Tag Archives: Screening

MBE Minerals expanding vibrating screen sales in southern Africa

Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , ,

Leveraging decades of industry experience and in-house design expertise, MBE Minerals says it is strengthening its footprint of vibrating screens across a range of commodities.

Sales Manager, Graham Standers, says the company has recently supplied 15 new screens to mining customers in coal, diamonds, iron ore and manganese. These operations are based in South Africa, Botswana and Australia. MBE Minerals has also fully refurbished a further four screens to ‘as new’ condition as they approached the end of their planned lifecycle, the company said.

“We place high priority on design capacity, to ensure that every screen suits the application and material it must screen,” Standers said. “Five of the screens supplied were newly designed to suit changing customer needs and processes.”

Each screen is designed by the company’s design office, and the design is then confirmed by finite element analysis through highly specialised software using data from the drawing model, according to the company.

“We have also introduced a range of screens designed specifically for fine coal dewatering, using a design which has proven to be cost effective, efficient and reliable,” Standers says. “Focus was placed on the design of the screen deck support system and screen drive, with a view to reducing downtime by minimising maintenance and enhancing reliability.”

The design is efficient in terms of the required spares stockholding, further reducing the screen’s overall lifecycle costs, according to the company.

“Our unique T-Lock pinless panel fastening system for polyurethane screen panels also significantly reduces the need to hold spares in stock, while reducing the changeout time for screen panels,” he says.

Technical and sales staff conduct regular on-site visits to customers to carry out inspections of equipment in operation. The teams report on equipment condition and performance, and provide customers with value-adding feedback and advice.

MBE Minerals – previously known as Humboldt Wedag – has been designing, manufacturing, installing and servicing vibrating screens in southern Africa for over 40 years.

“Our record for reliability is well known, with some of our units having been in service for over 20 years,” Standers says.

Kwatani stresses importance of screen servicing

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

To ensure uptime on critical equipment, maintenance contracts are becoming an ever-more popular choice, according to vibrating equipment OEM, Kwatani.

The South Africa-based company should know, as it has customised contracts in place to service over 500 of its machines in the Northern Cape alone.

“Vibrating screens are critical to a mine’s material flow, which is its lifeblood,” Kwatani CEO Kim Schoepflin, says. “This requires OEMs to be experts, not just in design and manufacture, but in service support and maintenance.”

As a leading local OEM, Kwatani has seen mines gradually embrace the value of maintenance contracts to avoid costly downtime. One of its contracts covers about 400 screens on a single mining operation.

The range of its contracts extends to various commodities, from hard materials like iron ore and manganese to soft material such as coal. In one coal operation in Limpopo, Kwatani has contracted to service 160 of its machines.

Schoepflin highlights how regular, expert maintenance is vital for mines to achieve the lowest cost per tonne in their production process. However, she warns these contracts can only be conducted responsibly and effectively with the right level of knowledge and experience.

“With our depth of know-how gathered over more than 40 years, we understand exactly what inspections and critical replacement need to be done and when,” she says. “As importantly, we know how to conduct this work cost effectively.”

Accurate costing of maintenance contracts can only be based on a firm foundation of expertise, especially when contracts invoke penalties due to breakdowns. Kwatani’s experience in the field ensures the requirements of its maintenance contracts are met. This allows the company to offer a range of financial models to customers when they consider such contracts.

“We are so confident of the quality and reliability of our vibrating screens and feeders that some customers pay us a cost-per-tonne rate to maintain them,” she says. “We design, manufacture, install and commission according to their requirements, and then we take financial responsibility for keeping them fully operational.”

Long-term contracts often also include a commitment to improve and enhance the performance of the screens over time. To do this work professionally requires qualified service teams who are supported by solid engineering teams. Kwatani has developed these resources locally over more than four decades, and continuously develops skills in-house, alongside the various management systems to ensure such skills are available timeously to the customer.

“In addition to training and employing local people for a service role at our branches, we also collaborate with mining customers to empower their locally-based suppliers where this is feasible,” Schoepflin says.

