
leaching.
10 Expertise Agronomist Daniel
Olol is on the road in Africa for
the Growth in Uganda Project.
LEARNING
12 Infrastructure The salt canal
from Lake Erie to New York is a
boon for the city.
14 Air duct: A system of tubing
provides fresh air underground.
15 Workplace wellness: A few
exercise tips.
16 K+S supports the Institute for
Applied Plant Nutrition (IAPN)
in the research of plant
nutrients.
18 Why do dwarfs wear pointy
hats?
SHARING
19 K+S is publishing a book
about the lives of 20 K+S
employees from around the
world on the occasion of its
125th anniversary.
20 Transportation Martin Dresen
is a loading inspector and tells
all about his work in the port.
22 An untreated natural table salt
is conquering the market:
SALDORO by esco.
24 Fun Page
Total darkness, a few hundred
horses under the hood, and tight
subterranean lanes: Controlling
our mighty mining loaders for the
first time isn’t an obstacle for
trainees. For two years now, they
have been able to prepare for the
real deal by practicing on a virtual
loader control deck at the Herfa
shaft mine. An operating cabin
mounted on a movable platform,
three big fixed screens, and a
full-featured pedal set convey a
very authentic loader experience
– especially when combined with
realistic simulations of all the
machine and mine sounds.
PUBLISHING DETAILS
Publisher: K+S Aktiengesellschaft
Editor-in-chief: Thomas Brandl
Telephone: (+49-561) 9301-1424
Fax: (+49-561) 9301-1666
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet: www.k-plus-s.com
Address: K+S Aktiengesellschaft,
Communication Services, Berthavon-Suttner-Strasse 7, 34131 Kassel
Photo Editing, Layout, and
Production: KircherBurkhardt
GmbH, Berlin
Print: Werbedruck GmbH Horst
Schreckhase, Spangenberg
Circulation: 22,500
Date of Publication: July 2014
4
WORKING
ARBEITEN / TRAVAILLER / TRABAJAR / TRABALHAR
Pioneers
on the
Prairie
Miles of machines:
The Legacy
construction site is
growing at a rapid
pace, visibly taking
shape with each
passing month.
High precision: A
project of this
magnitude
requires perfect
coordination.
SCOOP 2/2014
5
SCOOP 2/2014
Legacy: K+S Group is setting the stage for a
prosperous future in the boundless prairie of
western Canada. Two years after the
groundbreaking ceremony, the investment project
worth CAD $4.1 billion is starting to take shape.
CANADA
Saskatchewan
Regina
2,000 km
Photos: Kristopher Grunert (4) | Illustrations: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
Fotos: XXX | Grafik: XXX
The team of Dr. Ulrich Lamp
(third from the right)
regularly checks on how
the work is progressing.
BY THOMAS BRANDL
T
he pioneering spirit is alive and well,
and it has a name: Legacy. ‘In the
middle of nowhere’ – at least from
a German point of view – in the southern
part of Saskatchewan, a little more than
50 kilometers from the capital city of Regina and Moose Jaw and 18 kilometers from
the next town – Bethune, a village of 500
people. This is the site where several hundred men (and women) have been building K+S’s new potash production plant
since the summer of 2012. A pilot cavern
for extracting potassium-bearing brine
from a depth of roughly 1,500 meters, as
well as the first 72 production drills have
been completed. Preparations for expanding these drill holes into 36 caverns spread
across the vast estate are underway. Legacy is scheduled to go into production in
two years’ time, with a planned initial annual capacity of two million tonnes in 2017
and a final capacity of 2.86 million tonnes.
To put this into perspective, all European
K+S Group sites combined currently yield
approximately seven million tons. And the
possibilities in Canada are just as boundless as the country itself: Saskatchewan is
rich in natural resources, such as gold, diamonds, oil, gas, uranium, and, most importantly, 60 percent of the earth’s exploitable potash reserves.
“The decision to build this site demonstrated a great deal of business foresight,”
says Dr. Ulrich Lamp, CEO and President
K+S Potash Canada (KSPC). “It will contribute to securing the prosperity of the entire group.”
Two years into construction, Legacy
is growing at a breathtaking pace both
above and below the dusty prairie soil.
Caterpillar bulldozers are criss-crossing
the construction site, 30-ton trucks are
loading and dumping excavation in fiveminute intervals, workers are hammering,
sawing, cutting, digging, laying concrete.
“Every month it’s a completely different
view, the work is progressing at an amazing pace, but it’s really only the tip of the
iceberg,” says Gene Cochrane, Superintendent of Construction, with a smile. He has
been here from the start and exudes the
same enthusiasm as all other members
of the Legacy team, be it workers donning the blue K+S logo on their hard hats
or the logo of one of the contractors.
A Camp for 1,470 Workers
The skeleton frame of the three-story tank farm is completed and is scheduled for transfer to the operating team
in the fourth quarter of 2014. This same
applies to the warehouse, pumping station,
and lab. Intensive shuttering and pouring
work is being carried out for the central
component of the site, the evaporation,
crystallization, and separation building. A
concrete factory delivers up to 900 cubic
meters each day. At present, about 1,000
workers are on duty at this major construction site, and next year this number is set
to rise to over 2,000 during peak times.
A camp with 1,470 rooms was built
four kilometers from Legacy, as these
workers also need somewhere to stay. The
lodgings are equipped with single rooms
with a full bathroom, flat-screen TV, Internet, workout room, TV lounge, pool
table, foosball table, main lounge, and a
huge restaurant offering a broad selection
of dishes from satée skewers with hoisin
sauce and pepperoni pizza through to
‘German’ bratwurst. The chocolate-peanut butter mousse from patissière Paula
­Pilipov is especially popular with the workers. Her boss, Robert Burry, is proud of his
staff of 12, which will grow to a team of
80 to 90 by 2015. “Most workers gained
five to six pounds within the span of three
weeks, despite the hard work,” thanks to
his staff.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
»
6
WORKING
ARBEITEN / TRAVAILLER / TRABAJAR / TRABALHAR
Bird’s eye view of Legacy:
The access road is visible
at the top, the water
reservoir and above it the
tank farm at the bottom.
»
Switching gears: Deep drilling on Legacy’s
‘Pad 6,’ approximately four and a half kilometers from the center of the future potash plant. Dustin ­MacIntyre is carefully lifting three steel drill components,
each of which measures 9.5 meters
and weighs 300 kg, from the control
room of the 50-meter-tall drilling rig.
Coby Cockerill and Derek Marcinyk deftly
move into place and disassemble the drill
parts with hydraulic assistance before
they are suspended from the top of the
rig, looking like a bunch of pick-a-sticks.
This is physically taxing work. “Today we
reached the potash layer 1,600 meters
below the surface,” says their boss Les
Fredette with a satisfied smile. “We will
spend the next three days drawing samples.” The salt layer below Legacy is up to
80 meters thick. It contains three potash
seams measuring 18, eight, and six meters.
Visitors must climb one of the viewing platforms – or, better yet, take to the
air – to grasp the sheer scope of this project. Currently, construction and development work is taking place over an area
covering close to 50 square kilometers.
The existing mining rights already entail
a much larger region. Getting the logistics right is a tough challenge in itself, given the vastness of this construction site.
Kevin Brown, AMEC Project Manager, is
SCOOP 2/2014
Evaporation,
crystallization, and
separation: The core
component of the
future potash plant is
taking shape.
High-tech
computers control
the drilling process
1,600 meters below
the surface.
Delectable sweets from Paula’s patisserie:
The food served at the new Legacy camp is
highly popular.
“Fantastic cooperation
between Germans and
Canadians”
the director in charge of Legacy. He has
been handling similar jobs for 22 years, yet
this project in Saskatchewan is something
special: “It’s a rare opportunity to be able
to contribute to such a vast project taking
shape from the initial blueprint all the way
to going productive.”
