Metro Concrete Company

I have decided to name the cement mixing company on the Waterfront scene "Metro Concrete", and I needed a title for this post, so there it is.

There will be a large model train show in Raleigh next month put on by "Worlds Greatest Hobby" on tour. And since my modules will be in a layout at the show I needed to get off my ass and get stuff done.
The bulk cement storage structure is the last large piece I have needed to build for the Metro Concrete Company complex. The concrete mixing building was finished a couple of years ago and I've been trying to find a prototype structure that I liked and that I could build. I don't like the Walthers structures that I could have used as a starting point because they are so boring, and everyone has one. I finally found a great prototype in "Model Railroader's Guide to Industries Along the Tracks # 3". This publication has a chapter on the Cement industry, and on page 24 there is a photo of a concrete company with a cement storage structure that is the inspiration for what I am building. The structure is a tall steel silo that has a passageway through the bottom for loading transport trucks.

 In the above image is a preliminary mockup. The existing mixing building  is on the left and the mockup storage structure is on the right. I placed a couple of covered hoppers and the transport truck in the scene the check for proper location. The location has to accommodate three issues. First; the rail siding angles toward the module edge from left to right. So if I place the structure to far to the right, it will be to close the the module edge. Second; the transport trucks could approach the storage silo from the same driveway that accesses the mixing plant and need to be able to straighten out the trailer before entering the silo for loading. This limits how far to the left I can place the structure.
Lastly, I want to be able to park a minimum of three covered hoppers on the siding, with one of them parked in the covered shed.

This image was taken today, I've made a lot of progress this week. The railing on the elevator platform is made from Phosphor Bronze wire that I soldered together. The elevator is leftover from the Walthers "Blue Star Cement" which was the starting point for the mixing building. The silo is made from a RIX 60' oil tank. I cut in the opening for the trucks and added the reinforcing made from Evergreen structural shapes. The concrete platform within the silo is made from wood and is part of a wood frame I built to support the silo when it is attached to the module. Because the module is transported on its side the silo needed some framing inside so as to not break off. The interior platforms contain T nuts that will receive screws for securing the structure to the module. The curved stairway and platform are from Tichy, which buy the way is great stuff. To bend the stairway I cut off the side rail of the steps on the side that would be on the inside. Then I glued on a new side rail of the curved shape I wanted.
The remaining details left to add are the safety cage and ladder to the roof (also a Tichy kit) and a railing around the top. Then a couple a nonworking exterior lights, they come with the Tichy stairs.

Here is the silo with the unloading shed. The shed is made from the leftovers of a Pikestuff kit.
Of course painting is needed and I'm leaning toward white with the word "METRO" placed vertically on the silo in large red letters.

Another scene image of the complex. When finished, I will install a row of wood poles between the storage silo and the mixing building. The poles will carry a pipe for transporting the cement powder to the mixing building.