Extraction and processing of special clays and mineral raw materials for ceramics, refractories and special applications
Stephan Schmidt KG
Dornburg-Langendernbach · Kamenz-Wiesa · Gießen · Castelnuovo Rangone (IT) · Legnica (PL)New on Amplifa
About the Stephan Schmidt Group
Founded in 1947, Stephan Schmidt KG is an owner-managed family company headquartered in Dornburg-Langendernbach (Westerwald) and one of Europe's leading producers of special clays and Advanced Clay Minerals. The group operates 20 pits, 16 of them in the Westerwald, as well as 9 homogenization plants, 3 grinding and processing plants with an annual capacity of 350,000 tonnes and a plant for producing building granulate with an annual capacity of 20,000 tonnes; annual marketing volume is around 1.4 million tonnes. The raw materials are homogenized in blending-bed stockpiling systems, dried, ground and supplied as ground clay, fine-ground clay or building granulate in various processing and packaging stages. Fields of application include sanitary ceramics, tiles, roof tiles, bricks, clinker, porcelain stoneware, electrical porcelain, stoneware pipes, refractory products, enamel, glazes and engobes as well as substrates, construction materials, fillers/additives, the drilling industry and special civil engineering. Three laboratories (R&D, quality control, application technology) ensure consistent quality; subsidiaries include Stephan Schmidt Meißen GmbH (Kamenz-Wiesa), MTG (Gießen), Ceramat and Progind (Italy) as well as a trading office in Legnica, Poland.
- Site
- Dornburg-Langendernbach
- Processes
- Clay extraction in open-pit mining (mining), Homogenization of clay blends (blending-bed stockpiling systems), Drying and grinding (ground clay), Spray-free fine grinding, Production of building granulate, Production and refining of ceramic bodies, mineral products and clay granulates, Raw material concepts for sanitary ceramics (ball clays, pressure casting and plaster casting), Raw materials for wall and floor tiles
- Materials
- Special clays, Kaolin, Bentonites, Bonding sands, Feldspars, Silex grinding media, Slate clays, Gravel
- Certificates
- ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 50001:2018, RHP (horticultural products), KIWA certificate, EMAS
- Founded
- 1947
- Industries
- Ceramics industry (sanitary ceramics, tiles, roof tiles, bricks,, Refractory industry / steel and foundry industry, Construction industry (building materials, concrete, mortar, cement), Horticulture (substrates), Fillers / additives, polymer systems, Drilling industry and well construction
- 01
Clay extraction in open-pit mining
- 02
Homogenization in blending-bed stockpiling systems
- 03
Drying and grinding (ground clay, spray-free fine grinding)
- 04
Production of building granulate
- 05
Laboratory analysis and quality release
- 06
Refining into ceramic bodies, mineral products and clay granulates
- 07
Shipping in various processing and packaging forms
Raw materials and processes
Special clays
Basic raw material for all ceramic applications from sanitary ceramics to structural ceramics.
Kaolin
Light-firing raw material from the Wiesa-Thonberg deposit for the ceramics industry.
Bentonites
Used in unshaped refractory products, sealing structures and the drilling industry.
Feldspars
Mineral raw materials, marketed via Progind International for the ceramics industry.
Slate clays
Ensure specific product properties in the production of paving clinker.
Homogenized clay
Standardized clay blends from modern blending-bed stockpiling systems.
Ground clay
From efficient drying and grinding plants including spray-free fine grinding.
Building granulate
Clay granulate from modern mixing units with an annual capacity of 20,000 tonnes.
