A method and apparatus for horizontally shifting an article group or article layer, composed of a plurality of articles, from a first position and/or from a conveying movement into a second rest position while largely maintaining the relative positions of the articles in the article layer or group to each other, said transfer being effected by at least one first pusher bar engaging with the articles located at the back of the article group or article layer, as considered in relation to the conveying or feed direction. A support bar, which is at least temporarily allocated to the articles located at the front of the article group or layer, as considered in relation to the conveying direction, moves ahead at a slight distance from or abuts on the foremost articles of the article group or layer at least immediately before or on reaching the rest position.

A method of delivering proppant to a well site has the steps of transporting a load of proppant in a vessel to a desired location, moving the load of proppant from the vessel into a container so as to create a proppant-loaded container, unloading the proppant-loaded container into a pneumatic bulk trailer, and transporting the unloaded proppant in the pneumatic bulk trailer to well site. The container is placed onto a bed of a truck and moved in proximity to the vessel. The proppant-loaded container is placed onto a tilting mechanism and then tilted so that the proppant is discharged through a flow gate of a container into a hopper. The proppant in the hopper can then be conveyed to the pneumatic bulk trailer.

A method of delivering proppant to a well site has the steps of transporting a load of proppant in a vessel to a desired location, moving the load of proppant from the vessel into a container so as to create a proppant-loaded container, unloading the proppant-loaded container into a pneumatic bulk trailer, and transporting the unloaded proppant in the pneumatic bulk trailer to well site. The container is placed onto a bed of a truck and moved in proximity to the vessel. The proppant-loaded container is placed onto a tilting mechanism and then tilted so that the proppant is discharged through a flow gate of a container into a hopper. The proppant in the hopper can then be conveyed to the pneumatic bulk trailer.

The system includes a plurality of travel paths for conveying consumer products, the travel paths being in a side-by-side configuration, each one of the plurality of travel paths having a discharge point at a unique elevation, and a first wheel defining a first set of cutouts around a periphery of the first wheel, the first wheel being configured to rotate in a horizontal plane as each one of the first set of cutouts accepts one of the consumer products from each of the plurality of travel paths, in a successive order as the first set of cutouts pass in front of the discharge points, in order to form stacks of the consumer products in each of the first set of cutouts.

The system includes a plurality of travel paths for conveying consumer products, the travel paths being in a side-by-side configuration, each one of the plurality of travel paths having a discharge point at a unique elevation, and a first wheel defining a first set of cutouts around a periphery of the first wheel, the first wheel being configured to rotate in a horizontal plane as each one of the first set of cutouts accepts one of the consumer products from each of the plurality of travel paths, in a successive order as the first set of cutouts pass in front of the discharge points, in order to form stacks of the consumer products in each of the first set of cutouts.