Tag Archives: FLSmidth

FLSmidth to help modernise crushing, grinding circuit at Zijin’s Serbia copper op

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , , , , , ,

Zijin Mining Group has chosen an FLSmidth gyratory crusher, SAG mill and ball mill for the Majdanpek mine, part of the Chinese mining company’s majority owned Zijin Bor copper mine, in Serbia.

The delivery of the equipment to Majdanpek, 180 km from Belgrade, is expected to occur between 12 and 18 months from now, with the project estimated to reach completion by the end of 2020. The order has a combined value of around DKK200 million ($30 million), according to FLSmidth, and has been recognised in the order intake for the September quarter.

The order of the new FLSmidth crushing and grinding circuit for the front end of the concentrator comes as Zijin looks to modernise Majdanpek, which will be the largest of its three Serbian copper concentrators, FLSmidth said.

Acquired as part of the majority acquisition of Bor in late 2018, the Majdanpek mine uses open-pit mining and flotation to produce copper concentrates, with a designed mining and processing scale of 10 Mt/y, according to Zijin. The operation is currently at a scale of 6 Mt/y, it said.

In the next six years, the company says it plans to invest more than $1 billion in the upgrading, expansion, or construction of the four mines and smelter at Bor. After the completion of the first phase of the project, it is estimated output will go to 82,000 t/y of copper in concentrates, with the smelter producing 80,000 t/y of copper cathode. After the completion of phase two, this could go to 120,000 t/y of concentrate and 150,000 t/y of cathode.

Manfred Schaffer, President of Mining and Group Executive Vice President at FLSmidth, said: “This extensive order underlines the strong value proposition of FLSmidth to our customers in the copper industry. Our market leading crushers and mills will provide significant improvements for Zijin Mining in terms of productivity and processing efficiency.”

Namakwa enlists FLSmidth pumps to cut downtime, costs at Kao diamond mine

Comminution of minerals, Diamond mining, Equipment maintenance, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Water management, , , , , , , , , ,

The installation of a FLSmidth KREBS millMAX™ pump at Namawka Diamonds’ Kao mine, in Lesotho, is, according to the mining equipment maker, providing the miner with significant cost savings through increased impeller, casing and back liner wear life.

FLSmidth’s engagement at Kao started when the mine required a pump conversion in the field – an undertaking that can be difficult and time consuming, according to the mining OEM. “It is also a high-stakes operation as a cyclone feed is critical to the overall process and ability to generate returns. A wrong decision can mean a lot of lost revenue,” the company said.

It was the potential for cost efficiency that convinced Kao diamond mine to implement the KREBS millMAX Pump. After initial discussions, the first trial pump – a millMAX 8×6 centrifugal seal (C/S) – was installed in a cyclone feed application (DMS 2 pump 1).

Initial results after seven months showed the millMAX was performing extremely well on the wear side, according to FLSmidth.

“So, once you get the green light, you need to confirm the duty details and measure up the existing installation to ensure that when you begin to install the pump there are no surprises,” the company said.

Brad Moralee, Head of Product Unit Pumps, Cyclones and Valves at FLSmidth, said: “It’s high pressure for us: you are typically given a window of opportunity during a shutdown to complete the change, after which the new pump must run as expected when the plant is re-started.

“You need the combination of a great product but, more importantly, great technical understanding of the duty to be able to propose the correct solution. We understand what is at stake from the customer side.”

The change produced impressive results in comparison with the previous solution from another supplier, according to FLSmidth, with the millMAX increasing the wear life by nine times, across impeller, casing and back liner. “This has seen Kao make significant cost saving on direct replacement costs, reduced downtime and saved labour expenditure,” the company said.

While Kao mine operators were impressed with the benefits from the switch, a slight gland leakage was causing concern, according to FLSmidth. To resolve this, FLSmidth suggested running a one-month trial with the slurryMAX, which had just recently arrived on the South Africa market.

“The slurryMAX trial was based purely on its sealing capabilities as Kao were confident of the hydraulic performance of the pump and had no concern about wear as they were confident the slurryMAX would show predictable and even wear life across all wet-end parts,” the company said.