She highlights Kwatani’s solution-orientated approach, combining the company’s expertise in its screening technology with the customer’s specific needs and resources.

Weir Minerals Africa putting newly designed vibrating screens to the test

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

Weir Minerals Africa, having over the last 40 years proven the credentials of its Enduron® range of vibrating screens, is now locally designing and manufacturing new-generation linear motion vibrating screens.

One of these new, modern screen designs is part of a recent Weir Minerals Africa complete comminution plant contract for a South Africa mining project. The scope included two crushing stations, a screening station and all the related feed chutes, bins and conveyors.

According to Christian Stehle, Head of Engineering at Weir Minerals Africa, the company’s design capability provides the flexibility to produce vibrating screens to suit each customer’s plant layout. At the same time, the designs will optimise cost, efficiency and performance. South Africa also hosts Weir Minerals’ global screening and separation technology group.

“This expertise ensures that our robust Enduron vibrating screens provide exceptional classification and dewatering screening performance,” Stehle said. The screens are deployed in a wide range of minerals processing applications.

He noted that vibrating equipment is generally more challenging to design than static equipment due to the high frequency cyclic loading to which the machines are subjected.

“The final design must address key criteria like screening efficiency, throughput and loading, while still operating within the acceptable fatigue life limits of the materials of construction,” he said.

Stehle highlighted that the use of finite element analysis (FEA) tools allow engineers to optimise screen life by obtaining the stress and deflection levels in the equipment and applying the appropriate structural design and utilisation of materials in the areas experiencing high stresses.

“Traditionally, screen designs used to be heavier in an effort to extend the life of the equipment,” he said. “Using FEA tools during the design stage allows us to retain structural integrity while actually reducing the overall weight of the machine.”

While there are areas of high stress on the equipment that need more strength, technology tools indicate where lower stresses occur. In these areas, less steel can be used to make the structure lighter, according to Weir Minerals Africa. Leveraging this technology, the weight of some new-generation screens has been cut by up to 15%, the company said.

Stehle noted that Weir’s Synertrex™ IoT platform can also be applied to monitor and improve the performance of the company’s vibrating screens. Synertrex technology is an industrial internet of things system that allows operators to monitor every aspect of their equipment’s operation, to prevent problems and increase throughput.

Derrick offers higher screening productivity in confined spaces with the SuperStack

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

Derrick Corporation has introduced its new 8-deck SuperStack® vibratory screening machine, which, the company says, offers two-and-a-half-to-three-times the capacity of its precursor, the 5-deck Stack Sizer®.

With its eight decks operating in parallel, combined with a 30-35% increase in effective screening width per deck, the SuperStack achieves significantly higher production capacity with only a modest increase in footprint, according to Derrick.

While the 5-deck Stack Sizer is equivalent to a 5 m wide by 1.5 m long screen, the 1.42 m wide SuperStack is equivalent to a 11 x 1.5 m screen, the company said, adding that all screen frames are coated with abrasion-resistant urethane for extended service.

More effective use of screen area and increased capacity results from the front-to-back screen tensioning system, which tensions the panel in the direction of flow rather than side to side. In addition to increasing productivity, the tensioning system reduces screen panel changing time by 80-90% compared with side-to-side tensioning, according to Derrick.

Derrick Polyweb® urethane screen panels with 150 or 180 micron slotted openings are available for the SuperStack and an optional repulp spray system introduces free water into replaceable rubber wash troughs to help undersize material pass through screen openings.

Dual oversize launders (one per side) and a single undersize launder eliminate the need for a large hopper, which minimises height requirements. Each feeder additionally has a removable front cover to facilitate maintenance and debris removal, while custom designed inlet pipe configurations are available from Derrick, if needed, to meet equipment layout requirements.

The Flo-Divider™, which equalises flow from the feed source to each deck, meanwhile, is available in a number of discharge outlet configurations from two-way to 16-way.

Dual vibratory motors are positioned directly over the upper screen frame to deliver linear vibratory motion to all eight screen decks, with the motors having an internal oil lubrication system that eliminates the need for a separate lubrication system, while providing long-term maintenance-free operation and low sound production.

