TOMRA’s sensor sorting systems are celebrating 25 years of operation in the mining space.

The past quarter of a century has seen high-value, high-quality recovery and innovation led by sustainability and record-breaking achievements, the company said.

TOMRA Sorting Mining’s history and success dates back to 1993 when Commodas applied its core sensor-based technology to a mining application.

The optical sorting solution was tested on an industrial scale to separate calcium carbonate (CaCo3) from other materials in order to recover higher values of CaCo3, which is an essential element used in everyday products, such as paper.

In this application, the sorting technology automatically removed grey and dark rocks from the bulk feed and achieved excellent results. This led to, in 1994, two large-scale machines featuring this technology being introduced to Hermsdorf (Erzgebirge), Germany. This installation successfully ran for eighteen years.

In 2006, Commodas joined the TOMRA Group forming part of TOMRA Sorting – a leading solution provider in mining, recycling and food industries.

“Today, TOMRA Sorting Mining equipment can be found in a variety of challenging environments and extreme climates around the world. Our combined strengths of expert industry knowledge, proprietary technology and qualified engineer support service significantly benefit our customers in this dynamic industry,” the company said.

“TOMRA Sorting Mining solutions have enabled the recovery of the world’s largest diamond in over 100 years, the world’s largest sorting plant with an 1,880 t/h feeder, the industry’s highest sorting plan at 4800 metres above sea level, many additional notable diamond recoveries and the Innovation Award of Peru.

During the 25th anniversary year, TOMRA Sorting Mining will introduce the new COM Series XRT 2.0 (pictured). Based on the successful XRT sorter, the new COM Series XRT 2.0 is a true evolution with industry-leading standards for robustness, throughput and availability, according to the company.