What is silo transport?

Silo transport is the carriage of bulk materials (PE/PP polymer granulates, minerals — lime, chalk, talc, bentonite) in a cylindrical pressure tank mounted on a truck trailer (a silo trailer). Unloading is pneumatic — a compressor forces air at 2-3.5 bar through aeration pads at the bottom of the tank, fluidising the material and pushing it into the consignee's silo. Typical capacity: 55-65 m³, payload: 25-27 tonnes net at a 40 t GVW.

What is the difference between a silo trailer and a tanker?

A tanker carries liquid or semi-liquid materials (fuels, chemicals, milk) and has a horizontal tank with a suction-gravity system. A silo trailer transports dry bulk materials — a cylindrical tank with a pneumatic unloading system via aeration pads. In practice some ADR tankers are used for bulk (road salt), but specialised bulk transport = a silo trailer. PHS Magnum uses Spitzer (SF and SK series), Feldbinder (EUT/KIP) and Schmidt Polska silo trailers — all with dedicated aeration systems.

What materials do you transport by silo?

Polymer granulates (PE-LD, PE-HD, PP-H, PP-Co, PVC, ABS, PET, PA), regranulates (rPET, rHDPE, rPP, rPE), minerals (hydrated lime, talc, bentonite, chalk, Tonsil 571 FF), urea (carbamide), coal dust, carbon black. We do NOT carry: cement, gypsum, flour, animal feed, fine aggregates, silica, sulphates.

What is the transport range from the Chorula base?

All of Poland + the entire European Union. Main markets: Germany, Austria, Czechia, Slovakia, the Netherlands. The Chorula base is 4 km from the A4 Gogolin motorway interchange, 180 km from the Polish-German border at Zgorzelec. All DAF XF 480 tractors are Euro 6 — entry into low-emission zones (Umweltzone) in DACH cities without restriction.

What is the capacity and payload of a silo trailer?

Typical capacity: 55-65 m³ (Spitzer SF series, Feldbinder EUT 60, Schmidt Polska 60 models). Net payload: 25-27 tonnes at a 40 t GVW. The exact load depends on the material's bulk density — PE-LD (0.55 g/cm³) fills the volume before the weight (theoretically holds ~32 t but the GVW limit = 25 t), lime (1.4 g/cm³) reaches the weight before the volume (holds ~28 t in 20 m³).

How long does loading a silo trailer take?

Pneumatic loading at the producer from a ground silo: 30-60 min for 25 tonnes. Gravity loading from big-bags at the SMIALA Chorula terminal: 2.5-4 hours per 20' container (20-24 big-bags of 1,000 kg). Time at the producer depends on their infrastructure — some plants have a bottleneck on the number of silo trailers per day.

Do you hold an SQAS or ISO 9001 certificate for chemical transport?

ISO 9001:2015 covers bulk material transport and transloading. Documented procedures, annual internal audits, external certification by an accredited auditor. SQAS (Safety and Quality Assessment Sustainability) — required by larger chemical industry consignees (Borealis, Synthos, SABIC) — is in the PHS Magnum qualification roadmap. We discuss the current certification status individually with each customer.

What about cleaning the silo trailer between different materials?

Internal chamber washing is standard between different materials — particularly when switching from minerals (lime, bentonite) to polymers (PE, PP). For food-grade or medical-grade materials, wet washing with a food-grade detergent and drying + a cleanliness certificate (CEFIC Cleaning Document) are required. Dry-air cleaning for polymer granulates standard-to-standard. Every operation documented under ISO 9001.

12.08.2024

Silo Transport – a Guide to Bulk Materials

Transloading granulate from big-bags into a silo trailer

In brief

Silo transport is the specialised carriage of bulk materials in cylindrical pressure tanks on truck trailers. PHS Magnum runs a fleet of 26 DAF XF 480 Euro 6 tractors and 31 silo trailers of 55–65 m³ — based in Chorula near Opole, 4 km from the A4 motorway, 180 km from the Polish-German border. The same fleet is maintained by our own silo trailer service at the base.

Parameter	Value
Silo trailer capacity	55-65 m³
Net payload	25-27 tonnes
Combination GVW	40 tonnes
Materials	PE/PP/PA/PVC granulates, minerals, regranulates
We do NOT carry	cement, gypsum, flour, silica, fine aggregates
Range	Poland + the whole EU (mainly DACH)
Emission standard	Euro 6 (DACH Umweltzone OK)
Standard	ISO 9001:2015

What “silo transport” means

In logistics jargon, a “silo” (silo trailer in EN, Siloauflieger in DE) means a truck trailer with a cylindrical pressure tank designed for the transport of dry bulk materials. Unloading at the consignee is pneumatic:

The on-board compressor, or a stationary one at the customer, builds a pressure of 2-3.5 bar
Air forced through the aeration pads at the bottom of the tank fluidises the material
The stream of granulate/powder is pushed through a hose (4" Storz or PERROT M108) into the factory silo
Full unloading time for 25 tonnes: 60-90 minutes depending on the material’s density

Loading at the producer takes place from above through a top hatch — pneumatically from a dispatch silo or by gravity from big-bags at a transloading terminal.

