Technology for World Markets
Nordic equipment manufacturers are among the most innovative in the world. Simon Walker reports on the many technologies they offer.
Closer to the present, home-grown expertise in exploration technology and supplying the need for increasing levels of mechanization and automation in mining has provided Swedish and Finnish compa-nies in particular with a huge advantage, and has given them the opportunity to compete effectively on the world stage. Equipment and service companies from Denmark and Norway are also highly inno-vative, and although mining is not as dom-inant an industry in these countries, their supply-side sector more than holds its own internationally.
Some Nordic equipment suppliers— take Atlas Copco, Sandvik, Outotec, Metso and FLSmidth as examples—not only have an international presence, but hold signifi-cant shares of their respective markets across the globe. From Nordic foundations, they have expanded through selective acquisition until their product ranges fulfill a mine or process plant’s complete needs. Other companies specialize by providing niche services or equipment, giving their customers access to a vast array of mod-ern, competitive tools to help optimize their operations. From exploration, through mining to mineral recovery, smelting and even product transport, companies from the Nordic countries have a lot to offer.
Mining Machines for Surface and Underground
Loading and Hauling with Volvo CE
Although there is a strong perception that Volvo CE’s machines are for construction,
the company points out that nearly 20% of
its sales are into mining and quarrying. As
an example, the mining contractor at
LKAB’s new Gruvberget operation near
Kiruna uses a fleet of Volvo CE machines,
including 12 wheel loaders, 20 ADTs and
eight hydraulic excavators.
Gruvberget is currently 450 m long by some 350 m wide and 130 m deep, and together with LKAB’s future Mertainen and Leveäniemi mines, will provide around 25% of the company’s total ore by 2015. The ADT fleet consists mainly of 37-mt-capacity A40D machines, while the largest excavator on site, an EC700, is in the 70-mt class.
“We run the operation around the clock throughout the year and handle the loading of ore and specialty products for LKAB,” said Ronny Nylund, site manager for Cliffton, the mining contractor. “Volvo machines provide a good environment for the drivers, produce very little noise and have low fuel consumption,” he added. “We are very impressed.”
Volvo CE has also reported on another application for its machines, handling high-temperature slag at Harsco Metals’ foundry in Mo i Rana, Norway. The L220 loaders move bucketloads of 1,300°C slag 60 m from the furnace tap to a cooling area, and are fitted with steel plating for heat protection and reinforced bulletproof glass in the cab. Volvo CE notes that while these machines were specially adapted for this duty, from next year it will be offering a factory-ready slag-handling version of the L220G.
Underground Grading
Veekmasis the Nordic countries’ only motor-grader manufacturer, an area of specializa-tion for the company since 1982. It current-ly offers three models specifically designed
for underground use; the FG5 C, FG7 C and
FG15 C, which are powered by 75 kW, 90
kW and 150 kW engines respectively.
Veekmas says its underground graders are ideal for operating in tight and twisting mine haulages. The four-wheel-drive machines are low-height, with a ROPS/ FOPS cabin/canopy, and have a small turn-ing radius for restricted underground con-ditions. This is because the frame articu-lates below the front of the cab, giving eas-ier turning and reducing the machines’ overall size.
A key feature is a shock-absorbing sys-tem fitted to the graders’ center blade, which responds to any humps in the haulage floor and reduces the chance of damage to the machine. Veekmas reports that it has recently delivered underground graders to new markets in Asia and Australia.
New-generation Cable-bolting
With a corporate history going back 150
years to 1862, Sandvik is today one of the
world’s leading suppliers of mining and materials-handling machinery. Its product
portfolio encompasses equipment for
underground loading and hauling, continu-ous mining, drilling on both surface and
underground, crushing and screening, bulk
materials handling, breakers and automa-tion systems. In 2011, its mining business
provided about one-third of the company’s
overall revenue.
As an example, in July the company won an order to supply a materials-handling and crushing system for a copper project in South America. Working in partnership with a local company, Sandvik is to design, sup-ply and install a crushing and conveying system, including primary in-pit crushers, overland conveyors, and a secondary and tertiary crushing and screening plant, including all auxiliary equipment and electrical instrumentation and control systems.
At the other end of the scale, Sandvik recently announced the return of the Rammer name for its hydraulic breaker range. Current models feature a new oper-ating principle that can be matched to specific applications, such as breaking over-size on grizzleys or in primary crushers.
Sandvik’s most recent launch within its mining business unit has been the DS421 cable bolter. This has built on experience gained over 30 years since the Cabolt— which it says was the first fully mechanized cable-bolting rig—came on the market. Requiring just one operator, the new machine has already achieved a record of 13,000 m of grouted cable bolts per month, the company reports.
The DS421 is designed for rock rein-forcement in tunnels and haulages with small and medium cross-sections. It has a working width of 3.9 m and a working height from 3.2 to 8.4 m, making it suitable for headings measuring around 4 x 4 m. As a self-contained unit with an HL 510 drill, an onboard steel strand reel, a cement mixer and a cement bag platform, the rig can install cement grouted cable bolts up to 25 m long.
The DS421’s standard features, such as front protection bars to protect the oper-ator from loose or flying rocks, two normal access ways with anti-slip surfaces, drilling on electrical power to reduce the risk of diesel particulate matter and the use of fire-retardant materials, all improve opera-tor safety, Sandvik says. Comfort and ergonomic features include an adjustable operator’s seat, easy access to most service points, and vibration dampening of the cabin/canopy, with daily maintenance possible from ground level.
The company states that one of the rig’s main advantages is being able to undertake the complete cable-bolting cycle with just one operator. Field trials have shown it can achieve an average of 6,000–8,000 m of grouted cable bolts a month, with the record performance of 13,000 m. The mechanized bolting cycle enables several steel strands to be installed in each hole, while the bolting cycle can be carried out on a hole-by-hole basis, or by drilling a complete series of holes before grouting and installing the cable bolts. In addition, a steel-strand bending system ensures that the strand stays in the hole during upward installation, without the need for manual wedge installation.