Legacy is “right on schedule,” despite a
long and harsh winter in 2013–2014 with
high snowfall and bone-chilling temperatures bottoming out at minus 50°F. According to Brown, the reason for this is
the professional, detailed planning and
the “fantastic cooperation” between the
German and Canadian staff. Brown, Gernot Wittig (K+S), in charge of procurement, and Dr. Gerd Dahlhoff (controlling),
who was ‘loaned’ to the project from
Bayer, form the core management trio in
charge of the 250+ members of the Legacy Project Execution Team (LPET) under
the direction of Ulrich Lamp. Brown, Wittig, and Dahlhoff have ample experience,
acquired at large-scale construction projects around the world. The Technical Authority Team (TAT) led by K+S veteran Matthias Schrader is in charge of meeting the
quality criteria of K+S: “Our 25 engineers
from Germany and Canada ensure that
production processes and plant equipment vetted in Germany are utilized at
Legacy across all areas.” An ongoing opti-
7
SCOOP 2/2014
Solution
Mining
Condensed water
is reintroduced
into the cavern.
1 Water is pumped into the
80 m
salt rock formation. The
potash salt dissolves in water,
allowing the brine to be
transported to the surface.
2 The cavern is hydraulically
sealed. The water pumped
into the cavern displaces the
resulting brine, which is then
extracted to the surface via a
pipeline.
1,500 m
Several kilometers of pipes
connect the potash plant
with the drilling field.
36 caverns will have been
constructed deep underground by mid-2016.
3 An evaporation process
D ie s
performed above ground
extracts the potash salt
content from the brine and
solidifies it. The evaporated
water is condensed and
pumped back into the cavern.
el bla
nket
Photos: Kristopher Grunert (3), German Federal Press Office | Illustration: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
Cavity (cavern) filled
with liquid is formed
as the potash salt
dissolves.
K+S Is Major
Investor in
Western Canada
Canada’s Prime Minister Stephen
Harper praised the strong initiative
of German companies in Canada
during his recent visit to Germany
at the head of a business delegation. Recent investments amount to
$11 billion. K+S Group’s Legacy project is one of the largest investments today, with a total sum of
CAD $4.1 billion. K+S Chairman of
the Board Norbert Steiner met with
­Stephen Harper (front left), Chancellor Angela Merkel, and the President of Canadian Manufacturers &
Exporters, Jayson Myers in Berlin.
mization process helps keep investment
and operating costs as low as possible.
According to Schrader, one reason why coordination between LPET and TAT is working out so smoothly is “owing to Jochen
Kirn, our K+S engineer in the Legacy Project Execution Team.”
The leadership team at the KSPC headquarters located in Saskatoon, about a two
hours’ drive north of Legacy, is also busy,
doing the paperwork necessary to make
Legacy happen and to establish KSPC as
a new company in Saskatchewan. The
team comprises Eric Cline, Vice President
of Corporate Social Activity, Colin Braithwaite, Vice President of Health, Safety
and Security, Kim Poley, Vice President of
Human Resources and Corporate Services,
Terri Ulrich, General Counse, as well as Luis
Mendoza, Chief Financial Officer and Jan
Grommas, Manager, Legacy Program Coordination, all of whom are highly excited
about Legacy. KSPC now has a presence
in Vancouver, where Steffen Brill, Senior
Manager, SCM & Logistics, is in charge of
the overall execution and coordination
of the port, while construction engineer
Dr. Martin Ponzlet, Project Manager, Port
Project, from Bayer is directing the implementation of the harbor project.
K+S launched the LOTP (Legacy Operations Training Program) in order to spark
Potash layer
the enthusiasm of the European staff and
to introduce the Canadians to the high
technological standard of the European sites. The first wave of KSPC employees spent several weeks visiting the Werra, Zielitz, and Frisia Zout sites, and now
a German delegation is getting ready to
embark on a trip to Canada. These and all
other activities in preparation for starting
operations at Legacy are coordinated by
the Operational Readiness Team led Sam
Farris, Vice President of Operations.
Today, only a few tanks waiting to be
welded together dot the meadowy landscape, but in just a few months’ time, dozens of kilometers of silvery pipeline will
transport water from Buffalo Pond Lake
to the pumping station and on to the drill
holes, where it will wash valuable potash
from the rock one and a half kilometers
below the ground. Once they are finalized, each of the 36 caverns will be about
as large as the Munich Allianz Arena. Legacy will also be connected to the railway
network, so Canadian Pacific Railway is
presently constructing a ­30-km branch
line solely for this purpose – their largest
project in 40 years. The new line includes
a 14-km loop leading into the future potash plant, in addition to ca. six kilometers
of storage sidings.
The final product will have to make
a long journey before it can be loaded
onto ships delivering it to target ports
in ­China, India, Malaysia, and Brazil. Legacy and Vancouver are roughly 1,800 kilometers apart, and the trek also involves crossing the Rocky Mountains. The
freight trains scheduled to make the trip
twice a week will consist of a mind-boggling 177 carriages pulled across the Rockies by five locomotives, adding up to a total length of 2.6 kilometers. Each trip will
take three to four days. KSPC has already
signed an agreement with port service
provider Pacific Coast Terminals that allows the new company to build and operate a new warehouse and handling facility in V
­ ancouver.
Given the grand scale of the Legacy Project, it is imperative that all roject interfaces interconnect seamlessly and there
are no delays. “So far everything has been
running as smoothly as can be,” enthuses
Dr. Ulrich Lamp and the 180 employees, 80
of which are stationed at the Saskatoon
headquarters. Its address, by the way, has
a very nice ring to it: 220 Wall Street.
K+S Board Member Dr. Andreas
Radmacher discusses the global
potash market.
More on page 8
»
8
WORKING
ARBEITEN / TRAVAILLER / TRABAJAR / TRABALHAR
SCOOP 2/2014
“There Are Many Reasons for Us
to Be Optimistic about the Future.”
The ‘Black Tuesday’ on July 30, 2013 shook up the global potash market and destroyed €20 billion of
the producers’ stock value overnight. How are things looking one year after this crisis? K+S Board
Member Dr. Andreas Radmacher answers scoop’s questions.
When Uralkali CEO Vladislav
Baumgertner ended the strategic
alliance with Belaruskali a year ago,
potash prices plummeted across the
globe. Has the market recovered in the
meantime?
The market was characterized by a
strong sense of uncertainty months
after the incident, and our customers
exercised a great deal of purchasing
restraint during this time, across the
globe. The market recovered during the
first half of 2014, and demand for our
potash and magnesium products is on
the rise. Brazil, the number one market
of KALI GmbH even before Germany,
the Benelux countries, France, Malaysia,
Indonesia, and China, is growing rapidly.
So all in all, we are optimistic about the
future, even though prices are still
clearly below the level prevalent before
Black Tuesday.
How important is the Legacy Project
in this context?
It is without a doubt a crucial project! If
we want to profit from the annual
growth of the potash market as projected by the International Fertilizer Industry
Association, we need to increase our production. We will have to find other ways
to keep our customers satisfied until
Legacy goes operational. In the long run,
we need to secure more deposits.
Still, we do benefit from our special
product offering produced at these
sites, in particular at present: Standard
MOP is traded on the international
market for about $350 per ton, and the
SOP potassium sulfate commands
twice that price.
17,2
Global potash production
and sales by region
in million tons
4,9
7,0 5,7
18,7
9,8
26,3
2013 production
2013 sales
13,0
11,0
2,6
We welcome this margin, which is somewhat out of the ordinary, and it is in part
due to production losses and delivery
problems our competitors are currently
experiencing. Still, we should not capitalize on every price peak in order to prevent the price from straying too far away
from MOP. The high price for SOP also
carries the danger of causing consumers
to start looking for substitute products.
It is possible to artificially produce SOP
using the Mannheim procedure based on
the comparatively cheap MOP and sulfuric acid.
The present total production capacity
of potash is estimated at 70 to
75 million tons, which is much higher
than total consumption. Why do we
still need Legacy?
First, the figure is just a theoretical one.
0,8
Second, our production capacity in
­Germany will decline over time.
For example, Sigmundshall will be decommissioned sometime between 2020
and 2022, as the deposit will be depleted by then. Even if we only wanted to
hold on to our global market share of
approximately ten percent, we need to
produce more. If we want to raise our
share, then it’s a must. Legacy will allow
us to compensate for production losses
in Germany over the long term, and we
also gain better access to the growth
markets in Asia and Latin America. For
the next 40 to 50 years, we will continue to benefit from the special products
and the know-how of our sites and colleagues based in Germany.
