Tag Archives: Poly-Met

Metso cuts the ribbon on Mexico screening media factory

Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , ,

Metso has celebrated the inauguration of its screening media factory in Irapuato, Mexico, a new facility that, it says, will significantly increase its supply and delivery capabilities for mining and aggregates customers in North and Central America.

The screening media center employs 46 people and is located on a 9,000-plus sq.m lot. The new screening media factory uses advanced and sustainable manufacturing practices, and the installed solar panels will cover approximately 50% of the needed electricity, according to the company.

Alfredo Monreal, Vice President, Sales and Service, Mexico and Central America, Metso, said: “We are very pleased to officially inaugurate our new screening media factory in Irapuato. This milestone is yet another indication of our deep commitment to customer success. The Irapuato region is an important centre of excellence for high-quality products for our mining and aggregates customers.”

Metso’s screening installed base in the Americas has grown significantly: last year alone Metso delivered a total of 250 new screening machines to mining and aggregates customers.

Jouni Mähönen, Vice President, Screening business line, Metso, said: “Our target is to continuously develop our operations close to customers to further improve our service capability. The investment of a new factory in Mexico aligns with our strategy and improves our lead times, and it offers scalability in production volumes in a very important region.”

Today, Metso has approximately 730 employees working in production, sales and field service in Mexico.

In the same industrial area in Irapuato, Metso also has a new rubber and Poly-Met media factory. Construction of a new polymer filter plate factory will be finalised during 2024 and the factory will be operational in early 2025.

Metso’s screen offering consists of banana screens, horizontal screens, inclined screens, mobile screens, portable screens and ultrafine screens. It says it offers versatile screening media systems for a wide range of screening applications with solutions that range from rubber and polyurethane to classic wire.

Metso Outotec makes screening media production changes in North, Central America

Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , , ,

Metso Outotec says it is developing its global supply chain operations by reorganising its screening media production in North and Central America, with the opening of new capacity in Mexico and the discontinuing of operations in Missouri, USA.

The new screening media production capacity in Irapuato, Mexico, is planned to significantly increase supply and delivery capabilities for mining and aggregates customers in the region. The new factory in Mexico will start operations gradually during the first half of 2023 and, once fully operational during the September quarter, is expected to double the total production capacity by 2024 compared with the current level.

The new screening media center is expected to employ around 46 people.

Today, Metso Outotec has approximately 370 employees in its rubber and Poly-Met operations in Mexico. In 2022, Metso Outotec announced it would invest in establishing its first polymer filter plate production unit in Mexico.

The screening media production in Warrenton, Missouri, will be ramped down by the end of 2023, with the closure expected to affect approximately 40 employees in total.

Heikki Metsälä, President, Consumables Business Area, said: “We will serve customers with shorter lead times and faster deliveries by utilising a production site optimised for screening media products. The new factory is located close to our rubber and Poly-Met factory in Irapuato, and it further strengthens Mexico’s position as a centre of expertise for producing high-quality consumables.

“Our global supply footprint is under continuous development to ensure sustainable and profitable growth and to serve our customers’ growing needs. Closing a factory is a hard but necessary decision to make. We will support our employees throughout the transition.”

Metso Outotec adds mill lining recycling to latest Boliden Kevitsa service agreement

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Environmental, Equipment maintenance, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , ,

Metso Outotec says it has signed a Life Cycle Services (LCS) contract with Boliden for its Kevitsa mine in the Sodankylä region of Finland, which will see the OEM offer the mining company a novel Planet Positive mill lining recycling service for used liners.

The 3+2-year agreement covers the supply and optimisation services of the Megaliner™ liners for four mills with advanced discharge systems, supported by shutdown planning and execution services of the mill linings.

The contract is a performance-based cost-per-tonne agreement, with the common target to ensure the availability of the grinding circuit and to maximise valuable production time, striving for a common sustainability goal that benefits both parties, the company said.

The value of the order is about €35 million ($34 million) and the first part of the contract has been booked in Minerals’ September quarter orders received.