Bringing Down the Loose
Scaling and rock-breaking are areas of spe-cialization for two Swedish companies—
Brokk and Jama. Brokk produces a range
of tracked carriers that have a ‘spider’
arrangement of stability legs that can be
lowered when the machine is in use.
Hydraulic hammers are the tools most usu-ally carried, although the machines can be
adapted for hydraulic drills, buckets, grap-ples and even shotcreting booms. Typical
mining-sector applications include breaking
oversize on grizzleys, non-explosive excava-tion and scaling, with Brokk supplying its
330M unit mounted on an Atlas Copco GIA
wheeled carrier for greater maneuverability.
Jama’s SBU-8000 scaler is also wheel-mounted, with boom coverage from 3 m below the machine to 9 m above, and over 6 m side-to-side. The FOPS cab is fitted with armored front glass, plus a hydrauli-cally operated windscreen guard to protect the operator from any flyrock. Meanwhile, the CSU-8000 uses the same chassis but with a shotcrete spraying system in place of the scaling breaker. Jama also produces the BK008 work platform attachment for wheel loaders which, it claims, is the first such system to be EU-certificated—mean-ing that it can safely replace scaffolding or the use of specialist vehicles for working at height underground.
Utility Vehicle Specialist
Through its Esselift range, Normet also
offers self-contained work-at-height capa-bilities, albeit truck-mounted in this case.
While based in Finland, Normet has an
international distribution center in
Switzerland, with sales and support facili-ties in 16 countries worldwide.
Last November, the company intro-duced its Alpha 30 concrete sprayer, made at its Semmco subsidiary in Chile. De-signed for use in haulage profiles up to 7 m high and 9 m wide, the diesel-hydraulic Alpha 30 is fitted with a 30-m3 /h concrete pump and has a 550-liter-capacity acceler-ator tank. Both cable-linked and wireless remote-control systems are available.
Shotcrete-spraying systems are just one aspect of Normet’s product profile, howev-er, with the company producing machines for concrete transport, explosives charging, scaling, materials-supply, personnel trans-port and high-lift work, as well as supplying the TAM range of construction chemicals. Normet acquired full ownership of TAM International in July, building on the 40% stake it bought in 2010.
For logistics, the company’s Multi-mec, Variomec and Utimec ranges use a modular cassette system to allow different tasks to be carried out using a common carrier vehicle. As an example, the Multimec concept provides separate cas-settes for concrete transport, fuel, lube products, cargo, craneage and personnel transport as standard, with the option for custom-built modules as well. The compa-ny also offers its self-contained vehicle for underground transport, capable of carrying up to five people in the cab with a 1-mt-capacity cargo deck behind.
Speeding Excavator Moves
For surface mining and quarrying, Sleipner
makes special equipment for moving
tracked excavators in a cost-efficient and
effective way—saving up to 80% of the
time needed previously. The system is
based on a pair of heavy tires and the assis-tance of a haul truck, with the excavator
being carried off the ground with no wear
to its tracks and undercarriage. The com-pany says that its system is now able to
handle excavators up to the 550-mt class.
The system is based on two pairs of axles and heavy tires with ramps, and has automatic brakes that operate on slopes of up to 20%. Major advantages include the reduction in wear, leading to a doubling or even tripling of the undercarriage life. The system also makes maintenance easier and more cost-efficient, since a machine can be moved quickly to a workshop without the need for open-air repairs.
There are currently 11 models in the Sleipner range, from the E30 to the E550, with the figure indicating the weight of the excavator to be moved. Most models also incorporate different ramp sizes to fit almost all existing excavator brands and models. The company reports having made sales recently to mines and quarries in Australia, South Africa, Ghana, Indonesia, Austria, Angola and Chile.
Long-distance Hauling
Having been in the business for more than
100 years, Scania has a range of trucks
that are specially designed for use in min-ing and quarrying. Availability, fuel econo-my and high payload capabilities are all key
selling points for its vehicles, the company
says, pointing out that its trucks are built to
withstand tough mining conditions over a
long operational life, on- and off-road.
In addition, Scania can adapt vehicle specifications to meet the environment at individual mines, regardless of whether the operation is tropical, at high altitude or in the frozen north. Safety is also a key fea-ture, with its vehicle cabs having been impact- and crash-tested to meet the world’s toughest safety standards.
At the end of August, Scania announced a SEK1.5-billion ($225-mil-lion) order to supply truck-and-trailer com-binations and service-related products to the Swedish contracting company, Swerock. As Northland Resources’ general contractor, Swerock will use the vehicles to transport up to 5 million mt/y of iron ore concentrate from the company’s Kaunisvaara mine in the far north of Sweden to railhead loadouts, where the material will be transferred to the rail sys-tem for delivery to the port of Narvik.
Optimized for a gross weight of up to 90 mt, the vehicles will run round-the-clock, with annual driving distances of some 400,000 km. Scania’s contract cov-ers delivery of the trucks with specially built trailers, driver training, vehicle moni-toring, and full maintenance and repairs on the vehicles. To support the 80-strong truck fleet, it is establishing a service depot at Kiruna, and may have another at Kaunisvaara in the future.
The vehicles being supplied are four-axle R-Series trucks, powered by a Scania 545-kW (730-hp) V8 engine. As part of its agreement, Scania has undertaken to meet a requirement that per-ton transport costs must be cut continuously over a nine-year period, based on performance indicators for spending on fuel, tires, repairs and maintenance.
Scania considers driver training to be a critical part of a successful operation, with good drivers using less fuel, and causing less wear-and-tear to their vehicles and the roads they drive on. Its driver training scheme can help even the most experi-enced drivers to drive more economically and safely, it says, with savings of about 10% on fuel plus a significant reduction in emissions. In addition, tires will last longer, and the powertrain will last longer and consume less oil. In summary, Scania says, a well-trained driver is far less likely to be involved in an accident—meaning less unplanned downtime and lower insur-ance premiums.