What is your vision regarding the longterm strategy for K+S Business Unit
Potash and Magnesium Products in your
capacity as a member of the board?
It is no doubt an advantage that we are
the only player that produces potash on
two continents and has special products made in Germany.
But that’s not enough. We must strive
to leverage our strong production technology and application competence as
well as our in-depth knowledge of customers and markets to a much greater
extent. K+S is a global player in the potash and salt business. We are well
aware of the situation in all key growth
markets. We are currently setting up a
new office in India, and the next item
on the agenda is to take a closer look at
the African continent, where we are
present in South Africa. We should also
consider forging regional joint ventures
to produce refined special products. The
idea is to apply our know-how to generate more added value.
One last question: Would you give us
your forecast on the world market
price for potash at the end of 2014?
I expect the volatility to decline consistently, resulting in a stable market. But
it would be foolish to expect prices to
quickly return to the previous level in a
linear fashion.
Photos: Bernd Schoelzchen | Illustration: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
How is K+S, the world’s fifth largest
potash producer, different from other
market contenders?
We are considered a highly reliable business partner with extensive industry
know-how, qualified consulting, and
application expertise. Also, our kieserite-bearing deposits in Germany and
the resulting natural products such as
ESTA kieserite, potassium sulfate, patent potassium, and grain potassium,
provide us with an added edge. The only
problem – which is also due to the accident in Unterbreizbach in 2013 – is that
we are presently not always able to fully satisfy the demand of our customers.
A K+S Member of the
Board in the Business
Unit Potash since 2013:
Dr. Andreas Radmacher
9
SCOOP 2/2014
Number three in worldwide
metal consumption: Copper
is a sought-after material due
to its electrical conductivity.
The world needs copper, and conventional
extraction methods are no longer able to meet
demand. Researchers from the hydrometallurgy
department in Chile have developed a methodology
in cooperation with prestigious Chilean universities,
which enables more efficient copper extraction.
E
lectrical wires, car parts, Internet
cables, computer chips – in today’s
dynamic world, copper can be deployed for a staggering variety of uses.
This is because copper provides excellent
electrical conductivity, it is highly resilient to corrosion, and it is easy to shape.
In terms of global metal consumption, it is
second only to iron and aluminum.
Unlike salt, copper cannot be mined directly. It needs to be extracted from the
mined rubble, which is the copper ore.
This involves a process known as bioleaching, whereby microorganisms convert
the insoluble copper ore minerals into soluble salts. Unfortunately, this method has
two major disadvantages: the process is
very slow, and it requires huge quantities
of sulfuric acid. Consequently, scientists
and engineers have been working on alternative extraction methods. Some of
the more successful experiments have involved sea salt, which is where researchers from K+S Chile enter the game. They
took on the salt idea to develop it to a
viable level: “The idea of using salt as a
substance in copper extraction is still relatively new. However, initial testing has
shown that this approach to extraction is
extremely promising,” says Oscar Engdahl
Toledo. Together with his colleagues from
the Mining and Road department at K+S
Chile, the engineer is in charge of the company’s activities in the copper extraction
market. Engdahl believes this new technology offers very exciting opportunities
both for the company and for industry as
a whole.
Engdahl and his colleagues are pursuing
the idea of heap leaching: copper ore is
broken into rubble and infused with a
leach consisting of sodium chloride and
sulfuric acid. The stacked-up heaps are
then periodically sprayed with water, and
the leach sinks to the bottom. The salt
makes the sulfur and gangue, which are
two of the substances found in copper
ore, more porous and permeable. This enables faster movement of the copper ions.
It only takes 120 to 150 days for 80 percent
of all the copper ions to be released. “Bioleaching takes more than twice as long to
release the same quantity,” says Engdahl.
Pure salt for solid copper: K+S Chile’s salt
mine in the Atacama Desert.
Copper leaching
1 Copper ore
is mined.
2 The ore is
broken down
into rubble.
The copper ion-infused solution is then
subjected to electrolysis to produce solid
copper.
The researchers at K+S Chile have
managed to develop an ideal leach mix
that employs hydrochloric acid instead
of sulfuric acid as the leaching agent, in
collaboration with the Federico Santa
María Technical University in Valparaíso.
As this is more efficient, ca. 30 percent
less acid is required in the process. “The
collaboration with the university is very
important to us,” says Engdahl. “Thanks
to this joint research project, we can now
offer our customers individual solutions
on how to make the best use of salt for
extracting copper.” The exact composition of the leach varies between different
ore types and different mines. K+S Chile
is planning to construct a pilot plant that
will also facilitate real-world trials in order to make further use of the research
undertaken at the sophisticated laboratories. “The market for salt as a substance in
copper extraction is just beginning. In the
near future, we are expecting significant
growth in Chile and Peru, both of which
are home to major copper deposits,”
reports Engdahl.
Liquid-liquid extraction
and electrolysis are used
to obtain copper ions from
the solution.
3 The ore rubble is agglomerated and
mixed with sodium chloride, sulfuric or
hydrochloric acid, and water. After a
settling period, it is stacked into heaps.
4 The ore heaps are sprayed with
water, which releases the copper
ions. They are then collected in an
enriched solution.
5 The end result:
solid copper
cathode.
Photos: mauritius images, K+S AG | Illustration: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
Salt Sets
the Pace
10 WORKING
ARBEITEN / TRAVAILLER / TRABAJAR / TRABALHAR
SCOOP 2/2014
Daniel Olol
prepared for
his task in
Germany.
From the Field to the
Home and the Market
K+S is working towards better food security in
Africa with its Growth for Uganda Project. Our
experts are traversing the country to provide
training to local farmers.
out into the country so they can engage
with farmers face-to-face. The vehicle is
part of the Growth for Uganda Project,
which was developed and implemented
by K+S KALI GmbH together with Sasaka-
BY STINA BEBENROTH
D
aniel Olol leaves his house early
in the morning. The air is humid
and heavy. There has been plenty
of rain, as is often the case in this part of
Uganda. Despite this, the temperature is
already close to 77°F. Olol, a young agronomist, meets his colleague Joe Kakakiri by
the noticeably marked ‘KALI Bull’ truck. After a quick talk, the team heads off into
the rural parts of the Dokolo and Apac districts located in the north of Uganda. They
will be covering around 200 kilometers to-
day. The surrounding landscape seems to
be exploding with growth; the fields and
paddocks along the red gravel track are
smothered in plants. To Olol, this is entirely normal – he is focused on the meeting that lies ahead. “Our countryside is full
of fertile land. Unfortunately, the majority of our local farmers don’t have the expertise to make the best of their crops. It’s
our job to show them how they can improve yields,” he says. Every day, Olol and
his team take their mobile training center
The mobile training center is handed over
to Daniel Olol at the K+S headquarters.
wa Africa Association, a pan-­African NGO.
Olol and his team present crop trials to local farmers with the training equipment
that comes with the specially-built vehicle. They demonstrate how to increase
yields using fertilizers and more strategic crop management. “As soon as they
realize that our support will help them
achieve higher crop yields, the farmers
are very enthusiastic about applying the
methods we teach,” explains Olol. The
team also uses the mobile training vehicle to check in on the individual farmers
and their fields and see how they are doing with the new methods, providing advice and any further training. “Our work
considerably improves the local farming
population’s quality of life and has a positive impact on Uganda’s agricultural sector as a whole,” he says.
Photos: Marlene Dach (5), Andreas Gransee, K+S AG, shutterstock | Illustrations: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
Training sessions offered
by K+S and Sasakawa are
for many local farmers
the first time that they
have learned the importance of nutrients to
grow crops.
11
SCOOP 2/2014
Applying the training
expertise in the field is
an essential aspect of
the ‘Growth for
Uganda’ project.
K+S Project Supervisor Prof. Gransee
(l.) with Andreas Oswald (r.) and
­Sasakawa Director ­Roselinne
Nyamutale (fourth from the left,
light-colored dress).
WAR-TORN
Until 2006, the regions of Dokolo
and Apac were deeply affected by
civil war. The population regularly
experienced severe food
shortages.