Todd Burchett, Vice President – Mining and Industrial Division, Derrick, said the SuperStack is a highly efficient means of achieving major production increases within a comparatively small footprint.

“Consequently, we expect the SuperStack to fill the need for higher productivity in facilities where space is limited.”

Mitch Derrick, Derrick CEO, said the innovative solution offers over twice the capacity of traditional units in a similar footprint, “significantly reducing both the upfront installation costs and ongoing operating and maintenance costs”.

Dan Cook of American Silica, which has already experienced the Superstack, said his company had seen a “vast improvement in quality and efficiency”. He was especially pleased with the ease of changing the SuperStack screen panels, according to Derrick. “The front-to-back tensioning makes screen changes faster than the 5-deck.”

Noting the productivity improvement, Cook said plant capacity had increased by about 20%. “We’ve gone from 700 tons (635 t) per shift to 950 tons per shift! And we believe it can handle more than what it’s rated for. We’re really pleased with the 8-deck!” he concluded.

Earlier this year, Derrick said Metalloinvest was planning to use the new 8-deck SuperStack at the Mikhailovsky mine, in Russia, as part of the company’s project to improve the quality of the operation’s iron ore concentrate.

Multotec-manufactured SAG mill trommel screens beating the competition

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

With mining companies looking to improve productivity and reduce downtime in the process plant, Multotec is promoting the use of its locally manufactured SAG mill trommel screens as a viable alternative to vibrating screens in SAG mill scalping applications.

“Many designers and mill operators believe that the benefits of simplicity and the ability to handle throughputs in excess of 3,500 t/h of solids make trommels the preferred equipment for this application,” the company said.

A key component ensuring optimal performance of SAG mill trommels is the screen panel, which enables this equipment to classify large volumes of mill product, according to Francois Fouche, Senior Screening Specialist at Multotec.

The company has developed a special range of rubber compounds used to manufacture the compression moulded rubber screen panels that are considered the highest wearing items in the trommel.

“We have achieved excellent results from our compression moulded screen panels with wear life extending over six months in 4,500 t/h hour SAG mill applications,” Fouche stated.
With nearly four decades of experience supplying locally manufactured trommel screens and, Multotec, today, has the process capability to size SAG mill trommel screens with diameters up to 5.5 m, it said.

“The company also designs its trommel screens to suit each customer’s unique requirements and confidently offers process and mechanical guarantees,” the company said.

Fouche said: “Considering the size and complexity of large SAG mill trommel frames, Multotec is able to apply the latest finite element analysis techniques during the design phase to ensure we reduce fatigue stresses and ensure structural integrity.”

Multotec, given the arduous duty, covers all frame surfaces exposed to the milled product with a wear resistant material, typically rubber.

Fouche said the operational performance of a SAG mill trommel is another key consideration for Multotec: “As adequate retention time is required for the efficient removal of the fine fraction, we need to reduce the high velocity of the slurry that exits SAG mills.

“We are able to achieve this with various configurations of weir bars. The design of a set of scrolls is an integral part of the design process as these regulate the flow of solids through the trommel screen.”

Multotec has supplied a number of trommel screens for 38-40-ft (11.6-12.2 m) SAG mills that required 500-600 mm high weir bars to create sufficient retention time. It can also supply a range of rubber shell plates and lifter bars to protect the SAG mill trunnion against wear.

“Providing long term customer support is one of the major advantages that Multotec offers,” Fouche says. “Our experienced competent field service crews maintain the screening media and provide condition monitoring on the trommels.”

The Multotec field service maintenance crews can also focus on wear rate indication and monitor the wear resistant lining of the steel structure, and in doing so provide a complete maintenance solution.

McCloskey becomes part of Metso

Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mining mergers and acquisitions, , , , ,

Metso says it has completed the acquisition of McCloskey International, a Canadian mobile crushing and screening equipment manufacturer with market share in the aggregates sector, as well as customers in the frac sand and industrial minerals segments.

The deal was announced back in June, with Metso, at that time, saying the acquisition would allow the company to “better take part in the attractive growth of mobile products within the aggregates industry”.