Kao’s confidence also came from the fact the slurryMAX design is based on the millMAX range, whose wear ring technology has created an efficient and long-lasting slurry pump.

The main difference between the millMAX and the slurryMAX is that the millMAX is an all-metal pump meaning it does not have an outer casing and an inner wear liner (the casing itself is made from the high chrome wear material), while the slurryMAX is a split casing design that has a replaceable inner liner. The purpose of this design is that multiple material liner options are available to fit in the same outer casing.

“The slurryMAX features an improved, more efficient impeller and an optional water drain plug for easier maintenance, allowing water that might have settled at the bottom of the pump to be drained quickly,” the company said.

Leigh Rieder, FLSmidth Sales Engineer, concluded: “Kao is extremely happy with the hydraulics and lack of excessive wear of our pumps, which has meant that their cost of ownership is low. We have recently received an order from the customer for two more slurryMAX pumps and they have expressed interest in our slurryMAX 6×4 and slurryMAX 10×8 pumps.”

FLSmidth to challenge sampling status quo following IMP Automation buy

Automation, Mineral exploration, Mining equipment, Mining services, Mining software, , , , ,

FLSmidth completed the acquisition of IMP Automation earlier this year, creating, the company says, a market-leading portfolio in mineral sampling and laboratory automation.

The finalisation of the acquisition (the deal was first announced in February) means customers can immediately benefit from a complete portfolio of IMP’s laboratory automation solutions in combination with FLSmidth’s global footprint and experience in automated sampling solutions, FLSmidth says.

The Denmark-headquartered company says mine sites, ports and laboratories are increasingly seeing the benefits of automation. “By examining conventional processes, we help you design, construct and implement innovative sampling and laboratory solutions from grassroots exploration to final product,” the company added.

Tina Knudsen, General Manager, Sampling, Preparation and Analysis – Mining at FLSmidth, said integrating the companies’ collective experience in sampling and automation and industry process knowledge, will allow the company to “continue to challenge conventional sample process technologies and deliver innovative and reliable sampling and analytical solutions”.

Knudsen added: “We have united our expertise under the FLSmidth name to create an even stronger portfolio of mineral laboratory automation solutions. Together, we are well positioned to create cutting-edge, competitive solutions for mining applications.”

FLSmidth responds to north Chile mining demand with opening of new service centre

Mineral processing, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , , ,

FLSmidth says it has launched a new service centre for customers in the north of Chile focused on timely delivery of mining equipment to customers and component maintenance.

The opening event, held last week, was attended by a number of key customers and representatives from local authorities, according to FLSmidth.

The 8,000 m² facility, in Copiapó, is geared towards meeting the high demand for mining service and technical support in the region.

FLSmidth said: “The service centre has a primary emphasis on supplying solutions that extend the asset’s life cycle, such as repairs and rebuilds; equipment and components upgrades; parts and consumables strategic stocking programs; tailored training programs; technical assistance; and customised service packages.”

The facility ensures customers receive the required knowhow to optimise their operations, as well as support when it comes to inspections, process audits and technical issues, the company added.

Andrés Costa, President FLSmidth South America, said: “This is a significant milestone for the company, since Copiapó represents an important part of our operations in Chile. The huge mining industry potential in the area and our large installed base requires an infrastructure like this so we can work closer with our customers, get to know their challenges and deliver sustainable productivity solutions to their operations.”

Carlos Sagredo, Plant Manager North Chile, said: “This new service centre will deliver extra availability and reliability to our customers, improving their productivity and uptime, reducing total cost of ownership and extending their equipment lifespan.”

Copiapó Service Center joins other FLSmidth service facilities in South America region, such as São Paulo (Brazil), Arequipa (Peru), Iquique, Antofagasta and Santiago (Chile).

FLSmidth takes nextSTEP in flotation technology at South Africa platinum mine

Metallurgy, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining techniques, Precious metals, , , , , , , , ,

FLSmidth’s innovative nextSTEP™ rotor and stator flotation technology has proven itself at a large platinum mine in South Africa, the mineral processing company says.