Dokolo
Apac
UGANDA
UGANDA
Kampala
L ake V i c to ri a
Aiming for a Snowball Effect
Olol prepared for this ambitious undertaking over several weeks spent at K+S KALI
GmbH’s research and application laboratories in Germany. “We wanted to provide Olol with the best possible training
to ensure that the project would be a suc-
“To date, we have shown
almost 30,000 farmers
how to increase their crop
yields through the use of
suitable fertilizers.”
cess for all those involved,” says Prof. Andreas Gransee, Head of Applied Research
and Advisory Service Industry at K+S KALI
GmbH. Gransee took over for Johann-Pe-
ter Bauza in early 2014 and has been supervising the project since then. “The optimal
use of soil and plants is of paramount importance to food security in Africa. It’s also
important that we help develop a complete value-adding chain; otherwise, we
might increase yields and it ends up being
only a temporary fix,” he explains. That’s
why the work carried out by the mobile
training center is just one facet of the
overall joint initiative between K+S KALI
GmbH and the Sasakawa Africa Association. “We’re aiming for a snowball effect,”
says team member Andreas Oswald in
reference to the approach pursued on the
ground. Together with his colleague Hillary Rugema, Oswald is organizing a crash
course on plant nutrition – again supported by K+S KALI GmbH. “To date, we have
shown close to 30,000 farmers how to
Global Engagement
for Food Security
Collaborating with Sasakawa isn’t the
only international development project
that K+S KALI GmbH supports. The
company is also a founding member of
the German Food Partnership, together
with GIZ (German Society for International Collaboration) and BMZ (German
Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development). This partnership aims to increase food security
through joint projects for improving
added-value chains in regions such as
Africa and Asia. One of the initiatives
K+S is part of is to improve potato crop
growing in Kenya. There are other projects in India, Indonesia, and Turkey.
K E N YA
best fertilize and care for their crops, and
how they can pass on this knowledge.”
They return to their communities after the
course and share their new expertise with
other farmers, helping promote improved
crop growing across Uganda.
In the north, Sasakawa is training socalled agro-input dealers,who are responsible for the local sale of seeds and fertilizers. “We show them the quantities
needed and tell them the best times for
sowing and fertilizing,” reports Oswald.
In addition, these dealers ensure that the
majority of the yields can be brought to
market. “Our figures prove that farmers
can increase their crop yields by 100 percent if they use our fertilizers, such as
grain potash. However, this will only make
a real difference in the long term if they
also manage to make money from their
crops,” says Gransee in explaining the pivotal role of the agro-input dealers.
The idea of selling their crops is entirely new to most farmers, according to
­Oswald: “Until now, it was assumed that
the sole purpose of growing food was to
feed yourself and your family. Knowing
that they can also use their crops to earn
an income will make a huge difference to
their long-term perspectives.”
Olol is very happy with the project and
his role. “I love getting on the road in the
truck,” he enthuses. “It’s great seeing how
we’re improving the lives of these farmers
once they apply our advice.”
12 LEARNING
LERNEN / APPRENDRE / APRENDER / APRENDER
SE RI E
SCOOP 2/2014
S
SALT
HISTO IN
RY
The ‘Folly’ That Made
New York a Metropolis
Detroit
Salt was scarce and in high demand in the founding years of the
United States of America. The newly constructed Erie Canal did
more than just facilitate the transportation of raw materials;
it also altered cities and huge stretches of land.
W
hen Governor DeWitt Clinton
stepped onto the deck of the
‘Seneca’ on Lake Erie in New
York on October 26, 1825, the future lay
before him. On that day, he inaugurated
the 600-kilometer-long Erie Canal, which
led from the Great Lakes in the north to
the Hudson River. The canal was one of
the largest and most extensive construction projects ever completed at that time
in the relatively young United States, and
it would shape the face of entire cities
and regions forever after. There was one
main reason for the canal’s construction:
salt.
In the 17th century, missionaries
had already discovered salt springs in
the area around Lake Erie. Yields grew
steadily; while in 1797, 25,000 bushels
(880 cubic meters) of salt were harvested annually, output had exploded to ap-
proximately three million bushels within a decade. The only problem was that
it was a long, arduous, and dangerous
trip to transport the salt to New York
City, where it could be exported to the
rest of the world. For this reason, in 1808,
Joshua Forman, a businessman from Salina, proposed constructing a canal that
would connect the salt production sites
with New York’s harbor to facilitate the
expansion of the salt industries. However, his suggestion initially fell on deaf
ears: the project seemed too expensive,
too complex, and too impossible. The
The canal was twelve
meters wide, 1.2 meters
deep, and ultimately cost
roughly $7.5 million.
route wasn’t just long; it also crossed
swamps, forests, and rocky crags. There
was no heavy machinery in the US back
then, and the country also lacked skilled
workers. What’s more, the cost of constructing the canal was immense. It was
estimated at around $6 million, which, at
the time, was approximately three-quarters of the federal government’s budget.
However, Clinton still supported building
the canal, which earned the project the
nickname ‘Clinton’s folly.’ It was thanks
to Clinton’s persistence that the plan ultimately became a reality.
The salt from Lake Erie was taxed at
a rate of 12.5 cents a bushel in order to
finance the construction of the canal. It
was one of the few times when a salt tax
didn’t cause discontent among the population, as everyone hoped that the canal would bring prosperity. In the end,
the Erie Canal was almost twelve meters wide, but very shallow. The state of
New York had limited resources and was
only able to dig a depth of 1.2 meters, so
horses and mules had to be harnessed to
tow the ships from the harbor.
The canal was an incredible economic success. Transportation costs dropped,
customs revenue increased, and the cities along the canal are still some the largest in New York, even today. However, the
greatest change the canal brought was
making New York City an important trade
hub. The share of total exports transported through the city increased from six to
more than 60 percent from 1800 to 1860.
During the same period, the city’s population exploded from 120,000 to 814,000.
Later, the Erie Canal was expanded and
renamed. Today, it is mainly traveled by
recreational boats.
POPULATION FIGURES
1860
1800
120,000
814,000
Photos: Agentur Bridgeman, ullstein bild, Bettmann/Corbis | Graphics: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
New York City’s population
skyrocketed as a result of its
new economic importance.
SCOOP 2/2014
13
Rochester
Syracuse
Buffalo
C ANADA
L ake Eri e
USA
New York
City
Albany
THE ERIE CANAL
connected Lake Erie in the
north of New York with the
Hudson River over a distance
of 600 kilometers. Up to
50,000 workers, including
several hundred German
stone masons, labored
simultaneously to construct
the canal.
Hu dso n
Ri ver
USA
New York
City
DeWitt Clinton dumped a barrel of water
from Lake Erie into the harbor in New York
City to mark the ‘wedding of the waters’ at
the end of a maiden voyage on the canal.
Horses and mules towed ships along the Erie Canal at a
speed of six kilometers per hour.
The Birth of
a Legend
New York City isn’t the only place that has the Erie
Canal to thank for its growth. The founding of Morton
Salt is also closely tied to the construction of the canal –
because the canal connected the salt springs with both
the Hudson River and the Great Lakes. The salt was transported to Chicago via the Great Lakes, and from there, it
made its way across the entire Midwest. In 1848, Alonzo
Richmond founded an agency called Richmond & Company that transported and distributed the salt from
the Erie Canal. 41 years later, Joy Morton acquired
the agency and laid the foundation for the company that still exists today.
14 LEARNING
LERNEN / APPRENDRE / APRENDER / APRENDER
SCOOP 2/2014
SE RI ES
THE AIR DUCT
F ROM T
WORLD H E
OF
K+S
Fresh Air Underground
Mines have to be ventilated in order for
people to be able to work underground.
Ducts let fresh air in and stale air out. A
system of tunnels provides this fresh air
in a mine. Connector systems composed
of enormous plastic tubes – the air
ducts – are used to help draw fresh air
in and regulate proper air exchange.
There are two different types. The first
are spiral ducts, which are supported
by spiral coils and consequently do
not collapse, but which are also very
heavy as a result of their structure and
materials. The second are flat ducts,
which only have a rigid ring at the
beginning and end of the tube. They do
not inflate until air is flowing through
them. Multiple ducts are connected
to create a duct system, which can be
several hundred meters long.