Drilling to Depth
From its background in drilling systems,
Atlas Copco has expanded its product
range over the years to include LHDs and
mine trucks, raiseborers, mobile crushers,
rock reinforcement systems and hydraulic
breakers, not to mention the ubiquitous air
compressors that carry its name. The com-pany’s most recent acquisition in the min-ing sphere was its takeover in February of
GIA Industri’s underground equipment business, which added a range of loading,
hauling, support and utility vehicles to its
portfolio, as well as ventilation systems.
Atlas Copco’s most prominent products for surface mining, its Pit Viper large-diam-eter blasthole rigs, are made in the United States, while mid-range rigs come from its Swedish plants. In April, Atlas Copco reported the award of a $37-million con-tract to supply PV351 rigs to Kumba Iron Ore’s Sishen mine in South Africa, adding to the 10 units already working there.
For this Nordic equipment review, Atlas Copco has chosen to highlight the benefits of using its GPS Rock Manager Control System in a quarry-drilling application. Drilling at the Angered aggregates quarry outside Gothenburg is undertaken by the Swedish contracting company, Skanska, using a ROC D7C (now renamed as the FlexiROC T35 R) rig.
For this application, where the granite is both hard and fractured, Skanska uses T45 drill rods and shank adapters together with 76- and 89-mm drill bits, achieving unexpectedly low consumables use. The drilling software controls the process by drilling in the right place, and feeding the rods from a seven-rod cassette. With close control over the feed pressure, the rig achieves penetration rates of 1.1-1.6 m/minute and a rod service life of up to 26,000 m, Atlas Copco reports. Hole devi-ation has been cut to 10–50 cm per 20 m, it adds, with holes being drilled 25–30 m deep at 76-mm diameter.
Meanwhile, in the underground environ-ment, Atlas Copco has a fleet of drilling equipment at Outokumpu’s Kemi chromite mine in Finland, where capacity is current-ly being doubled to around 2.7 million mt/y of ore. When this is achieved, Kemi will be Finland’s largest underground mine, as well as being the EU’s only chromite producer.
With the mine founded on resources that will last maybe hundreds of years, Outokumpu has a long-term perspective on the operation in terms of the types of equipment it uses, Atlas Copco says. Because of the current mining boom, there is also a shortage of skilled manpower in Finland, and while Outokumpu has a train-ing program for new operators, having sophisticated machines helps as well.
The first Atlas Copco machines arrived at Kemi in 2003, with cooperation between supplier and customer having directed the way in which new systems have been intro-duced. Today, the mine operates an 11-strong fleet of the company’s machines, including three Boltec rock-bolting rigs, two Cabletec cable-bolters, two Boomer development rigs, two Simbas for long-hole drilling and another for cut drilling, and a Diamec underground core-drilling rig.
The mine has a policy of working its rigs for around five years, then replacing them with more modern technology. Its most recent arrival, a Boltec EC EH-DH rock-bolting rig, was delivered last December, and is both electric- and diesel-powered. Early observations showed that the machine is capable of installing 120–130 bolts per shift, with the new heavy-duty boom fitted to it helping to cut wear and maintenance costs.
Cleaner Engines
Looking ahead to 2014, when the off-road
equipment industry must go from Tier 4
Interim/Stage 3B to Tier 4 Final/Stage 4,
Volvo Penta launched its new Tier 4i-com-pliant engine range at the beginning of last
year. In April, the company received com-pliance certification from MSHA and
Canmet for its 13- liter Tier 4i engines.
Meeting Tier 4i has been achieved using selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology. For 2014, the company will build on this by adding a “light” exhaust-gas recirculation (EGR) system that will provide further emission reduction while helping to keep the SCR catalyst operating at an optimal temperature.
Volvo Penta’s Tier 4i range consists of five basic engines, from the 5-liter D5 (105-160 kW) to the 16-liter, six-cylinder D16 (405-565 kW). The engines receiving certi-fication from MSHA, the 350-550 hp, TAD13 60/61/62/63/64/65VE-series of diesel engines offer ventilation rates amongst the lowest in the industry for the given power category, the company states. With a ventilation rate of around 30 cfm/hp, this is considerably lower than traditional diesel engines used in mines today, it adds.
Since last year, Volvo Penta has had a cooperation agreement with Sandvik to supply engines for crushers, drilling rigs, loaders and haulers. Sandvik notes that while installing after-treatment systems have proved to be a major issue for many equipment builders, this has not been the case with the Volvo Penta engines.
“This is just another regular engine installation,” said Seppo Karhu, manager for engine installations at Sandvik Mining, after the first underground loader with SCR had been developed. “With the SCR technology, ventilation rates become so low that it is no longer toxic emissions, but CO 2 or fuel con-sumption that sets the limits. And the Volvo engines have low fuel consumption.”
World-leading Exploration Equipment
Airborne Geophysics
Given the challenges of finding new min-eral deposits in northern European ter-rain, it is not surprising that Nordic com-panies have developed a range of highly
sophisticated tools to help exploration
companies in their search.
The Danish airborne geophysics com-pany, SkyTEM, reports that its time-domain electromagnetic technology (TDEM) quickly and economically collects and delivers accurate, finely detailed maps of the earth from the very near sur-face to depths of hundreds of meters. Subtle variations in geology can be iden-tified, mapped and characterized in three dimensions by detecting anomalies, thus providing insights into the composition of the soil, overburden and bedrock.
The company points out that this abili-ty is very valuable in the Nordic countries where overburden often masks the primary geology. Also, access to exploration sites for ground study and positioning drills can be challenging in rugged terrain, whereas airborne surveys provide a fast and eco-nomical way to collect data.
