Quarry Plant Design Software for the Whole Flow

Model rock type, feed gradation, crushing stages, and product specifications in a single browser-based flowsheet, from primary feed to product stockpile.

Quarry plant design is more than selecting a crusher

A quarry plant is a production system that starts with rock at the primary feed point and ends with saleable aggregate on a stockpile. Designing it well requires thinking across the whole system, not just the individual machines.

Most design tools treat the plant in isolation. They ignore the operational context: variability in feed gradation, the product mix your market demands, the constraint imposed by your primary crusher capacity, or the downstream bottleneck you will not discover until commissioning.

Quorr gives quarry operators and consultants a purpose-built environment to model the whole plant flow, from primary feed to final product stockpile, with rock type and product specifications built in.

What quarry plant design needs to account for

A quarry plant design that only addresses crusher selection leaves most of the real questions unanswered. A credible design covers:

Feed variability: Run-of-mine feed gradation changes with blast patterns, face conditions, and rock type zones. The plant needs to handle the range, not just the average.
Primary surge capacity: The primary crusher must absorb feed surges from truck tipping or loader cycles without becoming the bottleneck.
Scalping: Removing fines before the primary crusher improves throughput and reduces wear, but adds a screen and conveyor to maintain.
Secondary and tertiary stages: Most aggregate products require at least two or three reduction stages. Each stage adds recirculating load and screening requirements.
Screen sizing: Screens must be sized for total circuit load, including recirculating material, not just fresh feed.
Stockpile strategy: Product split affects which stockpiles fill fastest. Product balance must match market demand.
Product mix: A plant that produces too much low-value crusher run and not enough concrete aggregate may be technically correct but commercially unviable.
Future expansion: Sizing equipment for current production while leaving room for a second crushing stage later affects civil design, conveyor layout, and power supply.
Maintenance access: Jaw and cone crusher settings maintenance, screen deck changes, and liner replacement need clear access routes that a flowsheet-only design may not account for.
Seasonal demand changes: A plant producing concrete aggregate faces different demand profiles in winter and summer. Product flexibility across the circuit may justify additional screen decks or adjustable CSS ranges.

Quorr helps you work through the circuit design and mass balance. Physical layout, civil engineering, electrical, and site-specific factors require engineering judgement beyond what any simulation provides.

Quarry-specific plant design in your browser

Quorr lets you define the quarry material, build the crushing and screening circuit, and trace production all the way through to product stockpiles. The design is visual, shareable, and updated in the browser, so your whole team works from the same model.

Rock type and feed properties

Select rock type, set bulk density, and define the feed particle size distribution (PSD). Granite at 2.7 t/m³ and limestone at 2.4 t/m³ behave differently through the same circuit, affecting throughput predictions and product gradation at every stage.

Multi-stage crushing

Design primary, secondary, and tertiary crushing stages with the right equipment for each reduction task.

Product specification

Define the aggregate products your quarry needs to produce, from crusher run (0–75 mm) to fine aggregate (4–14 mm), and see the projected tonnage for each.

Shareable flowsheet

Share a live link to the quarry plant design with your team, equipment suppliers, or planning consultants. Authorised recipients can open it in a browser without installing software.

How quarry plant design is modelled in Quorr

Quorr models the quarry production flow as a connected set of equipment nodes, each with its own input conditions and performance calculations.

You start by selecting the rock type and defining the feed particle size distribution (PSD). For a hard rock quarry, you might enter a granite PSD reflecting run-of-mine feed, with a top size appropriate to the primary crusher's feed opening, percentage passing values at key sieve sizes, bulk density, and a target throughput.

From there, you add the primary jaw crusher and set the closed side setting (CSS). Quorr calculates the primary discharge gradation based on the CSS and the equipment's performance data. The primary product then feeds into the next stage of the circuit.

Crusher capacity depends on manufacturer data, chamber geometry, CSS, feed gradation, rock strength, moisture, bulk density, liner condition, and operating practice. Values shown in simulations are estimates based on the equipment data and feed conditions you enter, not guarantees of performance.