ENORMOUS UNDERTAKING
In Zielitz, between 45,000 and
47,000 cubic meters of fresh air are
drawn in per minute. Once underground, this air has to be distributed,
which is accomplished by means of a
200 to 250 meter long network of air
ducts. The strength of the fan at the
end that distributes the air is the decisive factor here. The more powerful
the fan, the longer the duct system.
WIRED UP
Spiral and flat ducts are
alternately connected to
one another. This is
accomplished by means of
plastic brackets in Zielitz.
HUGE TUBES
The individual duct
segments at the Zielitz
plant are five meters
long, with a diameter
of one meter.
THICK SKIN
STRONG ENDS
The ‘skeleton’ of the duct is
comprised of spring-steel wire
spirals that are sealed to a rubber
skin (polyvinyl chloride). This
prevents it from rusting.
There are numerous
situations in which a
ventilation system
ensures that humans or
animals have fresh air.
SNORKEL
TERMITES
A plastic or rubber tube
allows swimmers to breathe
underwater. A snorkel
should not be longer than
40 cm; otherwise, the
snorkeler runs the risk of
accidentally breathing
exhaled air in again.
Termites living in an averagesized structure require approximately 300 liters of oxygen every
day. Their mounds, which can be
up to three meters high, have a
branched ventilation system that
regulates the temperature, humidity, and oxygen levels.
Photos: Alamy, Anna Reinert/ddp images, K+S AG
Take a Deep
Breath
The end of every duct is
equipped with sealed, flexible
rings made of PVC-coated
spring-steel stranded wire.
15
SCOOP 2/2014
Exercise
Part 2
Workplace
wellness
How K+S helps to
promote employee
wellbeing
W
Stretching can increase muscle control,
flexibility, and range of motion. Here are a
few exercises to help loosen muscles.
1
EAGLE Exhale,
pull together
arms and
shoulder blades
in a sweeping
motion, and push
them down at
the back. Inhale,
exhale, and hold
for 10–12 seconds.
2
RELIEVE UPPER ARMS
Raise and lower the arm
while holding an object
(such as a bottle).
orkplace wellness can benefit both employers and
employees. “We realized
years ago that demographic change
will pose one of the biggest challenges to workplaces in the 21st century,”
states ­Dietlinde Wendland-Neumann,
Coordinator of Occupational Health
Management. “The portions of their
lives people spend working are getting longer and longer, which means
that aspects such as health – and even
productivity – are becoming increasingly important as people age.”
In 2008, K+S signed the Luxembourg
Declaration. This European Union initiative aims to establish a network of
workplace best practices by develop-
K+S is dedicated to
raising awareness
on important health
topics.
3
JUMPING JACKS Put
your feet together and
raise your arms. Drop
your arms down to your sides
and at the same time bring
your legs out to the side
about shoulder width. Return
to starting position.
Illustrations: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
4
STRETCHING Relieve body
tension by gently stretching
to the left and to the right.
Stress? A little exercise
can help!
Stress can impact employee health, and
in turn, productivity. Mind and body alike
need to take short breaks from time to
time. Read the next issue of scoop for tips
on relaxing in just a few minutes.
5
LATERAL LEG LIFT
Spread your legs
about shoulder
width apart with your
feet slightly pointing
outwards. Slowly lift
one leg to the side.
Stand with an erect
posture at all times.
ing health management guidelines for
the European private sector.
K+S established a central coordinator role for occupational health management in 2009 in order to align the
company’s activities with the initiative’s core principles. “We have formed
a strong network and are learning a
lot from each other. We are taking full
advantage of our synergies,” states
Wendland-Neumann. “Today, we have
managed to firmly embed occupational
health management in the structures
and processes of our company.”
Workplace structures, programs
and conditions are continually being
improved to accommodate health
and other factors in close cooperation with employees. Throughout
the K+S Group, employees are offered
health and lifestyle programs such as
fitness campaigns and educational
events. These include nutritional advice, smoking cessation, courses on
stress management and relaxation,
colon cancer prevention, as well as spinal health training sessions and a variety of sports activities.
“By increasing awareness and
knowledge of ways to improve
their health, we are creating a better workplace for employees and
supporting their personal development,” says Dietlinde Wendland-Neumann.
16 LEARNING
LERNEN / APPRENDRE / APRENDER / APRENDER
Progress – Thanks
to Strong Partners
K+S is working together with Göttingen University
at the Institute of Applied Plant Nutrition (IAPN) in
Göttingen, Germany, where scientists are researching
optimal nourishment for plants in arid environments.
The research is of great benefit both to K+S and IAPN.
BY STINA BEBENROTH
B
álint Jákli carefully lifts the lid off and dry up. By altering the solution’s nuthe plant bucket and pours a small trient composition, Jákli can find out exquantity of sticky white powder actly which nutrients are required for the
into the water. He checks the weight plant to cope with higher aridity levels.
and then moves on to the next plant. The
plants are illuminated by yellow lamps A Mutually Beneficial Partnership
and lined up in long rows that fill the en- “This kind of research is invaluable to
tire greenhouse. The air is warm and hu- farmers in arid areas, such as in Africa and
mid, but one characteristic smell is ab- parts of Asia,” comments Prof. Klaus Ditsent. “We don’t use any soil here. The tert. The professor, who also holds a docplants grow on a nutrient solution that torate degree, is director of the institute.
we closely monitor,” says Jákli.
He was a key contributor to the cooperJákli is a doctoral student at the Insti- ative agreement entered into with K+S
tute of Applied Plant Nutrition (IAPN), KALI GmbH. In response to global climate
which is jointly operated by K+S KALI change over the last decade, the univerGmbH and the Georg August Univer- sity had been looking for funding to exsity of Göttingen. Jákli’s research proj- pand its Plant Nutrition Department. Adect is a showpiece for the institute, as it ditionally, population increases have led
perfectly exemplifies its main concepts. to growing crops in-less-than-optimal ar“I’m examining how plants, such as crop eas. “We need a lot more research in orgrasses, respond to excessive aridity, i.e., der for this not to turn into a major probwhat happens when they don’t receive lem,” says Dittert. Prof. Andreas Gransee,
enough water,” he says. He
Head of K+S KALI GmbH’s
also examines which nutriAFB Agro department (Apents need to be supplied Research and
plied Research and Adviin which shape in order to practice are
sory Service Industry), was
produce consistent yields closely
more than receptive to Ditin such challenging conditert’s ideas. “Our compaintertwined,
tions. “I’m focusing on the
ny needs to adapt to the
use of potash. This nutri- thanks to the
changes in conditions and
find answers to some very
ent strongly affects how collaborative
fundamental questions.”
the stomas on the leaves partnership
behave. The stomas are reToday, the focus has shifted
between K+S
sponsible for how the plant
from just increasing yields
to more efficiency in nutrigives off water.” Introduc- and IAPN.
ing the powdered white
ent management – which
potash means that a plant can absorb is of particular importance in arid parts
less water while the amount of nutrient of the world. “Only if we manage to keep
solution it feeds on remains the same. expanding our expert knowledge in this
This way, J­ákli is simulating arid condi- area will we be able to produce fertilizers
tions as they are encountered in nature. that properly address the changing conPlants that receive an optimal amount of ditions,” explains Gransee. The issue of
nourishment close their stomas, which water scarcity is already an international
makes them consume less water. While cause of concern, and for many countries,
this means that they will not grow as fast, it is the biggest problem there is.
it also means that the crop yields stay the
With these considerations in mind, K+S
same. Plants without an optimal supply KALI GmbH and the Georg August Univerof nutrients, on the other hand, are un- sity of Göttingen jointly founded the Inable to compensate for the loss of water, stitute of Applied Plant Nutrition (IAPN)
Bálint Jákli
carefully analyzes
and documents
nutrient levels.
From the left: Prof. Andreas Gransee, Prof. Klaus Dittert, Bálint Jákli, Dr. Daphne Jost
(K+S KALI GmbH).
17
Photos: Carsten Herwig | Illustration: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
Bálint Jákli (r.) and
his colleagues
examine the plants
in the greenhouse.
in November 2010; within two years, the
project had progressed to a stage where
the institute could commence research
at its campus facilities. Based on a publicprivate-partnership model, the university supplies the premises, and the company funds the researchers. In addition, K+S
KALI supplies fertilizer for field trials. “The
institute remains independent despite
our close cooperation. This is very important to the university,” asserts D
­ ittert. As
well as Dittert and Jákli, there is a junior
professor and two further doctoral students conducting research at IAPN. In addition to research, the institute also has
a duty to disseminate its knowledge. The
main target group for this is the university’s students, who learn about plant nutrition in lectures and seminars. And for
the second time, the institute will host
the International Symposium on Magnesium which facilitates an interdisciplinary
exchange between leading researchers in
the field.