Since 2005, SkyTEM has flown surveys for several mineral exploration companies in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Green-land, resulting in the discovery of a number of previously unknown nickel, copper, iron and gold prospects. In 2008, Nuna-Minerals used its technology to map pro-spective gold targets near Qussuk Bay in west Greenland. SkyTEM provided an accurate high-resolution data set that made it possible to generate a 3-D model of the property to depths of 250–300 m.
Last year, Taranis Resources filed min-ing claim applications on a copper-gold-cobalt-nickel exploration target that arose from a SkyTEM survey in Finnish Lapland. The 3-D geophysical inversions of the data provided valuable information about the geology. According to SkyTEM, its data were very important since drilling any one of the anomalies it revealed could yield a high-grade copper-gold deposit that would aug-ment the already known widespread, low-grade mineralization in the area surveyed.
New Concepts
In business since 1923, ABEM is one of
the world’s major manufacturers of geo-physical instruments. The company’s range
includes geo-electrical and seismic instru-ments, as well as vibration monitors.
As an example, the Terrameter LS is a completely new concept in geo-electrical equipment, the company says. The instru-ment allows data to be checked on site on a large color screen that is extremely visi-ble in daylight. The instrument handles up to 12 input channels for the highest possi-ble flexibility and productivity for 2-, 3-and 4-D measurements.
ABEM’s SAS LOG downhole probe con-nects to its Terrameter SAS 1000 or 4000 instruments, converting them to a logging system for resistivity and IP. This means that water-filled boreholes can be used to correlate surface data, so giving a higher degree of accuracy in the interpretation of geophysical data. Back-pack portable, the system also measures the temperature and SP down the hole, as well as indicating the water level.
Consultants and Contractors, at Home and Overseas
Drilling Experience
Oy Kati Ab Kalajoki (Kati) is a privately
owned Finnish drilling contractor with
more than 30 years’ experience in dia-mond core drilling. Most of its clients are
in mining and exploration, although it does
provide services to other industries.
The company points out that it was the first drilling contractor in Europe to be accredited to the ISO 14001 environmen-tal management system, reflecting its good approach to working in environmentally sensitive areas.
Kati has carried out drilling programs in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Estonia, Green-land and Morocco. Among its specialties are extra-deep holes, which may reach to more than 2,000 m. With extensive experi-ence in demanding conditions, the compa-ny is also familiar with special tasks such as helicopter-assisted drilling or directional drilling with different methods.
Kati says that its drilling equipment represents ‘best-in-class’ standard, being able to succeed in a range of work condi-tions in reasonable time. New innovations and continuous improvement, both in drilling technology and methods of work, make it a pioneer in its field, the company adds. Its drilling machines are Sandvik DE-series, tailored in its own workshop to suit various drilling purposes.
In addition to drilling, Kati also under-takes deviation surveys to determine the location of drill holes in 3-D, and can offer a very wide range of survey instruments to meet the highest accuracy standards.
Managing Projects
PRiMAB (ProjektResurs i Malmfälten AB)
provides project and site management serv-ices to the mining industry, primarily in the
Nordic countries. In project management,
the company carries out customer-specific
assignments in areas such as project
design and construction management, the
coordination of work environment issues,
and technical documentation. For site
management, services include planning,
control and follow-up for aspects like con-struction-project accommodation, road and
storage management, heating and tempo-rary power supplies, waste management
and incoming and outgoing transport.
The company reports that its client base has included Boliden, LKAB and Northland Resources. As an example, it was responsible for project management of the new water system during the recent expansion of Boliden’s Aitik copper mine, including 36 km of pipelines, seven pump stations and a waste-treatment plant. It has also provided project coordination for a new pump station at the bottom of the Aitik pit, capable of handling 2,940 m3/h over a 400-m static head.
Greenland Focus
A major Nordic construction and civil
engineering company, Denmark-based MT
Højgaard also has extensive experience
with drilling program in Greenland, noting
that it has had great success with core
drilling through the inland ice at the Isua
iron ore exploration project. Specially pro-duced equipment combined with its knowl-edge of Arctic conditions contributed to a
great season in 2011, the company said.
While MT Højgaard has been present in Greenland for more than 50 years, 2011 was the first year that it had put its Arctic expertise to use in the field of core drilling. Its initial contract was to drill around 2,500 m, but less than a month into the program, its client asked it to provide a sec-ond drill rig; by the end of the season, it had completed around 7,000 m. The company explains that on most holes, it had to drill through 100–150 m of ice first, although on one set-up it managed to drill through 300 m of ice before hitting bedrock.
Other projects undertaken in Greenland have included establishing and operating the Fiskefjorden olivine mine from 2005 to 2008, carrying out geophysical surveys for Quadra FNX Mining (now KGHM Inter-national) at its Malmbjerget project, con-sultancy and site investigations for the Tanbreez rare-earths project for Rimbal Pty, and exploration work and camp manage-ment at Jiangxi Zhongrun Mining Co.’s Carlsberg Fjord copper prospect in Jameson Land, on the east coast of Greenland.
International Logistics
Also from Denmark, GlobeFLX
is an inter-national logistics company, buying as well
as transporting heavy and/or customized
goods. It has sub-offices in Dubai, the U.K.
and the United States, with important mar-kets in Europe, the C.I.S., the Middle East
and North and South America. It also
makes it its business to deliver effectively
and punctually to dangerous destinations,
or destinations where other obstacles stand
in the way.
The company offers 15 years of experi-ence in buying and moving equipment, such as for the mining industry. Its customers are international mining, oil and industrial com-panies, together with humanitarian organi-zations and NGOs that need equipment moved to tough locations in the world.
The types of equipment that GlobeFLX can supply include vehicles, trucks and buses, materials-handling equipment, spe-cial-purpose vehicles, generators and light towers, tires and batteries, and spare parts.
“We are seeing a continuous need for our vast product portfolio—whether it is heavy trucks, heavy equipment in general, spare parts or the like. This is an area we focus on and continue to develop in order to comply with the constantly changing needs and requirements from our mining customers,” said the company’s CEO, Jørgen Kildegaard.