“This acquisition is an excellent strategic fit for Metso, because it strengthens our aggregates business and balances our traditionally mining-focused Minerals portfolio. With McCloskey as part of Metso, we are also able to better take part in the attractive, long-term growth of the mobile equipment market within the aggregates industry,” says Pekka Vauramo, Metso’s President and CEO.

Markku Simula, President of the Aggregates Equipment business area of Metso, said: “This acquisition expands our offering to new customer segments and application areas. McCloskey’s capabilities and technical solutions strengthen our ability to address diverse customer needs through complementary channels and offerings. We are confident that McCloskey will align well with Metso, and we are excited to welcome new colleagues to the Metso family.”

McCloskey will be reported in Metso’s Minerals segment as of the December quarter.

Metalloinvest employs Derrick fine screening technology at Mikhailovsky GOK iron ore mine

Comminution of minerals, Environmental, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining project news, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , ,

Metalloinvest says it has launched Derrick fine screening technology at its Mikhailovsky GOK mine, in Russia, as part of a major project to improve the quality of the operation’s iron ore concentrate.

The first technological phase of the ore concentrate project was launched at Mikhailovsky GOK beneficiation plant during an official ceremony (pictured) attended by Nazim Efendiev, First Deputy CEO, Sales Director, Management Company Metalloinvest; Mitchell Derrick, CEO of Derrick; Miron Boris, General Manager of Thrane Teknikk (exclusive representative of Derrick in Russia and CIS); Sergey Kretov, Managing Director of Mikhailovsky GOK; and Mikhail Aksenov, chairman of the Committee for Industry, Trade and Small Business Development of Russia’s Kursk region.

On the same day, an agreement was signed with Thrane Teknikk to supply Derrick equipment for the second stage of the project, which will see the construction of a new building for beneficiation of concentrate at the beneficiation plant.

Efendiev said the introduction of fine screening technology is an important part of the comprehensive program to improve iron ore products at Mikhailovsky GOK.

“Improvements in the quality of concentrate will enable the enterprise to produce premium quality pellets in line with international standards,” he said. “Mikhailovsky GOK products will enter the top league, allowing access to new sales markets. The enterprise will also reduce its impact on the environment and will increase production efficiency.”

Mitch Derrick said the company’s partnership with Metalloinvest began in 2005 and, since that time, the two have worked together at Mikhailovsky and Lebedinsky to ensure significant efficiency gains in the production of high-grade iron ore concentrate with Derrick’s 5-Deck StackSizer® screens.

“I am extremely happy that we are furthering this important alliance with Metalloinvest’s decision to utilise Derrick’s newly offered 8-Deck SuperStack™ High-Frequency Screens at Mikhailovsky,” he said. According to the Derrick chief, this solution offers over twice the capacity of traditional units in a similar footprint, which significantly reduces both the upfront installation costs and ongoing operating and maintenance costs.

During the first stage of the project, Derrick fine screening technology was introduced at four technological sections of the beneficiation plant. The design, supply and installation of the equipment, adjustment works and commissioning took place within a period of just one year. The capital expenditures for the first stage exceeded RUB1.2 billion ($18.7 million).

As a result of the first stage of implementation, over 3.7 million tonnes of iron concentrate with an increased iron level of 67% Fe from 65.1% will be produced in 2020 at the fine screening technology section, Metalloinvest says.

The second stage of the project, launched in August 2019, will see construction of a new building for beneficiation of concentrate using Derrick equipment (22 Derrick stack sizers and 44 water pumps, metal constructions, pipelines, supporting equipment).

As a result of the second stage, production of high-quality concentrate with an iron content of 68.7% Fe will amount to 16.9 Mt in 2022. The construction of the new beneficiation building and modernisation of production will enable the processing of complex ores with a higher iron content and will reduce overburden and production costs, according to the company.

Investments in the second stage are projected to be more than RUB12 billion.

Metso to buy up remaining shares in Chinese crushing and screening firm

Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, , , ,

Metso, to support its growth plans in China, has exercised its call option to acquire the remaining 25% of Chinese crushing and screening equipment manufacturer Shaorui Heavy Industries.