From the Lab Directly into the
Real World
The institute is making good progress
towards the insights it hopes to obtain
with trials such as those conducted by
Bálint Jákli. “Given sufficient potash and
magnesium, plants can still yield satisfactory crops, even when they are subjected to arid conditions. Naturally, all local soil and fields need to be examined
individually to determine exactly which
nutrients are needed. But with our findings, we will also be able to provide farmers with more general recommendations,” claims Jákli. This is also beneficial
to K+S KALI GmbH. “For our customers,
it’s very important that we actively engage in issues that will be increasingly
important in the future,” says Gransee. “We can apply the lab findings
directly in the real world, which in
turn provides the institute with
important feedback.” Speaking of
the real world, K+S and IAPN are
taking their knowledge directly
to where it is needed the most.
“We are collaborating closely with
projects in Africa such as ‘Growth
for Uganda’ and also our joint trials towards increasing potato crop
yields in Kenya,” says Gransee. In addition, the institute maintains close
ties with the University of ­Istanbul and
the U.S.-based Center for Magnesium
Education & Research.
Less Water for the World
In recent years, water availability has significantly
decreased in many parts of the world – it is predicted that
this trend will continue.
Saltwater
Freshwater
1995
Freshwater levels will decline
significantly in many of the world’s
regions within 30 years.
2025
Decline of more than 40%
40% to 20%
20% to 10%
less than 10%
18
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Where Do Dwarfs Come From...
... and why do they wear
pointy hats?
There are lots of different
explanations for this. Here is one:
Working in mines used to be a lot
harder in the past. The mine shafts
were very narrow and low, which
meant that the miners had to be
shorter than 150 centimeters. Even
so, they had to duck down a lot. The
pointy hats protected their heads,
just like the helmets we use now.
Many of these little mining people
even lived in their mines, and
often they would stay away
from other people.
That’s how fairy tales
and legends about
little people in the
mountains started.
Bet you’ve heard of
Snow White and the
Seven Dwarfs before!
Color in the
dwarfs any
way you
like!
WHY… Do You
Need to Drink A
Lot When It’s Hot?
Everybody looks forward to the
summer. It’s nice and warm, and you
can play outside all day. But the hotter it is, the harder the body needs to
work to stay cool. Through sweat,
the body loses large amounts of salt
and minerals like magnesium. When
your body doesn’t stock up on them
again, you can get a headache or you
might even feel dizzy. When your
body loses a lot of salt, your muscles
start to cramp. That’s why doctors
and nutritionists tell us we need to
keep up our fluids. Fluids means
more than just tap water, unsweetened herbal tea, or thinned-down
fruit juice. Liquids containing salt
such as mineral water, vegetable
juice, and soup broth are also good.
A really important part of keeping
up your fluids is to drink regularly
throughout the day, not just when
you’re thirsty. What this means for
kids is that when it’s really hot outside, you should be drinking close to
two liters of water every day. Your
skin has a great way of telling you if
your body contains enough fluid.
Simply grab a fold of skin with two
fingers, like on your lower arm. Observe what happens when you let go
of it. If the fold disappears straight
away, it means you’ve been drinking
enough.
H
ow did mined goods get to the surface years ago? It’s simple: A rope
winch was used to haul up the
goods. These were operated by very strong
miners, known as haulers. The winch had to
be mounted on a frame directly above the
mine shaft. This was necessary so that the
rope or chain would hang straight down, as
is shown by this exhibit from the Montafon
Mining Museum (see left). The winch had a
hook handle on each side, which the haulers
WHAT DOES…
... a mechatronics engineer do at K+S?
This job is a cross between a mechanical
engineer and an electrical engineer. A mechatronics engineer like Michael Mörs (pictured here) in Bernburg, Germany, is responsible for the planning, maintenance,
inspection, and repairs of machines and
needed to turn. Whenever the winch was
hauling up something or when the basket
was being emptied, one of the haulers needed to stay with his hook and hold on to it, as
otherwise the basket would fall back down
into the shaft. The other hauler would empty
the basket onto a tray next to the shaft. Most
mine winches were designed for two haulers.
However, when very heavy goods needed to
be lifted, the winches could be set up so that
up to four haulers could join in.
systems. All these parts of the job happen
both in the mine and on the surface. A mechatronics engineer knows how to work
with metals and is an expert in electrical
technology and machines, including hydraulics, pneumatics, and control technology. To do this job, you will need to finish
secondary school (or your local equivalent). Job training takes about three and a
half years.
Important when it’s hot: Lots of
fluids, even if it’s a salty drink.
Write to Scoop!
Would you like to tell us what your
parents do at K+S or ask us a
question?
Then write us a letter or an
e-mail. Your parents can
help, too. Here’s our address:
[email protected] or
Redaktion Scoop, K+S AG,
Bertha-von-Suttner Strasse 7,
34131 Kassel, Germany
Photos: ddp images, shutterstock (5), fotolia, K+S AG, Montafoner Bergbaumuseum I
Muscle Power to Unearth Treasures
SCOOP 2/2014
TEILEN / PARTAGER / COMPARTIR / COMPARTILHAR
SHARING 19
On-site meeting in Dombasle: Laurent Dutremez (right) in an interview with Stefan Krücken
K+S: People
in Focus
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will be
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a copy.
I
t’s rare to meet someone like Laurent
Dutremez. The Frenchman works as a
technical secretary at the esco plant in
Dombasle, near Nancy. He is part of the interface between production and sales. In
his free time, he is an extreme athlete: He
runs ultra-marathons of up to 170 km or
scales steep hills on his mountain bike. “I
just love testing my limits,” he says. With
that attitude, he’s earned a spot in the anniversary book.
“We ignored hierarchies and proportional representation when selecting
our protagonists. We wanted to showcase a broad spectrum and tell unique
stories,” explains Martin Bommersheim,
Vice Director of Corporate Communications. “We’ve created a journey through
the world of K+S: from Neuhof to Chicago, from Saskatoon to Santiago, from
São Paulo to Singapore. It’s diversity at
its best.” B
­ ommersheim teamed up with
Katja Seeger from the Communications
department to design the book.
They then brought in Hamburg-based
publisher and experienced print journalist Stefan Krücken as their partner. Krücken and award-winning photographer Uwe
Weber traveled to K+S locations to meet
with employees, hear their stories, and
capture perfect images.
A Tour of the K+S World
The employees talk about team spirit,
trust, dynamism, and about work that
has become a family tradition. Men and
women share what motivates them and
drives them to give their best every day
- breaking new ground and sometimes
even achieving the impossible.The entire
world of the K+S Group opens up in a very
personal way.
Krücken and Weber had some truly
unforgettable experiences on their tour
through the K+S world: a 2­ 0-hour flight
to Chile through nasty weather in order
to conduct an interview on board the SPL
­Atacama in the Concepción harbor; a taxi
driver on oxygen in Chicago; bees gone
wild from a hive owned by a K+S hobby beekeeper in Texas; and the climate
shock they went through when they flew
from the American South (77°F) directly
to ­Regina, ­Canada (-13°F), near the Legacy
Project. They also met numerous K+S colleagues in Germany, both above and below ground.
During all of their conversations, they
noticed a common theme among the stories: “K+S employees are down-to-earth
people who demonstrate a tremendous
amount of solidarity. You only find true
solidarity at sea and underground.” And
the author should know. Before the K+S
book, he published a collection of profiles
of sea captains.
125 Years of K+S:
Future Food Forum
K+S will host the forum ‘Future
Food’ in Berlin on October 9th, in
cooperation with the Future Institute run by Matthias Horx, marking the 125th anniversary of its
founding. At the forum, experts
from Germany and abroad will discuss how to feed the soon-to-be
nine to ten billion people on the
planet. As a fertilizer manufacturer
and an important player in global
agriculture, K+S hopes to spark a
dialogue in the run-up to World
Food Day (October 16th) and present itself as a company that is
focused on the central issues of
the future.