In a recent commission, GlobeFLX has sourced 10 right-hand-drive vehicles for a mining customer in Western Australia, which meant having left-hand-drive models specially rebuilt. In South America, mean-while, the company is handling various requests for used building and construction equipment, again for mining-sector clients.
Mine and Tunnel Specialist
Bergteamet AB is one of Europe’s main
underground mining contractors. Founded
in 1999, the company has expanded to han-dle major projects within Sweden and inter-nationally, with a clear focus on utilizing the
latest technology in its operations. Its busi-ness is organized into four divisions: raise-boring, mining and tunneling, electrical,
and equipment design and construction.
Its raiseboring division is now a major international contractor, having successful-ly completed a number of assignments in countries such as India, Argentina, Chile, Ireland, Spain, Austria and Iceland, as well as in Sweden. Meanwhile, its Electro divi-sion supplies mining and other companies with mobile power, power installations and power technology. However, the recent mining boom has led to significant growth in its mining and tunneling division, which is now its biggest business unit.
Earlier this year, the company complet-ed two access ramps, totaling 1,800 m, from surface to the 230 m level at the Dannemora iron mine in Sweden, and last December, it signed a five-year contract with Hindustan Zinc to raisebore a number of ventilation shafts for its underground operations in India. Previous contracts have included drilling two long inclined vent rais-es at the Zinkgruvan mine in Sweden, totalling 2,100 m, four raise bored vent shafts at the Golden Grove operation in Western Australia, and six vertical shafts at Garpenberg, totalling 1,600 m and ranging in diameter from 2.4 to 4.5 m.
Northern Experience
Arctic Drilling Co., based in Rovaniemi,
Finland, is both a core-drilling contractor
and a manufacturer of core-drilling rigs for
surface and underground applications. Its
customer base includes Agnico Eagle, Gold
Fields, First Quantum Minerals and Lapp-land Goldminers, as well as Boart Longyear.
The services offered include wireline diamond drilling, RC drilling and borehole surveys. ADC can also provide training for operators of its equipment, together with rig maintenance services.
Its M-series of underground drill rigs come with either automatic or manual con-trol, wheels or rubber tracks, and optional rod-handling equipment. The feed beam rotates 360° horizontally and 180° verti-cally. Maneuvering between holes is easy, the company says, with quick set-up times.
For surface drilling, the K-series rigs are designed for easy operation, and are mounted on an enclosed carrier on wide rubber tracks. Drilling and sample han-dling is done inside the unit.
Nordic Resources
GeoVista AB is an independent geological
consulting company, headquartered in
Luleå. The company has carried out explo-ration work in Finland, Norway and Sweden,
and has in-house experience of exploration
in Central and South America and in Africa.
GeoVista can undertake geophysical, geo-logical and geochemical field work, as well as interpreting data and identifying targets. It can also provide exploration project manage-ment and drilling-supervision services.
The firm’s staff includes Qualified Persons for reporting on mineral resources, with GeoVista having prepared compliant resource estimates for companies such as Scandinavian Resources, Dannemora Mineral, Beowulf Mining, Riddarhyttan Resources, Belvedere Resources and Northland Resources.
Finnish Laboratory Network
With its headquarters in Espoo, Finland,
Labtium is an independent, accredited lab-oratory that offers mining and exploration
companies services that meet international
quality requirements and reporting practices. It has a comprehensive selection of
sample preparation and analytical methods
for the evaluation of mineral resources and
ore reserves that satisfy the requirements
of international reporting codes such as
Canada’s NI 43-101 and Australia’s JORC.
Labtium reports that it has a totally robot-ized sample-preparation line for explo-ration samples.
In addition to preparing and analyzing exploration and grade-control samples, Labtium can analyze process samples from different stages of ore processing, includ-ing independent party and umpire analysis. The company can also design and com-mission lab services for mining companies to use themselves, or can provide out-sourcing services, either on-site or at its five lab centers in Finland.
Geophysics Surveying
Although only recently established, Ageos
claims to have quickly become one of the
Nordic region’s leading geophysical survey
companies. Based in northern Finland, it
offers both traditional as well as highly
advanced geophysical survey and measure-ment services, both for ground geophysics
and borehole surveys. Its state-of-the-art
technology provides the opportunity for
identifying mineralization to depths of
1,900 m, Ageos adds, with its in-house
survey team collecting, analyzing and
interpreting high-quality data, using the
most advanced tools and techniques, and
delivering highly detailed, contrast-based
images.
Active mines that have used the com-pany’s services include Agnico-Eagle’s Kittilä, where it completed several ground-and borehole-based survey projects during 2010 and 2011, and Inmet Mining’s Pyhäsalmi. Here Ageos carried out several deep TEM surveys, to a depth of 1,700 m.
Data and Information
At the end of last year, Sweden’s Raw
Materials Group (RMG) joined forces with
Intierra Resource Intelligence to form one of
the mining industry’s largest and most com-plete database groups. For 30 years, the two
companies have been a major source of
data, mapping, analysis and reporting for the
mining industry, providing resource-sector
intelligence for suppliers, financiers, govern-ments, exploration and mining companies.
Raw Materials Data, RMG’s proprietary data-base, is the most extensive supply-side data-base in the industry, the company claims.
Today, IntierraRMG delivers respected market and project reports for suppliers, material flows analysis, mineral economics policy and consulting expertise. Its data-bases and sector-specific modules offer insights into tenement ownership, compa-ny evaluations, mergers and acquisitions, risk management, due diligence, competi-tor intelligence and project pipeline evalu-ation. The mapping division distributes more than 850,000 maps globally through leading industry publications and major conferences, noting that maps are the most effective marketing media to reach mining and exploration companies.
Pumps and Pipes for Fluids Handling
Specialist Piping
KWH Pipe offers expertise in transporting
and storing liquids, gas and wastewater.
Active in Europe, North America and
Southeast Asia, its recent customers include
Talvivaara, KGHM, Boliden, LKAB, Karlesky
Okatysh and Highland Valley Copper.