Anssi Poutanen, Senior Vice President, Mill Lining business line, Metso Outotec, said: “We are very excited to expand cooperation with Boliden in Finland. Metso Outotec is committed to supporting Boliden’s operative and sustainability targets and further increasing their liner wear life. When it is time to replace the worn liners, our innovative mill lining recycling service will dispose of the worn liners in a sustainable way.”

After over a decade of intensive development work and pilots for worn mill liner recycling, Metso Outotec says it is ready to introduce its latest circularity innovation, a unique separation line to process rubber, Poly-Met™ and Megaliner liners of all sizes. For customers, the new mill liner recycling service solves the problem of disposing of worn mill liners and offers a way to reduce CO2 emissions and improve environmental efficiency, as less material is being sent to landfills unprocessed, according to the company.

The first-of-its-kind service aims to recycle and create value from used mill liners on an industrial scale. It enables the separation of different liner components so that they can be either reused or recycled in the most optimal way.

Lars Furtenbach, RTD & Engineering Director, Mill lining business line at Metso Outotec, said the new separation line has already processed more than 200 liners.

“We are also exploring ways to increase the number of recycled materials in our liners to further close the circularity loop,” he added.

In the first phase, the recycling service using the new separation line is available for mill lining service contract customers in Europe. The recycling service will be expanded to new markets in 2023.

Metso Outotec to invest in polymer filter plate production plant in Mexico

Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Water management, , , , ,

Metso Outotec says it will invest in its first polymer filter plate production unit in Mexico in response to global demand for high-quality filtration solutions for its mining customers’ filter presses.

The company expects to invest a total of around €28 million ($28 million) to acquire the land and develop the production facilities by 2025.

The construction work will begin as soon as the acquisition of the land and the planning of the facility have been completed.

The construction of the new factory is expected to begin in 2023 and reach full capacity during 2025, following a gradual ramp-up. Once fully operational, the new factory is expected to employ around 60 skilled personnel.

Tomas Hakala, Senior Vice President, Beneficiation, Dewatering and Hydrometallurgy Services, said: “Polymer filter plates are strategic and critical spare parts. To serve our customers’ growing needs, we will further develop our supply capabilities by investing in a new state-of-the-art factory where quality and safety are key focus areas. We also have maintained and will maintain a strong network of suppliers globally.”

Hakala says the company has selected Mexico as the target country for its potential to reduce lead times, transportation distances – especially to the Americas – and CO2 emissions for its end customers.

Metso Outotec has high sustainability targets for CO2 emissions for its own operations and the supply chain. The target is to have net-zero CO2 emissions in the company’s own operations by 2030, and a 20% reduction in CO2 emissions from logistics by 2025.

In addition, the goal is for 30% of suppliers by spend to make a commitment to the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and set reduction targets for CO2 emissions by 2030.

The new factory will be located in the central region of Mexico, where Metso Outotec already has a rubber and Poly-Met factory.

Centamin looks for partial diesel displacement with Cat DGB LNG trial

Environmental, Mine operation news, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

Centamin is to trial Caterpillar’s Dynamic Gas Blending (DGB) technology at its Sukari gold mine in Egypt as part of a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lower costs.

The mine will trial the technology on three or four its haul trucks next year, Centamin CEO, Martin Horgan, told attendees at its capital markets webcast today.

The DGB conversion kits, available on Cat 785C and 793D haul trucks, are a dual-fuel technology that enables miners to substitute diesel fuel with LNG, according to Cat. The use of LNG has been proven to reduce emissions by up to 30%, as well as lower costs by up to 30%, Cat says.

Just last week, Gold Fields’ CEO Nick Holland told a panel at IMARC Online that the company would trial DGB technology on four of its haul trucks at its Tarkwa gold mine in Ghana.

While the use of DGB technology will partially displace Centamin’s use of diesel fuel with LNG, the company said it was also working on “full displacement” with LNG as part of its efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The company has already committed to delivering a Stage 1 30 MW solar plant at Sukari, expected to replace 18–20 million litres of diesel consumption per year through operation during daylight hours.