Photos: K+S AG, Uwe Weber (11)
A personal look at the company: To mark K+S’s
125th anniversary in October, a book will be
published in which twenty K+S employees tell their
exciting and unique stories. Scoop peeked behind
the scenes as the book was being made.
20 SHARING
TEILEN / PARTAGER / COMPARTIR / COMPARTILHAR
SERIES
MY HOMETOWN
“To me, this is the
most wonderful job”
BY THOMAS BRANDL
G
ermany’s largest port is a world
unto itself. The tone at the port
might seem gruff to outsiders, but it is as direct as it is jovial. Many
former sailors work here. When Martin D
­ resen, a carpenter and businessman
by trade, joined K+S Transport GmbH in
September 2006, it took him some time to
adjust. But the cheerful, affable young man
has long since been a part of the team, and
he was voted onto the Works Council for
the first time in March 2014. “I work with
great people, people who know what they
want, and we’re outdoors in the fresh air.
The job is incredibly diverse and exciting.”
A long line of container trucks forms in
front of the gate, locomotive trucks position carriages over the tracks to the unloading station, and on the other side, the ‘PS
Spray’ waits to be loaded with 2,200 tons
of 60er Kali gran destined for Waterford,
Ireland. An approaching storm interrupts
the bustle; the captain battens down the
cargo hatches again, which makes shipping agent Uwe König furrow his brow.
“The ship can only set out today if we start
loading by 5:30.” After that, it will take
about four days for the ship to reach the
­Emerald Isle.
A quarter of the four million tons of
freight – mainly potassium and magnesium products – is shipped in containers.
Last year alone, 47,000 containers were
transported. Destinations include Brazil, M
­ alaysia, India, the US, China, Indonesia, ­Australia, New Zealand, Great ­Britain,
Greece, France, and other locations around
the globe. The Kalikai Quay is always in operation, except on Saturdays after 1:00
p.m. and Sunday nights.
The three-shift operation at the port
has long since become routine for ­Martin
SOCCER
FUN WITH KIDS IN CLUB
Frustration with professional
soccer team HSV, fun with the
kids soccer club in the suburbs:
Martin Dresen became a
certified soccer trainer in order
to work with kids. Monday
evenings are reserved for his
team of little rascals.
­ resen. As one of six loading inspectors, he
D
is responsible for a team of 22 colleagues
who handle ca. 20 different K+S products in twelve halls and six silos. Whenever the team is short-handed, he drives
the wheel loader himself. The team works
with twelve kilometers worth of conveyor belts; loading a container truck takes a
maximum of six minutes, while a 50,000ton ship takes up to one and a half days.
Sometimes after his shift, Dresen takes
“The view from Silo 5 over
the port and the city
skyline. The image stays
with you.”
two or three minutes to enjoy the gorgeous
view of the port and the city skyline from
the roof of Silo 5. It’s an image that stays
with you.
Outside of the port, Dresen lives for his
family – and for soccer. The fact that his
team, Hamburger Sportverein, was nearly relegated from Germany’s Bundesliga
during the past season was his biggest
nightmare. Luckily, the team just managed to escape relegation, but Dresen will
likely give his season ticket to a friend this
time around: Hamburg’s formerly dominant team has caused him enough stress.
Besides, these days, the father of three is
more interested in his ‘kids soccer club,’
with 22 boys and girls in the Hamburg
Photos: Dennis Williamson (3), Getty Images, shutterstock (2), Lindner Fotografie
The Hamburg port is considered Germany’s ‘gateway
to the world.’ And in the middle of it all lies the
Kalikai Quay operated by K+S Transport GmbH. Last
year, four million tons of fertilizer were shipped
through the port. Martin Dresen works as a loading
inspector at the quay.
21
KALIKAI QUAY
1
CARGO HANDLING
Cargo from road and rail has
been loaded onto ships along
the 500-meter-long Kalikai
Quay on the island of
Wilhelmsburg since 1928.
The compound covers
97,300 square meters.
K+S Transport GmbH’s
administration center is
located in downtown Hamburg
at Glockengiesserwall 3.
LANDMARK
ST. MICHAELIS
2
It is THE Hamburg landmark:
St. Michaelis, a Protestant
church and the most important
baroque church in northern
Germany. It is lovingly
nicknamed ‘Michel’ by the city’s
residents. Arriving ships can
even see it from far away.
Hamburg
GERMANY
St. Pauli
2
3
Old Town
Elb e
Hamburg
With just under 1.8 million residents,
the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany. The Hamburg port is Germany’s
largest seaport and is among the 20
largest container ports in the world.
Each year, more than five million tourists visit the city. Popular destinations
include the city center and Lake Binnenalster, the harbor with the St. ­Pauli
Piers, the cutting-edge ­HafenCity including the Elbe Philharmonic Hall, the
Altona Fish Market, and the St. Pauli
neighborhood with its red-light district,
the ‘Reeperbahn.’ Hamburg has also
made a name for itself as a city laden
with many cultural attractions.
HAMBURG
Veddel
Wilhelmsburg
1
1 km
3
LA PALOMA – OLÉ
Illustration: KircherBurkhardt Infografik
The Speicherstadt​​is the world’s largest
warehouse ​complex.
suburb of Hoisdorf, than he is in professional soccer. They practice every Monday
– and his 5-year-old daughter and baby of
the family, Nelly, is always out on the field.
Dresen, a Hamburg native, is proud of his
hometown; he would never want to live or
work anywhere else. “I’ve never seen a city
as green and beautiful as Hamburg, or a
city that offers so much culture and still
has a harbor right in the middle of it.” In
that sense, it’s no wonder that Dresen’s insider tip for Hamburg is in the city’s historic
Speicherstadt district. The ‘Miniaturwunderland Hamburg’ is home to the world’s
most extensive miniature train system.
SEA SHANTIES
Hamburg is symbolic of a
longing for the sea, for
melancholic songs, and
sea shanties: For Austrian
singer Freddy Quinn’s
“Junge, komm’ bald
wieder” or German
singer Hans Albers’
“La Paloma – olé.”
K+S Transport has
three locations in
the north
4.3 kilometers of railroad tracks,
room for up to three large ships, a
water depth of 11.3 meters: The majority of K+S’s potassium and salt
exports are shipped through the
Kalikai Quay. K+S Transport GmbH,
a subsidiary, has two further locations in Wismar and Rostock.
22 SHARING
SCOOP 2/2014
TEILEN / PARTAGER / COM
Down to earth: Head chef
Oliver Hodemacher of
Hanover’s Mövenpick
Kröpcke restaurant
endorses regional
products
Natural and regional products are in high demand,
and this also holds true for high-quality table salt.
esco answers the call of consumers by introducing
SALDORO, the new natural salt brand.
O
liver Hodemacher is carefully
sprinkling the crystals using just
two fingers. “The white grains
briefly sparkle on the steak like small
diamonds – a magic moment,” says
Hanover-based Mövenpick Kröpcke’s
head chef, who celebrates this task like a
ritual. The crystals he uses measure a little over a millimeter in diameter and are
beautiful to behold, turning seasoning
into a feast for the eyes. And an increasing number of hobby chefs share his fascination, which is why Himalayan crystal salt, Portuguese sea salt, or Hawaiian
black lava salt can now be found in dining rooms across the country. Many of
these products are quite expensive and
have transformed this common spice
into a lifestyle product: from an important but invisible kitchen aid to an idolized and celebrated star of the kitchen.
The demand for natural ingredients
– ideally local – is as high as ever. Be it
individual consumers or huge wholesalers, all of them are partial to variety, even
when it comes to salt. However, this is
precisely what had been missing on the
German market until recently: a natural
brand of table salt offered both in small
and bulk sizes. “This presented us with
the perfect opportunity to introduce a
local, high-quality product on the market,” says Nils Gödecke, Junior Product
Manager Consumer Products at esco.
Themother lode of the
new table salt is over
250 million years old and
lies at a depth of
800 meters.
