Mining
Fabric Buildings for Mining—It’s All About Your Operations
Legacy’s mining projects are truly global in scope. We’ve helped mining organizations throughout the western hemisphere streamline their operations and store their valuable commodities. Fabric buildings are a good match for mining operations because owners need a structure that is durable, that can be installed quickly, that comes with corrosion protection, and that addresses their specific needs.
Mining is tough, rugged work–often on a massive scale. Many of the materials are highly corrosive. And whatever you’re pulling from the earth–coal, metals, salt, potash, gravel, or sand–each phase of the work has its own requirements and special challenges when it comes to onsite structures and installation. Legacy fabric buildings are ideally suited for your entire operation, end to end.
Our structures are a good match because owners need buildings that are durable, that can be installed quickly, that come with outstanding corrosion protection, and that addresses their specific needs.
Fabric Buildings for Mining
Initial Exploration
The sooner you can get your operation set up, the sooner your workforce and initiatives can get underway. You’ll need buildings that can store or shelter a wide range of very different items and activities, from core samples and construction material to treatment facilities for water and effluent, laboratories, and other workspaces. In some cases, an open-air pavilion-style structure may work best, for other uses you’ll want to be fully enclosed.
Legacy fabric structures are constructed with solid steel framing that can provide clear spans exceeding 300 feet in length and width and durability that won’t quit, no matter the weather or environmental conditions. With straight walls and any desired peak height, our buildings maximize storage capacity and easy access with trucks and loaders.
Our proprietary EpoxxiShieldTM epoxy coatings ensure far superior corrosion resistance compared to hot dip galvanizing.
Every building is 100% custom-designed to meet your desired specs and accommodate whatever features you need:
- Any number, style, and size of doors
- Heavy hanging loads such as trippers/conveyors, cranes, dust collectors, etc.
- Add-ons such as overhangs and lean-tos
The 12% translucency of our uninsulated ExxoTecTM white fabric admits enough natural light through the roof and walls for comfortable daytime work. That saves money on energy costs and can reduce or eliminate the need to install and maintain artificial lighting. This and other advantages make our fabric buildings a top choice for remote off-grid locations.
Our structures can also be partially or fully insulated to comfortably shelter labs, fabrication workshops, offices, and employee accommodations. The fabric is thermally neutral for easier indoor climate control and–critical for many mining operations–it is inert to corrosion. It is extremely durable, and its flexibility makes it even more resilient.
Our buildings go up faster, too. Legacy’s unique, single-source design-manufacture-install process saves time and ensures top quality at every step. That includes our own professional, MSHA trained, installation crews, who will travel to your site to erect your building(s).
Operation and Processing
Ongoing operations also require structures that are strong, durable, safe, and efficiently functional. Legacy’s custom design ensures you get exactly what you need to shelter people, processes, and equipment:
- Dust control buildings
- Processing facilities
- Smelting operations
- Bulk and large commodity storage
- Pond covers
- Truck/equipment storage and maintenance shops
- Truck washing facilities
- Offices, meeting, dining, and living space
That includes the material you’re mining. The characteristics of salt, potash, and metals, such as copper and coal, can make them vulnerable to moisture or extreme heat, so they must be protected accordingly. Many of these materials (or the mining process itself) contain highly caustic or toxic chemicals, so direct contact and off-gassing can cause corrosion and unhealthy air quality.
Our fabric buildings are customized to provide maximum protection indoors and from the elements. You can choose our highly efficient passive ventilation system or add an active ventilation system.
Although designed to be permanent and long-lived, our fabric buildings are also expandable and relocatable, to flexibly grow and change with your operation. That increases efficiency and ROI.
Transportation and Logistics
Legacy’s clear span construction makes it easy to design massive buildings without support columns or other interior barriers. Our fabric buildings can be built with many different versions of roof profiles and peak heights. Unimpeded movement enables more efficient loading, unloading, and transport of mining and processed materials to or from storage. Our rigid steel framework is strong and sturdy enough to reliably handle heavy-hanging conveyors, cranes, and catwalks.
Larger structures with straight walls also increase storage or warehouse capacity for the footprint, so they are more efficient to build and operate.
Maintenance and Expansion
Operating costs directly affect profit, so minimizing them wherever possible is essential. The longer the lifespan of your buildings and the less maintenance they require over the years can dramatically reduce labor hours as well as money spent.
Traditional metal buildings and structures with hollow-tube trusses are particularly susceptible to rust and chemical corrosion–challenges that can come from mining operations but also the local environment. Hot dip galvanizing (HDG) can slow deterioration, but before long the buildings will require significant, expensive repairs.
Legacy fabric buildings use EpoxxiShield™, a proprietary epoxy coating that provides additional protection from corrosion significantly better than the more common HDG process. Greater durability and longevity enables owners to more effectively amortize up-front costs over time, generating higher ROI and saving money on operations costs by virtually eliminating the need to repair rusted or corroded structural elements.