According to Ricus van Reenen, Regional Product Line Manager – Separation at FLSmidth, the nextSTEP rotor and stator combination has been at work for over a year at the mine, achieving positive results.

“The customer has achieved significantly lower power consumption on the full-scale retrofits we installed early in 2018,” van Reenen says. “The more efficient design allows the same or higher slurry circulation at reduced rotor speed, leading to lower power draw.”

The retrofits have been applied to both primary and secondary flotation applications, where energy savings of over 10% have been achieved, according to FLSmidth.

Years of research and development have been invested in the nextSTEP technology, which was originally launched in 2015, the company says. Among the key design elements are the addition of slots to the stator, adjustments in the rotor profile and a parallel distance between the rotor and stator.

“Energy dissipation is now more uniform than in traditional forced-air designs,” van Reenen says. “This means a more even wear pattern across the rotor and stator, and therefore longer intervals between maintenance.”

In the South Africa installations, the wear on the rotors and stators has been minimal after more than a year’s operation, the company says. In one flotation cell, the equipment has been operational for 15 months. The thickness of the rotor has reduced from 65 mm to only 60 mm, and the stator from 75 mm to 70 mm. After 13 months of operation in the second installation, the wear is even less, with the rotor’s thickness having reduced from 65 mm to 63 mm and the stator going from 75 mm to 73 mm.

van Reenen highlighted that there have been other benefits experienced by South Africa users of the new technology. Among these has been 16-18% less blower air usage, with more concentrated bubble formation.

“Better turbulence energy dissipation around the rotor and stator region, with its related finer bubble size distribution, creates more surface area for bubble-particle attachment,” van Reenen says. “This has delivered more froth and a higher mass pull on our local units.”

The success of the nextSTEP technology has led to further retrofits being planned in South Africa, in line with FLSmidth’s drive to promote mines’ productivity and performance. Van Reenen says the intensive R&D process continues apace and is not just in the rotor and stator design but also includes areas such as smart control systems and continued digitalisation of process solutions.

FLSmidth FerroCer wear panels ready to be proven in Africa mines

Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, Mineral processing, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining safety, Mining services, , , , ,

FLSmidth says it is gearing up for trials of its new FerroCer® modular impact wear panels in Africa, following successful tests in countries such as Australia, Peru and India.

The trials, to be conducted on sites in Zambia and Mozambique, are intended to demonstrate significant increases in wear life, a trait seen during other previous tests.

According to Zwerus Voges, Ceramic & Wear Solutions Specialist at FLSmidth, the innovative FerroCer panels represent a significant breakthrough in materials technology.

“The cost effective solution provides much better wear life than conventional panels and also delivers safety benefits to mine operators,” FLSmidth says.

Voges said: “The design of the panel takes advantage of the wear characteristics of multiple materials, and its matrix combines the strength and malleability of steel with the abrasion resistance of ceramics.”

Each panel weighs only 5 kg and can easily be handled by one person, meeting all the safety regulations for size and weight. The compact shape also makes the panels safe and easy to install using standard hand tools.

Voges says the panels have delivered longer wear life in various applications which has meant increased uptime for customer operations.

“FerroCer impact wear panels are particularly suited to high impact wear locations in a process plant, and these include chutes, hoppers, bins, feed boxes and vibrating screen boxes as well as reclaimer and loader buckets,” the company said.

The panels have excelled in nickel, gold, copper and zinc applications, according to FLSmidth, and Voges cites an example where FerroCer impact wear panels provided a solution in a tripper chute application. At this mining operation, the previous panels in use were having to be replaced every three to four weeks, resulting in increased unplanned shutdowns with associated costs.

“Since the FerroCer panels were installed over a year ago, not a single panel has had to be replaced in that application,” he says.

Based on the success of the original FerroCer panel design, FLSmidth recently developed the FerroCer 22 product for lighter applications where the material size is smaller. The larger ceramic surface area coverage on the panel reduces wear on the steel matrix. These panels weight only 2.8 kg.