“The ‘mother lode,’ which we are literally standing on, is over 250 million years
old,” he adds. He is referring to highly
pure rock salt from the ancient Zechstein
Sea. It is mined in the Bernburg, Braunschweig-Lüneburg, and Borth mines. Not
only does it have a high sodium chloride content, but it also contains traces of magnesium, calcium, and iron oxides. “This combination is unique in the
region, so our product is as rare as it is
special,” states Gödecke.
From Fine to Extra Coarse
Gödecke is a member of nutritionist Dr.
Isabell Goldberg’s team. Together with
logistics and marketing experts, sales
reps, and controllers, Goldberg and her
colleague prepared the market launch
of a new natural salt brand for over two
years. The fruit of this collective effort
is called SALDORO, a combination of the
words for salt (sal) and gold (oro). “The
name is a reference to mercantile times
long gone,” explains Gödecke.
The product line is comprised of eleven different products. The salt is sold in
different grain sizes and with various
additives, ranging from fluoride and folic acid to organic herbs and organic chili.
“SALDORO is, incidentally, the first salt
brand that indicates the grain size,” emphasizes Gödecke. The spectrum starts
at ‘fine’ and includes grades such as medium coarse, coarse, and extra coarse,
which is indicated on the packaging.
This, too, is more than just a container.
“We decided that our premium salt deserves a special vessel,” says Gödecke. So
the esco product managers teamed up
with the HARTMANN//­PARTNER design
agency to develop an appropriate look.
And they succeeded with flying colors:
The packaging won the 2013 Red Dot
design award, a seal of design excellence recognized around the globe. The
salt from the ancient sea is dressed for
success!
SALDORO can be purchased at branch
stores of EDEKA Südwest as well as in
three newly added EDEKA regions. Negotiations are underway with other retail chains. Chef Oliver Hodemacher is
one of the many satisfied customers in
Germany who can purchase the ancient
sea salt locally – and with passion.
Photos: Michael Löwa, KB
A Pinch from the Ancient Sea
23
Kitchen philosoph
y:
Hodemacher uses
only fresh ingredie
nts.
SCOOP 2/2014
Pork Chops with Rosemaryseasoned Potatoes
y to
Seasoning is ke
nce.
lle
ce
culinar y ex
t
ou
ab
st
ju
t
It’s no
rbs
he
d
an
s
ice
sp
t
wha
n
he
w
o
to use, but als
.
em
to add th
(four servings)
4
pork chops
5 tbsp
olive oil
5 tbsp
butter
2 sprigs
sage and thyme
3 sprigs
rosemary
2onions
2 pinches chili powder
6 tbsp
maple syrup
250 ml
balsamic vinegar
250 gblueberries
750 gpotatoes
SALDORO table salt, pepper
Time required: ca. 1 hour
Preparing the pork chops: Wash the meat, pat
dry, season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in
a non-stick pan, cook the meat on both sides at
medium heat for three minutes. After half of the
cooking time, add butter, herbs, and chili. Serve
with potatoes and sauce.
Preparing the potatoes: Peel, wash, and boil
potatoes in salt water for ca. 20 minutes. Drain
water. Rinse rosemary, pluck off leaves. Fry the
potatoes in hot oil together with rosemary until
golden brown. Season with medium-coarse salt.
Preparing the sauce: Peel and finely dice onions.
Heat the butter in a pot, sauté the onions. Douse
with maple syrup and balsamic vinegar, boil until
it attains a syrupy consistency. Season to taste
with salt and pepper, mix in berries. Simmer for
one minute and then put aside.
Quiz
At which sites is this
ancient salt mined?
Win one of three boxes stocked
with the eleven different SALDORO
products and a miniature salt shovel.
Patience and
iver
mindfulness: Ol
a
is
r
Hodemache
w food
proponent of slo
eating
– the pleasure of
s
ie
regional delicac
Please send your answer to
the following address by
September 1, 2014:
Scoop Editorial Office
K+S Aktiengesellschaft
Bertha-von-Suttner-Strasse 7,
34131 Kassel, Germany
Prefer to send it by e-mail?
[email protected]
24 FUN PAGE
SCOOP 1/2014
BUNTE SEITE/ PAGE DE FIN / PÁGINA EN COLOR / ÚLTIMA PÁGINA
MUSIC
A Song for the Crew
UNTERBREIZBACH , Germany /
Andreas Leffler, an electrician
at the Werra plant and a
passionate songwriter, has
composed a song for his
colleagues in the mines. It’s
called ‘Glück auf’ (‘Good luck’), and with this
traditional German miner’s greeting, the
31-year-old wishes his colleagues that they’ll
return from the mines safe and sound. You
can listen to Leffler’s song on the Internet:
http://lef-musik.de/soloeinlagen/
N EWS
EVENTS
F RO M T H E
WORLD OF
K+S
Fine Art at the
K+S Headquarters
KASSEL, Germany / ‘Kunst
of
privat!’ (‘Art Private’) was the title
40 compathan
e
mor
with
May
in
s
an event serie
kendwee
a
nies from the state of Hesse holding
in
ters
quar
head
long open house. At the K+S
rtunity to
­Kassel, curious visitors had the oppo
art
with
,
ction
colle
art
’s
pany
view the com
s. The collection
ques
er
answ
to
hand
on
rts
expe
s, lithographs,
tion includes more than 70 painting
Georg
of
likes
the
by
s
prints, and woodcut
e, as well
Blum
dia
Clau
and
Piel,
ntin
Baselitz, Vale
ara.
as two Gothic statues of Saint Barb
SOCIAL NETWO RKS
K+S Embraces Business
Networking Sites
KASSEL, Germany / Employer profiles for
The Wintershall ‘Heap Festival’ was
a party of epic proportions: 93°F,
3,300 visitors, and a plethora of
activities ranging from face painting
for kids to mountain climbing. In
addition, plenty of information
was provided about the planned
expansion of the heap.
K+S are being hosted on the Xing and
kununu Internet platforms as of April.
This will make it easier to target new
employees in the future. “We’ve had
very positive responses so far,” says
­Ariane Böhm from K+S’s HR department.
“Close to 13,000 visitors have already
clicked on our kununu profile over the
past two months, and around 500 of
our employees are already linked to us
on Xing.”
54,201
The following employees were
rewarded for their smarts:
1st Prize: Trivial Pursuit board
game Terri Uhrich,
Saskatoon (CAN)
2nd Prize: Moleskine notebook
Mario Sippel, Philippsthal (GER)
3rd Prize: Rubik’s Cube
Cynthia Granger,
Silver Springs (USA)
The Borth mine rescue brigade’s
team of 23 took second place in the
prestigious 66th Mine Rescue
Brigade Endurance Marathon held
on May 10th in Bottrop, Germany.
ANNIV ERSARIES
Umbrella Girl as a Lucky Charm
CHICAGO, Illinois / Question: What do Wrigl
T.V.
Well-Known German
T.V. Character Climbs
Our ‘Monte Kali’
WINTERSHALL, Germany / The epon-
Winners from
the Previous Issue
— Peter Bleckmann,
Works Council Chairman at the Borth plant
ymous mouse of Germany’s classic
children’s show ‘Die Sendung mit
der Maus’ (‘Mouse T.V.’) paid a visit
to K+S recently. The team was filming a story about a former border
area between East and West Germany right next to the premises of the
Werra plant. The story, which will be
aired in August, also reports on the
potash merger and potash mining.
ey Field and
the Morton Salt Girl have in common? Answer:
Both are
turning one hundred this year. To celebrate the
shared milestone, Morton and the Chicago Cubs baseball
team held
Morton Salt Girl Day at Wrigley Field on May
17. Thirty Morton Salt Girls were on hand to interact with fans
and tossed
salt over their shoulders to wish the team good
luck. It
worked. The Cubs confidently won 3:0. Morto
n Salt is embarking on a year-long promotional campaign
consisting of
many different activities to bring renewed atten
tion to its
iconic brand.
Photos: K+S AG (5), WDR/Schmitt-Menzel
EUROS is ho
w much esco
saved over
the past year
thanks to a ni
ft y lit tle
idea: A thinne
r packaging m
aterial
that provides
the same am
ount
of protec tion
is doing won
ders for
material cost
s. The new pa
ckaging
material is to
be used mor
e widely in
the future.
“We’re very proud to have
come in second in the
Mine Rescue Brigade
Endurance Marathon!”