[Job Story] How CMC Rock Tackled a Difficult Deposit with CDE in Utah

The Utah producer chose a modular CDE wash plant for speed of delivery, then found the feed was harder than expected. Output held anyway

When CMC Rock decided to open a new washing operation at its West Mountain production facility in Utah, it faced two problems at once. Demand for washed concrete aggregates across the Greater Salt Lake area was growing faster than local supply, and the deposit it planned to work was heavy in fines, the kind of material that punishes an undersized or poorly configured wash plant.

The answer was a modular 400 tph CDE M4500 plant, delivered with dealer Goodfellow Corporation. According to the companies, it is expected to bring around 800,000 additional tonnes of concrete aggregates a year to the Salt Lake area.

A family business with deep roots

CMC Rock, based in Provo, was founded in 2006 through the acquisition of Z Rock and Tru Crushing, two Utah companies that had been producing aggregates and offering portable crushing across the western United States since the early 1970s. Led by owner and president Todd Cusick, the family-run business now manages more than 3,500 acres of aggregate properties and operates three concrete batch plants.

It is not new to washing either. CMC has run wash plants from several US suppliers. For West Mountain, the deciding factors were fast delivery, reliable performance and the ability to handle difficult feed.

“With demand for washed concrete aggregates continuing to grow across the Greater Salt Lake area, we needed a wash plant that could help us bring high-quality material to market both quickly and reliably,”

Said Sam Cusick, operations manager at CMC Rock.

Engineering around the fines

The plant was configured after a detailed analysis of CMC’s feed material, which showed high fines content. The M4500 E5 uses a dual-pass EvoWash system, flat-bottom cyclones and flexible sand blending, so CMC can hold the C33 concrete sand specification while maximising yield.

Water is handled by an AquaCycle A900 system, which recycles up to 90% of the process water for immediate reuse, reducing the need to draw water from natural sources. In a state where water is a constant concern for quarry operators, that is more than a technical footnote.

The real test came once production started. The material proved harder to process than initial testing suggested, with fines reaching around 15% at times. The plant still held its required production rate and product quality.

“Even with feed material that has proved to be more challenging than initially expected, the plant has maintained the tonnages and specifications we need,”

Sam Cusick said, describing the process with CDE and Goodfellow as “one of the smoothest we’ve ever experienced.”

The business case

The commercial result arrived quickly. Within a few months of start-up, CMC Rock had secured profitable contracts for its entire projected output through the end of 2026.

Support has been part of that story. Goodfellow’s Utah branch sits close to the site and keeps CDE parts in stock to limit downtime, while CDE’s CustomCare and technical teams helped CMC adjust the plant and its operating practices as material conditions changed.

“Having an M4500 available for fast delivery meant the company could be very responsive to immediate market demand,”

Said Tom Childs of Goodfellow.

For CDE, the project is a showcase of washing technology adapted to tougher material.

“This project is a prime example of how CDE’s washing solutions can be engineered to meet increasingly challenging site conditions and difficult materials,”

Said Gustavo Brasil, business development manager at CDE.

For other producers sitting on marginal or fines-heavy reserves, the takeaway is clear: with the right process design, deposits once considered awkward can become a competitive advantage in markets short of washed sand.