Our buildings are also constructed to withstand all types of weather extremes including derecho winds, hurricanes, heavy snow loads, and seismic events. Yet they require virtually no day-to-day maintenance. The fabric’s smooth surface is easily rinsed off by the rain or a pressure washer. If damage ever occurs, replacement is fast and simple.
Our Process
Whether you have a complete building spec or just an idea in mind, our team will lead you through the design process with expertise and efficiency.
Our in-house engineering team leads the charge on creative solutions that benefit all project stakeholders—namely you.
Legacy is an end-to-end manufacturer, meaning your project will be built right on site in our 87,000 sq ft facility in St. Cloud, MN.
Now to the good stuff. Your installation benefits from our safe, effective process in one of two ways—your Legacy rep onsite with local crews or full install services.
Case Study
Frac Sand Storage Building
57,600 sq ft Frac Sand Storage and Distribution Building | Wembley, AB
For frac sand storage, you need a large building that supports loading, unloading, and storing materials, tailored to your operations.
View Case StudyLos Bronces Temporary Truck Shop
5,412 sq ft CAT 795F Truck Maintenance Shop | Santiago, Chile
Need a truck maintenance shop in the Andes? We can do that. This building is engineered to withstand some of the toughest weather on the planet.
View Case StudyMining Truck Shop and Maintenance Building
10,241 sq ft Vehicle Maintenance Building | Antofagasta, Chile
We specialize in big truck storage, with frames for large doors and customizable buildings that integrate seamlessly into your operations.
View Case StudyLyons Salt Company Salt Mine Storage
48,600 sq ft Salt Mining Storage Building | Lyons, Kansas
A Kansas-based company uses fabric structures to store salt and equipment, as metal buildings corrode quickly and wood buildings are too costly.
View Case StudyBBE Hydro Vehicle Maintenance and Warehouse Buildings
30,800 sq ft Vehicle Maintenance and Warehouse Buildings | Thompson, MB
This Manitoba hydroelectric plant has a large, heated vehicle maintenance building and a twin next door serving as a warehouse.
View Case StudyTestimonials
We had a great working relationship with Legacy
A lot of the temporary structures in the region are fabric structures, so we mainly looked at those types of buildings. Due to the overall project timeline, the buildings had to be constructed in the dead of winter. We had a great working relationship with Legacy throughout the entire process. They supply a very high quality fabric structure, and we're certainly pleased with what we've seen from the buildings thus far.
Legacy pricing is very compatible to your competitors.
We needed something that would withstand the corrosive environment better than our current building. What first drew us to Legacy was the concept of the rigid steel frame with fabric. We feel the rigid frame will give us many more years of service than the open web structures. Legacy's attention to detail, answering of endless questions that we had and prompt response to those questions also played a role in our decision to go with Legacy. And because so many details were ironed out in the beginning we built a very good building with very few modifications to the scope during the building process. We felt you could deliver on what you were proposing. Another plus for going with Legacy was the fact you had crews who were MSHA trained and you already had an MSHA Contractor ID. Your crew worked efficiently and safely. Once we were assured the liner cavity could be vented properly, the liner option seems to be a great add on for our environment. It is very obvious this will help in reduction of dust resting on the trusses. We liked the fact this building could be built with no cables. Instead, we used hot dipped galvanized steel rods. We are very proud to have partnered with Legacy to construct our Salt Containment Structure. We feel we now have a long term solution to our salt storage needs, a building that will be around for a long time to come.
We were very impressed by their engineering team.
By today's standards, the buildings we're designing are of world-class caliber in the U.S. and Canada. Legacy offered several features that put them at the top of the list. They are unique among fabric buildings in that they build on a rigid steel frame. Everything looked good, from the eave and ridge ventilation system to the method for installing fabric panels. Combined with material delivery times and the time to construct, Legacy seemed like the perfect choice for our application. "The whole design is very efficient for our operations. Flexibility is key, especially when the building is a 'first of its kind' for the industry. We had one design change after the whole plan was in place, to widen our trapeze in the structure that supports the conveyor, and Legacy was able to make that change without any problem. The conveyor system fits and operates just as it was designed. "Legacy knew our schedule and saved us over 30 days of downtime. They stood the frames for the entire fabric structure in a single day, and everything - conveyors, electrical, fabric - was completed within five weeks of them coming to the site. It was a Herculean effort on Legacy's part. It was fantastic. They have a very passionate team, from top to bottom. In all respects, from design to pricing to production, Legacy is one of the best building contractors I've ever worked with. I look forward to working with them again.
Start Your Project
Partnerships Equal Structural Integrity
Whatever your industry, project, and desired application, the Legacy team of engineers will make your vision a reality. Start your project with the team who will finish strong—like our partnership.