The company’s product range includes HDPE pressure pipe systems up to 1,600 mm outside diameter, gravity systems, tanks and inspection chambers. It also offers WehoSlurry abrasion-resistant pipes, as well as conductive and chemical-resistant pipes, having supplied heap-leaching systems, raw-water pipelines, and slurry pipelines, intakes and outfalls for the mining industry.
A recent turnkey project involved the supply of 1.2 km of floating pipes as part of a 7 km-long system to drain water from LKAB’s Leveäniemi open-pit near Kiruna. The 18-month project involves pumping some 30 million m 3 of water, with the pipes initially floating on the surface as the water drains, then eventually settling along the deepest part of the truck route as the water level drops. KWH Pipe reports that it was the only contractor able to present a preliminary plan for the project.
Steel Pipes for the World
Having celebrated its 60th
year in business
in 2011, Alvenius
is one of the best-known
names in the industrial pipe industry world-wide. It has supplied galvanized pipe and
fittings for carrying compressed air and
water to mines on every continent, and
since the development of thermoplastic
(TP)-coated pipes in the 1990s, it has
expanded its use range to include leaching,
dewatering and corrosive fluid applications.
Alvenius supplies two hot-dip galva-nized pipe systems, Victaulic and K10, in diameters from 48 to 508 mm (2-20 in.). Victualic is a grooved system for pressures up to 80 bar (1,160 psi, while K10 is a shouldered system for pressures up to 25 bar (360 psi). Its TP pipes, coated both inside and out with thermoplastic, are joined using Alvenius quick couplings or flanges with diameters in the range 89–508 mm (3-20 in.).
Example deliveries that the company has made to mines over the years include 48-152 mm pipes for air and water to the Zambian copperbelt, 76–254 mm pipes to Store Norske in Svalbard, and 100 km of 152 mm pipe for process- and drinking-water handling to ENOR’s Tirek and Amesmessa gold mines in Algeria. Alvenius has also been a long-term pipe supplier to the base-metal mining industry in Ireland.
Submersible Pumps
Grindex has been making submersible pumps since the 1960s,
since when its product range has expanded significantly, in terms of
both capacities and handling capabilities. One of the major advan-tages of Grindex pumps is their ability to run dry, the company says.
The 12-model Drainage range is designed for all kinds of dewa-tering, with capabilities running from 4 liter/s to a height of 11.5 m for the Micro to 150 liter/s to 105 m for the Mega. In high-lift version, the Mega can handle 60 liter/s to a height of 230 m.
For sludge handling, there is the four-model Sludge range, while the eight-model Bravo range is designed for dredging sedimentation sumps and handling heavy slurries. There is also a six-model range of stainless-steel pumps for handling corrosive fluids (Inox). Grindex also supplies versions of nine of its submersibles that are MSHA-approved for use in potentially gassy underground environments.
Grindex reports that following the installation of two of its Inox pumps at Codelco’s El Teniente copper mine in Chile, handling rates of highly acidic water more than tripled compared to the pre-vious pumps used, while availability was also higher and costs reduced by introducing a preventive maintenance schedule.
Light Pipes
Svebra Lightweight Piping not only produces hot-dip galvanized
steel pipes, but has also developed a range of aluminum piping for
use where extra low weight is needed. For instance, a 5.8-m length
of 102-mm-diameter aluminum pipe weighs just 10.5 kg, while
152 mm-diameter pipe of the same length weighs 22.5 kg.
Aluminum piping has a 30 bar pressure rating.
The company offers two quick-coupling systems for its galva-nized piping: Svebra and Victualic, which are approved for pres-sure up to 40 bar and 65 bar respectively. Piping and fittings are supplied in diameters from 48 to 203 mm for Svebra systems, and 89 to 273 mm for Victaulic. Polythene-coated piping is also avail-able for corrosion-prevention in buried applications.
Svebra exports its products worldwide, including for pressure-and hydraulic systems in mining.
Drilling Equipment for Accuracy and Economy
Water Power
Aside from being present at this year’s MINExpo, the specialist
DTH drilling-equipment manufacturer, Wassara, has plenty to occu-py it at the moment. In addition to moving to a new production
plant in Stockholm, the company is changing its name to LKAB
Wassara AB, although the product name will remain ‘Wassara.’
Wholly-owned by LKAB, Wassara is the world’s leading supplier of water-powered DTH/ITH drilling systems. For production-hole drilling, Wassara’s range includes the W70, W80, W100, W120 and W150 hammers, with hole size capabilities covering 82–165 mm (3¼–6½ in.). Major advantages claimed for the system include greatly increased directional accuracy, especially over long holes, and markedly lower energy costs, since high-pressure water pumps are more efficient than air compressors.
Increased accuracy over greater hole depths means that sub-levels can be spaced further apart, Wassara points out, which in turn saves substantially on devel-opment costs.
Wassara also offers its water-powered slot-drilling system, which allows for burn-cut slots up to 40 m long to be formed from a set of accurately located parallel holes.
Directional Control
Based in Melhus, Norway, Devico has more
than 20 years experience with directional
core drilling and borehole surveying. The
company has developed a range of instru-ments including directional core barrels,
core-orientation equipment, and both mag-netic and non-magnetic downhole survey
instruments. Devico claims to be the glob-al market leader in providing directional
coring services directly, and via its agents
and subsidiaries world-wide.
Devico launched its DeviDrill direction-al core drilling system in 1988, since when it has been used in more than 40 different countries, the company says. A wireline version followed in 2001, allowing contin-uous measurements and core sampling during steering.
Enabling sidetracking to be carried out without using cement, plugs or wedges, the DeviDrill uses a normal drill string and is fully compatible with the N-size wireline system. Devico’s survey tools are a fully integrated part of the tool, taking measurements while drilling is in progress. Data are stored inside the tool and down-loaded wirelessly to a PDA after each run. A major advantage of the system is the reduction in drilling needed, especially where deep orebodies are being sought, the company notes.