The Finland-based company originally acquired 75% of Shaorui, which targets the mid-markets with its comminution equipment, back in September 2013. Back then, the company said the acquisition forms a good platform for future growth in terms of obtaining a leading crushing and screening market position by combining Metso’s current premium product offering with Shaorui’s experience in mid-market products.

“Shaorui business is growing and our expectations are positive,” Markku Simula, President of the Aggregates Equipment business area at Metso, said. “Today, they are one of the leading mid-market crushing and screening equipment producers in China, and full ownership provides us an opportunity to broaden our scope in terms of new markets and offering.”

The transaction is expected to be completed during the December quarter. After the transaction, Metso will become the sole owner of the company with 100% of its shares.

Weir Minerals Africa enhances offering with simulation, modelling software

Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Mining software, , , , ,

Digital design and simulation technology tools are enhancing Weir Minerals Africa’s solution offering to customers, the company says, allowing insights into upstream and downstream improvements that optimise mineral processing.

“With our focus firmly on integrated solutions, we are increasingly able to leverage technology to benefit our customers,” Christian Stehle, Head of Engineering at Weir Minerals Africa, says. “This applies not only to how we design our product solutions, but how we help customers to examine their whole process.”

Simulation and modelling software tools are key enablers in this quest, according to Stehle. “They give the Weir Minerals Africa engineering team the power to use computational fluid dynamics, for instance, to model the behaviour and flow of liquids and gases,” the company said.

Stehle added: “In addition to analysing our own equipment, we can also understand more about what happens upstream of our equipment. Understanding material flow at various points of the customer’s plant process is vital to optimising how our equipment works.”

By the same token, discrete element modelling software simulates material flow of solid particles. This allows users to model the flow of material through feed chutes and into Weir’s crushers and vibrating screens. The analysis software in this field – like everywhere – is constantly advancing, providing an increasingly detailed understanding of material behaviour, according to Weir.

“Using technology tools like these, we put our mechanical and metallurgical expertise at the disposal of the customer,” Stehle says. “It gives us the ability to make a scientific assessment of where their plant challenges lie, while also giving us the power to develop specific solutions to solve the customer’s problems.”

Weir said: “The extensive suite of the company’s mineral processing products can then be employed to address the challenges that are identified using these technology tools.”

Stehle says the value of tools like 3D laser scanning, which can be used to quickly and accurately map a customer’s plant layout and dimensions. The scanned data is then integrated with Weir Minerals Africa’s computer-aided design software to design solutions that fit into the existing plant footprint.

“We can then provide solutions that are engineered to order, with precision that ensures we get it right the first time,” he says. “This means quicker installation and commissioning, so there is less downtime for the plant.”

Fast-evolving software also facilitates the application of finite element analysis for stress analysis in structural design.

As Weir Minerals Africa extends its offerings in comminution, the team puts this technology to work in designing ancillary support structures around its equipment. This includes the design and construction of modular plants for crushing, screening and sand washing.

Superior to show off increased South America presence at CONEXPO Latin America

Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining events, Mining maintenance, Mining services, , , , , , ,

Superior Industries Inc says it is ready to show off an expanded South America presence at the upcoming CONEXPO Latin America event, in Santiago, Chile.

A US-based manufacturer of bulk material processing and handling systems, the company recently added three manufacturing facilities to its South America base through the acquisition of Parcan Group, a 40-year-old Brazil-based company that engineers and manufactures conveyor drums and rolls.

At CONEXPO Latin America, on October 2-5, Superior said it planned to showcase its latest construction aggregate processing and handling solutions.

With the addition of Superior’s core products, including crushing, screening, washing and conveying equipment, the manufacturer’s local entity is able to offer aggregate and mining producers processing and handling solutions from Rock Face to Load Out®, it said.

Visitors to the company’s booth will be able to meet with Superior employees about the manufacturer’s crushing, screening, washing and conveying equipment. They will also be able to explore opportunities for conveyor idlers, pulleys, belt scrapers and accessories, plus crushing, screening and washing spare parts.