Today, the company has developed into a prominent specialist in volume management solutions for bulk solids, serving heavy industries across more than 20 countries. Guided by the core corporate philosophy of “No More Climbing,” RETTAR focuses on a clear operational mission: eliminating the high-risk, hazardous manual tasks historically associated with bulk inventory tracking, and transforming challenging material stockpiles into highly precise, actionable assets for corporate supply chains.
Technological Advances in Challenging Environments
Coal handling environments present some of the most demanding operational conditions in the dry bulk sector. Traditional inventory methods frequently rely on single-point sensors or acoustic devices. These technologies often struggle with irregular material surfaces and can experience operational disruptions in high-dust or heavy-fog conditions, limiting their effectiveness for comprehensive volume management.
To address these limitations, RETTAR has introduced the 3DPro2300 Radar Scanner. This system utilises advanced Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) radar signals designed to penetrate dense airborne dust and steam. Crucially for the hazardous coal sector, the equipment carries full ATEX certification, ensuring compliant operational safety in explosive dust atmospheres. The 3DPro2300 executes rapid, 180°×360° omnidirectional scans of entire silos or enclosed yards, generating up to 16,200 precise data points to map the material surface.
Rather than offering a generic “digital twin”, RETTAR’s solution focuses specifically on true 3D volumetric reconstruction. By applying proprietary algorithms to the raw 3D point cloud data, the accompanying Pro Inventory Software maps surface peaks, valleys, and sidewall buildup. This method delivers a high volume accuracy of up to 98%, providing financial, procurement, and logistics teams with reliable transparency regarding their physical inventory.
Applications Across the Coal Lifecycle
Within the coal handling and storage infrastructure, RETTAR’s volume management technology is deployed across critical nodes:
- Storage Silos: Providing continuous volumetric tracking to assist in preventing overfills and managing material structural blockages in power generation and coal processing facilities.
- Stockyards and Ports: Automating inventory reconciliation at large port terminals and blending yards, enabling regular volume calculations in rugged outdoor or indoor conditions.
Driving Efficiency Through Cloud Intelligence
In a highly competitive market, RETTAR distinguishes itself by combining robust field reliability with advanced data integration. While the sensors are engineered to withstand extreme temperatures up to 200°C and carry robust IP68 ratings, the company’s solutions have established a proven track record of six years of maintenance-free operation in complex coal stockpiles and silos worldwide.
A key competitive advantage lies in the integration of cloud-based intelligence. The 3D volumetric data is transmitted directly to the secure RETTAR Cloud Platform, allowing corporate headquarters, supply chain managers, and site operators to access real-time inventory metrics remotely on multiple devices. This cloud infrastructure enables automated multi-site data aggregation, predictive consumption analytics, and direct API integration into existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) and scheduling systems. The resulting data flow improves administrative decision-making efficiency, allowing organisations to transition from reactive purchasing to data-driven resource scheduling based on verified volume metrics.
Proven Field Performance and Industry Recognition
This data-centric approach has earned the trust of over 8,000 customers spanning the mining, metallurgy, cement, and power generation sectors. RETTAR’s commitment to technical excellence has been recognised through multiple industry innovation awards, celebrating breakthroughs across key sectors such as the coking and process industries.
In recent contract completions, RETTAR successfully automated multiple large-scale coal storage yard operations for prominent coal mining groups and port terminals. By replacing hazardous manual surveys with continuous 3D volume scanning and automated cloud reporting, these sites reduced their inventory variance to under 3% and significantly lowered operational maintenance costs. Furthermore, onsite safety teams reported a measured reduction in high-altitude silo-climbing incidents, fulfilling a primary operational safety mandate for modern bulk-handling facilities.
Conclusion
As the dry bulk industry accelerates its transition toward digital automation and rigorous safety protocols, the practice of relying on estimated coal volumes is being replaced by precision engineering. RETTAR continues to develop solutions for harsh industrial environments, ensuring that volume management accuracy, cloud-enabled efficiency, and worker safety remain fully aligned.