Hydraulic Drills
From its plant in Nokia, Finland, Doofor
has been producing hydraulic rock drills
and spare parts since 1993. The company
states that its drills use its own high-fre-quency technology, which allows fast pen-etration with less strike force. This mini-mizes stress on the drill tools and maxi-mizes hole straightness, it adds.
It also invented the trapezoidal piston design used in its machines, which gives faster drilling by improving the movement of the strike impulse in the drill rod. Its product range includes machines generat-ing between 5 and 22 kW, suitable for hole diameters of 36 to 127 mm (1⅜-5 in.). Its larger rock drills also have a double damp-ening system to minimize stress to the shank adapter or striker bar.
For light drilling applications, the com-pany can supply an aluminum alloy feed beam that can be used with drills weighing up to 75 kg.
Expanded Range
Robit Rocktools is one of the world’s major
suppliers of threaded bits for drilling in
mining, quarrying and construction. All of
its bits are manufactured from fully recy-clable steel that has, the company says,
more uniform properties and better fatigue
strength. The company’s acquisition last
year of a holding in the Korean rock-tools
manufacturer, Young Poong CND, and
investment in a new factory there has
allowed it to expand its product range to
include rods, shanks and couplings.
Both standard and retrac bit body designs are available, as are different bit faces designs to handle specific rock con-ditions, and a choice of button insert pro-files. For drifting and tunneling, Robit’s button-bit range covers the R25, R28, R32 and R35 thread sizes in diameters from 33 to 76 mm. For bench and production drilling, it offers bits for C38 to CT68 thread configurations, in diameters from 55 to 152 mm, while its reaming bit range runs from 76 to 102 mm hole diameter.
Power, Drives and Controls
Providing Power Links
Cavotec produces power transmission, dis-tribution and control technologies that form
the link between fixed and mobile equip-ment. Its mining sector products include
motorized and spring-driven cable reels,
power connectors, radio remote controls,
cables and hoses for OEMs such as Sandvik
and Atlas Copco. Recent orders from
Australia for power-supply equipment have
included cable-reel systems for stacker-reclaimers and hopper cars, while in the
United States, Cavotec is supplying
ThyssenKrupp with specialized medium-voltage cables, hose reels and related
equipment for indoor stacker and reclaimer
machines at an application in Saudi Arabia.
In another major project with Sandvik, Cavotec has an order for large level-wind cable reels and special cable for coal-handling stacker-reclaimers in British Columbia. The company is also supplying power units, transformers, junction boxes, plugs/sockets and mining cable to Agnico-Eagle’s Kittilä gold mine in Finland, to extend the 690 V network that provides power for equipment such as drill rigs. Also in Finland, it has supplied 6.3 kV connectors and power units for the electric mining excavators at First Quantum’s Kevitsa nickel project.
Heavy-duty Lighting
Nordic Lights designs and manufactures
LED, HID (Xenon) and halogen work lights
for the heavy-duty on- and off-road indus-tries. The company says that no matter how
good the light source and output—if equip-ment lights cannot handle the environment
they are used in, they are useless. Since
mining vehicles and machines are often used under extreme conditions, their lights
are also subject to shock and vibration.
Because of this, work lights need good
vibration dampening.
This need, it adds, is even more impor-tant today since LED and HID (Xenon) work lights are heavier than the old halo-gen lights. They are also more valuable, so it makes economic sense to invest in durable solutions.
The company designs dampening sys-tems that respond to the specific vibration patterns present—high-frequency from engines, or low-frequency from loader-bucket impacts.
Vibration and shock resistance is also applied to cables and other components, as well as the light itself. It selects damp-ening materials that are suitable for the intended working environment, while tak-ing the effects of wear, heat, cold, dust, water, chemicals and fuel into account. Extensive testwork is used to prove their effectiveness, and to show that any break-age in use will not affect the vehicle’s elec-tronics or cause fires. aa
Weighing on Wheels
At a time when more off-road trucks and
haulers are in operation at mines and quar-ries, the need for on-line material-flow
information is also increasing rapidly. In
response to this demand, the Tamtron
group has developed a robust and reliable
dumper scale with various ways to transfer
data wirelessly and on-line.
Tamtron’s DV dumper scale consists of two axle load cells that replace the rear pins, a pressure transducer and an advanced dis-play instrument, designed for on-board use. Weighing takes place simply by lifting the truck body, with inbuilt angle compensation ensuring that weighing is accurate on uneven ground. The scales can be installed on any off-road truck, the company says, including underground haul trucks.
The scales are equipped with a full-color touch screen, with both the display and keyboard being illuminated to allow round-the-clock use.
As weighing takes place on board, the truck does not have to make trips to a weigh bridge, with load data being stored in the system’s memory. This can then be down-loaded either conventionally or over the internet, with the ‘i-Stock’ option able to dis-play material balances at various locations.
AC Drive Specialist
Vacon claims to be the world’s largest com-pany concentrating solely on AC drives,
with around 5% of the global market. Fuel
economy and automation control are just
two of the advantages of using variable-speed AC drives in mining and minerals
processing, the company says, with the
technology offering energy savings of up to
50% when operating pumps, fans, com-pressors and winches. AC drives also make
much less noise than hydraulic alterna-tives. In applications needing braking,
Vacon’s active front-end units can feed
brake energy back to the mains.
Vacon’s product portfolio includes air-and liquid-cooled units, common DC bus components, inverters and step-up medi-um-voltage equipment. Liquid-cooled AC drives are ideal for use in underground mining, it states, with the units being pro-tected against dust and humidity.
Vacon has delivered AC drives to com-panies such as LKAB in Sweden, Talvivaara in Finland, Western Areas in Australia and Metal Constructions of Greece. Talvivaara uses hundreds of its drives to control AC motors running pumps, fans, screws, con-veyors, feeders and mixers. At Western Areas’ Cosmic Boy nickel concentrator in Western Australia, Vacon drives control a wide variety of pumps for process flow and pressure control.