Materials we carry by silo trailer

PHS Magnum specialises in 18 bulk material groups:

Polymer granulates (main specialisation)

Polyethylene PE-LD, PE-HD, LLDPE — producers LG Chem, Borealis, INEOS, LyondellBasell
Polypropylene PP-H, PP-Co, PP-Random — Sabic, Borealis, Synthos
PVC suspension and emulsion — Vinnolit, Ineos Vinyls
PET bottle-grade and fiber-grade — Indorama, Plastiverd
PS general purpose and HIPS — Synthos, INEOS Styrolution
PC, ABS — Sabic, Covestro
Polyamides PA6, PA66 (hygroscopic) — Lanxess, BASF, Domo

Regranulates

rPET, rHDPE, rPP, rPE — from Polish and European recyclers
Lower quality requirements, but greater batch variability — requires a visual inspection

Minerals and special materials

Hydrated lime (Ca(OH)₂) — chemical industry, flue gas cleaning
Talc — cosmetics, rubber, plastics industries
Bentonite — foundries, drilling, household chemicals
Chalk (CaCO₃) — fillers for plastics, paper, paints
Tonsil 571 FF — bleaching of edible oils
Urea (carbamide) — fertilisers, plasticisers
Carbon black — rubber, plasticisers
Coal dust — power generation, solid fuels

What we do NOT carry

We deliberately decline the following materials:

Cement — heavy equipment contamination, a risk to subsequent polymer loads
Construction gypsum — likewise
Flour, animal feed — requires a dedicated food-grade fleet, which we do not have
Silica, sulphates — highly abrasive, they destroy aeration pads
Fine aggregates (fractions <0.5 mm) — require specialised pneumatics

This is a deliberate business decision — instead of handling everything half-heartedly, we specialise in polymers + compatible materials. Every chemical industry customer (Borealis, Synthos, Orlen) knows that our silo trailers have never carried cement, which eliminates the cross-batch contamination risk.

Technical parameters of the fleet

26 DAF XF 480 Euro 6 tractors

MX-13 480 hp engine, EuroVI-E
DPF filter + SCR with AdBlue
Entry into Umweltzone (Germany), LEZ (London), ZEZ zones (Italy) without restriction
Full EBS, ADR-compatible, digital tachograph
ABS, ASR, stability control

31 silo trailers of 55–65 m³

Brands in the fleet:

Schmidt Polska 60 m³ — the main model, Polish production, TDT validation
Spitzer (SF series) — a non-tipping silo trailer of ~60 m³, aluminium EN AW-5083, MOP approx. 2 bar
Feldbinder EUT — steel and stainless 304L/316L
Kassbohrer K.SSL — an aluminium non-tipping silo trailer, backup in peak periods

All with a valid TDT decision (inspection every 2-5 years depending on type), a periodic examination certificate, full documentation ready to show at an ITD inspection.

Routes and service area

Poland (domestic)

Main directions from the Chorula base:

Silesia (Katowice, Sosnowiec, Gliwice) — 30-60 min drive
Wrocław, Legnica (Lower Silesia) — 1.5-2 h
Łódź, Piotrków Trybunalski (central Poland) — 3-4 h
Warsaw + Mazovia — 4-5 h
Tricity (port of Gdańsk, port of Gdynia) — 5-6 h
Szczecin (port) — 6-7 h

Germany, Austria, Czechia, Slovakia (DACH)

Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden — 6-8 h drive from Chorula
Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich — 9-12 h
Hamburg, Bremen (northern ports) — 10-12 h
Vienna, Linz, Salzburg (Austria) — 6-9 h
Prague, Brno, Ostrava (Czechia) — 3-6 h
Bratislava, Žilina (Slovakia) — 5-7 h

Delivery times account for mandatory driver breaks (working time 4.5h+45min+4.5h per day) and weekend restrictions (Sunday driving bans in DE/AT).

The rest of Europe

The Netherlands, Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia — on dedicated order. Average delivery time to Rotterdam: 12-14h, to Milan: 14-18h.

Transport order workflow

Enquiry — phone +48 602 716 551 or e-mail with parameters: material (type, density, MFI/grade), volume (tonnes), loading location, unloading location, deadline
Individual quote — a reply within 2-4 working hours with the transport cost, delivery time and silo trailer parameters
Transport notification — 24-48 h before the planned loading
Execution — loading at the producer, transport, unloading at the consignee
Documentation — CMR, consignment note, chamber cleanliness certificate (if required), invoice

Regular customers with recurring batches receive a contract rate under a framework agreement, monthly invoicing, a dedicated logistics account manager, and priority in the schedule.

Certification and compliance

ISO 9001:2015

All transport and transloading operations under the ISO 9001:2015 quality management system. Internal audits annually, external certification by an accredited body.

TDT inspections of the silo trailers

Every silo trailer undergoes a periodic examination by the Transport Technical Supervision authority (TDT) — every 2-5 years depending on the tank type. Without a valid TDT decision the vehicle may not leave the base. Details: TDT inspections of silo trailers.

DACH compatibility

Euro 6 tractors with an emission conformity certificate — entry into all Umweltzone in DE, ZEZ in Italy, LEZ in the UK (where current). Communication in Polish, English, German.

Frequently added services

Transport customers often combine an order with other PHS Magnum services:

Big-bag → silo trailer transloading at the SMIALA Chorula terminal — when the producer delivers in big-bags and the end customer needs a silo trailer. Details: SMIALA — granulate transloading
Depot rental — for transport companies needing an ITD-registered depot near the A4: operating depot rental
Servicing of the customer’s silo trailers on site in Chorula — TDT inspections, repairs, refurbishment: silo trailer service
Mobile service on the A4 route — silo trailer breakdowns en route: mobile service A4