In other areas of technology development, Centamin said it would soon be adding new Cat 6040 hydraulic face shovels to its existing fleet at Sukari, it had four “lightweight truck trays” currently operating at the mine, and it was trialling Metso Outotec Poly-Met mill liners on ball mills in its processing plant.

Metso Outotec to discontinue North Bay operations as part of consumable wear parts restructuring

Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining services, , , , ,

Metso Outotec is developing its global rubber and poly-met supply chain by restructuring its consumables wear parts manufacturing operations in North America, leading to the closure of its factory operations in North Bay, Canada.

Production will be ramped down by the end of the first half of 2021, with the closure affecting a total of around 65 employees.

Metso Outotec says it will use the existing North and Central American manufacturing footprint in order to serve customers.

Sami Takaluoma, President, Consumables business area at Metso Outotec, said: “We are continuously developing our global supply footprint to ensure sustainable and profitable growth. To close a factory is a hard but necessary decision, and we realise that it will have implications on our employees. We will work to support them through the transition.”

The North Bay unit produces rubber and poly-met wear parts used in the mining industry.

Metso Outotec is a leading provider of rubber and poly-met mill lining with an extensive service network in all main mining markets. The company currently operates 11 factories manufacturing synthetic solutions globally.

Metso Outotec and Boliden renew service contract for Aitik copper mine

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

Metso Outotec and Boliden have signed an extension of their service contract for Boliden’s Aitik copper mine in Gällivare, northern Sweden.

The “3+2-year extension” of the Life-Cycle Services agreement covers the supply of mill lining, chute lining solutions, preventive maintenance of the grinding circuit and recycling of used wear parts, the mining OEM said. The first part of the contract has been booked in Metso Outotec’s orders received in the September quarter of 2020.

The contract is a performance-based cost-per-tonne agreement, in which Metso Outotec gets paid according to the output of the customer’s process. The goal is to ensure the availability of the grinding circuit and to maximise valuable production time, striving for a common goal that benefits both parties, the company said.

Metso Outotec and Boliden have cooperated since the 1960s. Throughout the decades, the collaboration has evolved to meet new emerging needs, while continuing to improve uptime and annual production, Metso Outotec said.

“Safety is Boliden’s top priority and enhancing it is also embedded in the scope of the new contract,” the OEM said. “Metso Outotec will provide solutions that simultaneously cut maintenance time and increase the wear life of parts even further.”

The new contract also focuses more on the management of worn wear parts, with Metso Outotec developing capabilities to recycle and dispose of them more sustainably. The AG mills in Aitik will continue to use Metso Outotec’s innovative Megaliner™ mill lining.

Megaliner helps to maximise the availability of large mills by using an innovative design that speeds up liner replacement. The larger-than-average liners mean fewer individual pieces are needed. Megaliner also has fewer attachment points compared with conventional liners, further improving installation and removal time, Metso Outotec says. It also improves worker safety during maintenance as the liners are bolted into position from outside the mill.

The pebble mills and two regrind mills at Aitik will be lined with rubber and Poly-Met mill linings, Metso Outotec said.

Aitik is one of the largest copper mines in Europe. In 2019, the mine produced close to 41,000 t of copper, employing nearly 800 people.

Metso Outotec starts up mining wear parts facility in Lithuania

Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, , , , ,

Metso Outotec’s new manufacturing site in the region of Šiauliai (Šiauliai län), northern Lithuania, has started its operations.

The new plant further strengthens the company’s capability to produce high-quality rubber and poly-met wear parts for its mining customers, the company said. The investment was announced back in March 2020.

“Our target is to continuously develop our global operations to ensure a competitive footprint and reliable deliveries for our customers globally,” Sami Takaluoma, President, Consumables business at Metso Outotec, said. “I am very pleased that the ramp-up of the new factory in Lithuania has been now completed by a very competent team. First products have been successfully sent to our customers.”