Locations and plants
Dornburg-Langendernbach
DEHead office, central laboratory, production (pits, homogenization, grinding and mixing plants)
- Lot size
- Large volumes, marketing approx. 1.4 million t/year group-wide
- Materials
- Special clays, kaolin
- Pits (16 in the Westerwald)
- Homogenization plants
- Grinding and processing plants
- Sedan grinding, mixing and granulation plant
- 3 laboratories
Kamenz-Wiesa
DEAdministration and Wiesa mixing plant (Stephan Schmidt Meißen GmbH), Wiesa-Thonberg deposit, Cunnersdorf open pit
- Lot size
- Medium to large series
- Materials
- light-firing clays and kaolins, red-firing kaolinitic clays
- Wiesa mixing plant
- Railway loading track at the Cunnersdorf open pit
Gießen
DESchiffenberger Forst mixing plant (MTG), excavation soil backfilling and acceptance of backfill materials
- Lot size
- Medium to large series
- Materials
- Clay blends for tiles and stoneware pipes
- Mixing plant
- Company-owned rail siding
Castelnuovo Rangone (MO)
ITSales and laboratory (Ceramat s.r.l.) as well as sales of Silex grinding media, engobe/glaze clays, feldspars (Progind
- Materials
- Special clays, Silex grinding media, feldspars
- Own laboratory
Legnica
PLTrading office (since 2008)
Product lines and applications
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clay extraction in open-pit mining (mining)Casting | – | – | – | – | Clay, Kaolin |
| Homogenization of clay blends (blending-bed stockpiling systems)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Clay |
| Drying and grinding (ground clay)Surface | – | – | – | – | Clay |
| Spray-free fine grindingSurface | – | – | – | – | Clay |
| Production of building granulateEngineering | – | – | – | – | Clay, Clay granulate |
| Production and refining of ceramic bodies, mineral products and clay granulatesEngineering | – | – | – | – | Clay, Kaolin, Mineral products |
| Raw material concepts for sanitary ceramics (ball clays, pressure casting and plaster casting)Casting | – | – | – | – | Clay, Ball Clay, sanLine |
| Raw materials for wall and floor tilesEngineering | – | – | – | – | Special clays, tileLine |
| Raw materials for extruded tiles and panels (plastic shaping)Forming | – | – | – | – | Special clays, tileLine |
| Raw materials for roof tilesForming | – | – | – | – | Special clays, roofLine |
| Raw materials for enamel, engobes and glazesSurface | – | – | – | – | Special clays, glazeLine |
| Raw materials for clinker and facing bricksEngineering | – | – | – | – | Clay blends, Slate clays |
| Raw materials for bricksEngineering | – | – | – | – | Special clays |
| Raw material concepts for porcelain stoneware/fine stoneware (casting, turning, pressing, stamping)Casting | – | – | – | – | Clay |
| Raw materials for electrical porcelainEngineering | – | – | – | – | Clays with high Al2O3 contents |
| Raw materials for stoneware pipes (plastic shaping)Forming | – | – | – | – | Compounded clay blends |
| Raw materials for refractory products (shaped and unshaped)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Aluminium-rich clays, Refrasol, Bentonites, Bonding sands |
| Bonding clays for the abrasives industryEngineering | – | – | – | – | Bonding clays |
| Advanced Clay Minerals: substrates, construction materials, fillers/additives,Engineering | – | – | – | – | Special clays, Bentonites, Florisol, Capsil, Secursol, Compactonit, Concresol |
| Laboratory analysis (physical and chemical properties, particle size distribution)Testing | – | – | – | – | Clay |
10 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open pit/mine | Stephan Schmidt Group | 20 pits | – | – | Westerwald, Meißen-Lausitz, Central Hesse |
| Homogenization plant | Stephan Schmidt Group | 9 | – | – | Wimpfsfeld I, Maienburg, Sedan and others |
| Grinding and processing plant | Stephan Schmidt Group | 3 | Capacity 350,000 tonnes per year | – | – |
| Building granulate production plant | Stephan Schmidt Group | 1 | Capacity 20,000 tonnes per year | – | Sedan grinding, mixing and granulation plant |
| Laboratory | Stephan Schmidt Group | 3 | Research & development, quality control, customer services | – | Dornburg-Langendernbach and others |
| Blending-bed stockpiling system | Stephan Schmidt Group | – | – | – | – |
| Drying and grinding plant | Stephan Schmidt Group | – | – | – | – |
| Wiesa mixing plant | Stephan Schmidt Meißen GmbH | 1 | – | – | Kamenz-Wiesa |
| Schiffenberger Forst mixing plant | MTG GmbH & Co. KG | 1 | – | – | Gießen |
| Railway loading track | Stephan Schmidt Meißen GmbH | 1 | – | – | Cunnersdorf open pit |
Additional services
Quality
Quality assurance is carried out via a QM system certified to ISO 9001:2015, automatic sampling from the conveyed material stream and laboratory testing of every sample for physical and chemical properties and particle size distribution; more than 15,000 samples are analysed annually and certificates with technical data are created for production batches.
| Evidence | Dornburg-Langendernbach |
|---|---|
| ISO 9001:2015 | |
| ISO 14001:2015 | |
| ISO 50001:2018 | |
| EMAS | |
| RHP (horticultural products) | |
| KIWA certificate |