“All panels are secured by just one bolt and nut, and no scaffolding or cranage is required,” the company said. “This enhances the safety and health of workers during installation, while speeding up the process.”

The compact size of the FerroCer panels also makes it easier to replace just the worn panels. This is a major advantage, especially where wear patterns are uneven and not all the panels in an installation require replacement, according to FLSmidth.

Voges highlights that the cone shape of the ceramic inserts enhances their resilience. It also means the panel wears more slowly over time, as the surface area of ceramic insert widens as it wears.

“The much longer wear life being achieved by the FerroCer panels translates into reduced total cost of ownership, which is a primary driver across all commodity sectors,” Voges concludes.

BHP looking at Australia-wide deployment of Supply Innovation program, Udd says

Base metals, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining events, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , ,

Following the successful introduction of a Supply Innovation program in Chile, BHP is now piloting this same platform at its Olympic Dam copper-gold-uranium mine in South Australia, Rag Udd, VP Technology Global Transformation at BHP, told delegates at the AustMine 2019 conference in Brisbane, Australia, this week.

Speaking at the packed event – reported to have broken past attendance records – Udd said BHP was looking to local suppliers to “solve challenges and, in turn, stimulate innovation” and could potentially expand the use of this platform throughout Australia.

He said the company needed to work differently to achieve its new procurement goals, which included “removing barriers to doing business with us”.

Udd pointed to the company’s Supply Innovation program, which originated in Chile, as evidence of the company’s progress in this space.

“This program has seen us create an open platform to connect our unique mining challenges with local suppliers and innovators,” he told delegates.

Rather than ask for a specific service or equipment – as has often been the way in the past – the platform enables suppliers to bring their innovations to the mining major, he said.

It was this platform that led to BHP introducing a new Trommel Maintenance Robot at its majority-owned Escondida copper operation, in Chile. Developed collaboratively by FLSmidth and local Chilean supplier MIRS, the robotic arm has benefits for safety and productivity, according to BHP.

Udd said the company is now piloting this program at Olympic Dam, with a view to establishing the platform on a national basis.

Test work proving up FLSmidth’s ‘game-changing’ Ecotails solution

Bulk handling, Environmental, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , ,

Testing by one of the world’s leading gold producers has confirmed FLSmidth’s Ecotails™ solution will be a game-changer for the mining sector, according to one of the company’s regional dewatering product line managers.

The solution, which combines filtered mine tailings with waste to form a GeoWaste, lowers water usage, rehabilitation costs and tailings footprints, according to the company.

Back in 2017, FLSmidth and Goldcorp signed an agreement to develop EcoTails, with the solution being studied for full-scale testing at Peñasquito, an operation with an average daily throughput of 130,000 t/d.

FLSmidth Regional Product Line Manager (Dewatering), Leonard Neluvhola, said the Ecotails solution is nearing the end of a lengthy testing process with the company, now called Newmont Goldcorp following a recent transaction.

“The success of its application to date confirms that Ecotails will be a game-changer for the mining sector,” Neluvhola said. “Not only can mines improve their environmental performance by applying this system, they will also see bottom line benefits too.”

He said the Ecotails solution involves dewatering and filtering tailings to a point where moisture content is just 10% to 25%.

“Up to 90% of the water in tailings can therefore be reused in the plant,” he said. “This is a vast improvement on pumping highly diluted slurry to a conventional tailings dam, where the water is lost to evaporation.”

The drier tailings are then mixed with the mine’s waste rock, after it has been sized and screened to be transportable by conveyor. “The resulting GeoWaste can be placed by a stacking system, as it is much more stable than wet tailings and can be stacked higher on a smaller footprint,” FLSmidth said. “This helps to address the serious concern mines have about the large footprints consumed by their tailings dams and waste rock dumps.”

In addition to its greater stability, GeoWaste is more conducive to vegetation growth, according to the company. “It is an ideal medium for concurrent environmental rehabilitation,” FLSmidth said. “The concurrent approach is becoming more popular, as it can mitigate the costs and risks of mine closure. Wet tailings can also present a greater danger of land contamination through leaching.”