The factory uses fossil-free and renewable electricity in its production, and processes have been optimised for each customer segment. The location of the factory in Lithuania was decided based on a careful analysis of the current customer closeness in Europe and Russia, and with good logistical connections to the Middle East and Africa regions, Metso Outotec said. With access to many logistics options, customers will also benefit from the improved delivery and warehousing capabilities.

Metso Outotec, which operates currently 11 factories manufacturing synthetic solutions globally, said the factory will employ 80 people by the end of 2020.

In October 2019, the company opened a new Business Services centre in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. Currently the centre employs about 100 experts and offers services related to finance operations and customer logistics. The scope of the centre is growing and will cover new areas in the future, the company explained.

Metso’s Trelleborg facility to press ahead with mill lining additions

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

Metso says it is expanding the range, sizes and types of consumable products it manufactures with the help of an “innovative, mega-size compress press”.

The move will develop its consumables product range and production capacity, especially in larger consumables wear sizes, it said.

The press, being installed at its Trelleborg factory in Sweden, can produce products, such as mill lining wear parts, that weigh up to 8 t. Production with the new press will start in May, it said.

The press to be installed is the first in a series of three similar machines with a total value of €10 million ($10.8 million), according to Metso.

Sami Takaluoma, President, Consumables business, Metso, said: “We are continuously developing our operations to improve our flexibility in fulfilling our mining customers’ needs globally.

“For our customers, the ability to acquire and use larger, high-quality consumables in the process enables a longer operating time and reduces the time required for maintenance work. The new press has been developed together with the supplier, and it utilises unique, innovative technology.”

The ongoing COVID-19-related travel restrictions and increased employee safety measures globally created a need to find a sustainable and safe way to install the new machine in the Trelleborg facility, Metso said.

The installation process is monitored remotely by the supplier with dedicated installation support hubs in Australia and China. Through a variety of headsets and video cameras, the installation team has been able to obtain continuous online guidance and instructions.

“In this challenging situation, we found a workable solution to stay on schedule,” Takaluoma said. “Thanks to the continuous support and detailed online guidance provided to the on-site team, the installation work has proceeded as planned and with safety measures maintained.”

Metso is a leading provider of rubber and poly-met mill linings and has a strong service network in all the main mining markets. The Trelleborg unit produces rubber and poly-met wear parts used in the mining industry.

Metso currently operates 11 factories manufacturing synthetic solutions globally, and it will open a new factory for mining consumables wear parts in Lithuania in 2020.

Metso’s Ersmark rubber and poly-met wear parts facility to close

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

Following a review in its Minerals Consumables business area in EMEA, Metso has decided to discontinue operations at the rubber and poly-met wear parts manufacturing facility in Ersmark, Sweden.

Metso announced back in September it was starting “personnel negotiations” to review the implications at rubber and poly-met wear part production units in Ersmark and Trelleborg, Sweden. It has now decided to ramp down operations at Ersmark in stages from the beginning of the June quarter, with full closure expected in September quarter, it said.

The decision affects approximately 150 manufacturing related positions in Ersmark.

Sami Takaluoma, President, Minerals Consumables business area, said: “Our strategy is to improve productivity and reduce logistics costs by building on the most efficient manufacturing and sourcing opportunities at a regional and global level to ensure the best value and availability for our customers.

“During the negotiations, we evaluated the EMEA region as a whole and came to the conclusion that consolidating the rubber and poly-met manufacturing operations in Sweden was the only feasible solution.

“This is a very unpleasant yet necessary action. Going forward, our focus will be on ensuring a sustainable transition for Ersmark as well as uninterrupted service to our customers.”

The company concluded: “Today, Metso is the leading player in the rubber and poly-met mill lining business with a strong service network in all the main mining markets. In addition to Ersmark, Metso has another factory continuing synthetic wear part production in Trelleborg, Sweden, and nine other factories for synthetic solutions globally.”