You then add secondary and tertiary crushers, screens, and product splits, building the full quarry plant circuit until you have the product stockpiles and projected tonnages your design requires.

From primary feed to product stockpile, step by step

Set rock properties

Select material type (granite, limestone, basalt, sandstone), set bulk density, and define the feed gradation from run-of-mine or primary feed conditions.

Design the primary stage

Add a jaw or gyratory crusher sized for your feed material. Set the CSS and review the primary discharge gradation and throughput estimate.

Add screening and secondary crushing

Place screens to remove fines and oversize, route material to secondary and tertiary crushers, and build the full circuit to meet your product specifications.

Define product specifications

Set the size range for each aggregate product, for example 0–75 mm crusher run, 20–40 mm coarse, 6–14 mm single size, and 0–4 mm dust.

Review production and bottlenecks

See projected tonnage for each product stockpile. Identify which stage limits production and what changes would improve output or product mix.

Share and revise

Share the quarry plant design with stakeholders as a browser link. Update the design and all authorised recipients see the latest version.

Quarry types and plant configurations you can model

Hard rock quarries: granite, basalt, dolerite, gabbro
Limestone and dolomite quarries with variable feed hardness
Sandstone and softer rock quarries with high fines generation
Single-product quarries (e.g. crusher run) and multi-product aggregate operations
Two-stage and three-stage crushing circuits with intermediate screening
Open and closed circuit configurations at any stage
Pre-screening to remove fines before primary crushing
Tertiary and quaternary crushing for manufactured sand or fine aggregate

Who uses quarry plant design software

Quarry operators

Model your existing plant to understand production limits, or plan equipment upgrades before committing to capital expenditure.

Consultants

Build and compare quarry plant scenarios for clients across different rock types, production rates, and product mixes.

Capital project engineers

Validate quarry plant design before procurement begins. Show the circuit flow and projected performance to stakeholders and approvers.

Sales and equipment dealers

Build a quarry-specific plant proposal that shows how your equipment fits the customer's rock type and production target.

Why quarry teams benefit from browser-based design

A quarry design project involves multiple people: the quarry manager, the site engineer, the equipment supplier, the civil contractor, and the client or investor. Coordinating between all of them using emailed PDFs and spreadsheets creates version confusion and slows decisions.

Because Quorr runs in the browser, everyone works from the same live model. The quarry manager can open the design on-site. The equipment supplier can review the circuit from their office. Authorised recipients can open the design in a browser without installing software — they may need to create or log into a free Quorr account so access can be controlled securely.

Design your quarry plant in the browser

Frequently asked questions

Can Quorr model different rock types?

Yes. You select the rock type and set the bulk density and feed particle size distribution (PSD). Granite at 2.7 t/m³ behaves differently through a crushing circuit than limestone at 2.4 t/m³. These inputs drive crusher performance predictions and product gradation calculations throughout the flowsheet.

How does quarry plant design differ from crushing plant design?

A quarry plant design includes the full production context: rock type, feed gradation variability, multiple saleable product specifications, and stockpile management. A crushing circuit design typically focuses on the mechanical configuration of the equipment. In practice, the two overlap significantly, and Quorr handles both.

Can I model a quarry that produces multiple aggregate products?

Yes. You can define multiple product streams in Quorr, each with its own size specification, and see the projected tonnage for each product. A typical quarry design might include crusher run, 20–40 mm, 10–20 mm, and 0–4 mm dust, all in the same flowsheet.

Can I model an upgrade to an existing quarry plant?

Yes. You can model your current plant configuration, then introduce a new machine or change a crusher setting to see the projected impact on throughput and product output before committing to the change.

Is Quorr specific to any quarry type or geographic region?

No. Quorr supports hard rock, limestone, sandstone, and other common quarry materials. It is not region-specific and can be used wherever quarrying and aggregate production takes place.