Neluvhola said: “With our Ecotails experience and complete system offering, FLSmidth can provide a complete materials handling solution.” This includes crushers, sizers and screens, KREBS® pumps, thickeners and filters, conveyor and stacking systems, conducting tests and studies, system engineering and automation systems.

Neluvhola highlighted that FLSmidth in South Africa collaborates with customers on in-depth test work to ensure the application of Ecotails on their mines is fit for purpose.

“We can conduct testing at laboratory scale, and then advance to pilot stage when a mini-plant can be operated on site,” he said. “This allows us to test the technology using the customer’s own mined material in the thickening, filtering, conveying and blending phases to inform our technical designs.”

FLSmidth to bring the latest smart 3D design to Rio Tinto’s Koodaideri iron ore mine

Automation, Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, IoT, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining project news, Steel and iron ore, , , , , ,

Rio Tinto has chosen FLSmidth to supply key minerals handling equipment for the company’s Koodaideri iron ore project in Western Australia, the mining OEM says.

The contract is a turnkey agreement for the design, supply, installation and commissioning for the new greenfield iron ore mine.

“FLSmidth will provide the products and know-how that will be instrumental in developing the Koodaideri mine to be Rio Tinto’s most technologically-advanced mine to date,” FLSmidth said. “Rio Tinto will for the first time apply smart technology to interconnect all components in the mining value chain. FLSmidth will design the equipment to the latest Australian standards and incorporate smart 3D design and a variety of advanced engineering solutions, such as BulkExpert™ (pictured).

Manfred Schaffer, President, FLSmidth Mining, said: “Koodaideri will set new benchmarks in digitalisation and will feature the most technologically-advanced solutions employed to date in the iron ore sector. This will enable Rio Tinto to run the most advanced mining operation featuring high productivity and high safety in a cost-efficient set-up and we are proud to be part of this.”

Construction at the Koodaideri mine will commence this year with the first ore expected to be fully functional by late 2021, with a production capacity of 43 Mt/y of iron ore.

The exact total contract value for the supply of the equipment won’t be disclosed but is exceeding A$80 million ($56 million) and will be booked in the June quarter, FLSmidth said.

FLSmidth’s SAGwise makes an impact on mill consumables

Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Mining software, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , ,

Just over a year since launching its SAGwise™ total process control solution for semi-autogenous (SAG) mills, FLSmidth is putting some savings statistics behind the sensory and process optimisation system.

SAGwise is designed to optimise the use of the three main consumables in SAG milling: power, media and liners.

Winston Mokoena, Key Account Manager at FLSmidth, said the solution reduces critical impacts inside the mill by up to 45%. This adds life to wear liners and grinding balls, helping to prolong liner life between maintenance and giving mills more uptime, he added.

“SAGwise can improve mill production by 6% and substantially reduce process variability,” Mokoena said. “This ensures that the mill provides a constant and optimal feed to the next stage of the process, effectively facilitating better performance of downstream operations.”

Among the challenges mill optimisation tries to address is too little material in the mill, or too much. Too little leads to critical impacts between the grinding media and the mill liners, damaging both elements without producing value. If the mill is overfilled with mined material, on the other hand, this results in grinding inefficiencies.

“The SAGwise system uses four or eight unidirectional or bidirectional audio sensors located in close proximity to the mill, which detect the analogue sounds and convert them into digital signals for analysis by a processing unit,” FLSmidth said. “This unit uses the sound patterns and other process variables to determine the necessary adjustment to the mill’s feed, speed and pulp density.”

So direct are the improvements that can be achieved by this solution that customers can pay back their investment in less than six months, depending on the commodity value and the specific mill environment, according to FLSmidth.

“The parameters that are monitored by SAGwise include the mill’s power consumption, load impacts, mill load and pulp density,” Mokoena said. “The system then responds to these parameters by controlling the mill speed, the feed rate and the water to achieve the ‘sweet spot’ where the mill runs at optimum efficiency.”