Vacon’s most important showcase in conveyor applications has involved sup-plying AC drives to control 61 belt sta-tions at the Kardia and Mavropigi lignite mines in Greece.
Using an AC drive for conveyor control allows the speed to be adjusted to chang-ing needs, cutting energy costs and com-ponent wear while helping to improve process control. In addition, soft starting conveyors with AC drives reduces the stress on gearboxes.
Specialized Products and Services
Cleaner Wheel-motor Oils
C.C. Jensen specializes in off-line oil filtra-tion, and states that effective depth filtra-tion is the key to maintaining oil used in
hydraulic, motor, gear and other systems.
The company says its research and experi-ence shows that effective, off-line oil filtra-tion can extend equipment lifetime by up
to six times or more, resulting in less down-time caused by oil contamination. All of its
filters are environmentally friendly, cellu-lose-based, and custom-designed for any
oil volume or flow.
Jensen reports that field tests using its new mobile flushing unit (MFU) on truck wheel motors during servicing shows how it can make used gear oil cleaner than new oil, even when working in cold climates such as northern Canada. Long-term tests on wheel motors and differentials on Komatsu, Caterpillar and Bucyrus equip-ment showed gear oil being cleaned to below recommended cleanliness levels. During planned service checks, the oil is cleaned quickly by being drained from the gearbox, then circulated repeatedly through the MFU until clean. Not only does this save on the cost of replacing the oil, the company says, but it ensures that the oil is refilled into a clean gearbox.
Other applications for CJC filtration sys-tems include crushers, excavators, equip-ment engines, mills and storage tanks for both oils and diesel, where dusty conditions and poor tank maintenance can lead to fuel being contaminated before it ever reaches the equipment or power generator that uses it.
Keeping Workshops Secure Assa Abloy Entrance Systems supplies entrance automation solutions under the Megadoor brand name. The company reports that it has delivered doors to smelters, the mining industry, shipyards and aircraft hangars for the last 40 years.
A recent contract has been to supply more than 40 doors to Northland Resources for the buildings at its new Kaunisvaara iron ore operation in northern Sweden. The doors will be fitted to truck-repair shops, dressing plants and ore-storage units, in sizes ranging from 3.5 x 3.5 m up to 10 x 8 m. All of the doors have been de-signed for heavy wind loads, cold weather and a dusty environment, Megadoor says. Following production in the company’s plant in Skellefteå, installation of the first doors was scheduled to start in September.
Operating vertically, Megadoors do not need bottom rails, and do not ‘steal’ inter-nal space from the building. They provide a tight seal, so protecting the work envi-ronment inside, yet place little load on the building structure. Other recent mining-sector installations include Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia and Peñasquito in Mexico.
Drive Power
Launched during MINExpo 2012, the
Hägglunds CBM hydraulic motor is the
world’s most powerful direct drive, according to Bosch Rexroth. Taking over from the
Hägglunds Marathon motor, the CBM packs
50% more torque into a motor that is small-er and up to 50% lighter than its predeces-sor, the company says, adding that this gives
it the world’s highest torque-to weight ratio.
The CBM not only handles heavier workloads, but also takes up less space and places less weight on the driven shaft. This means that machines, and in some cases the facilities that house them, can be smaller, lighter and simpler, Bosch Rexroth says. The motor’s reduced installa-tion requirements and higher productivity can mean lower overall investment, with the hydraulic direct drive giving full torque from zero speed, protection from shock loads and four-quadrant operation.
Based on the Hägglunds CB platform, the CBM has internal advances that allow it to supply 6,000 Nm/bar of specific torque. Direct retrofit kits are available for users looking to upgrade from the Marathon, making exchanging the motor both quick and simple in existing machines. In addi-tion, the CBM has splines that simplify attachment to the driven shaft, with shrinkdisc adapters also available.
Generating World-wide
Wärtsilä Power Plants supplies flexible
base-load power plants operating on vari-ous liquid and gaseous fuels, together with
solutions for grid stability, reserve, peaking,
load-following and intermittent power gen-eration. The company’s power plants cover
the capacity range from 1 MW to more
than 500 MW.
Over the past year, Wärtsilä has won two major contracts to supply power plants to Australian mining operations. In August, it received an order from Energy Develop-ments Ltd. for six 34SG engines running on natural gas for Xstrata Zinc’s McArthur River mine in the Northern Territory. With a com-bined output of 53 MW, the units should be fully operational by the end of 2013.
This order followed another, gained in July 2011, for 50 MW of dual-fuel gener-ating capacity for Fortescue Metals Group’s Solomon Hub iron-ore operations in Western Australia. The six 20-cylinder 34DF engines—the first to be installed in Australia—use either natural gas or light fuel oil. Wärtsilä notes that fast-track deliv-ery was a particularly important factor in the award of this contract because of the very tight project schedule.
Wear-resistance
Founded in 1978, SSAB is a world suppli-er of wear-resistant steel. At the end of last
year, it expanded its Hardox range to cover
thicknesses of 0.7–130 mm. “The mining
industry is an important and expanding
market for the thicker grades,” said Claes
Löwgren, the company’s business develop-ment director. The trend is for mining
machines to get bigger in order to increase
efficiency, so it is important that Hardox is
available in thicker versions that can keep up with this size development. Right now,
we are developing Hardox with thicknesses
up to 160 mm.”
SSAB reports that a member company of the Hardox Wearparts network recently delivered 350 mt of Hardox parts to Sandvik for a new crusher plant in northern Sweden. Although the 500 Brinell steel was in high demand from other users, SSAB was able to supply the tonnage, which the company transformed into nearly 4,400 individual parts for the crusher project.
Another network member company in Croatia has fabricated a 3.3 mt feeder unit for a Zambian copper project, using Hardox 450 steel. Hardox 450 is an all-round wear-resistant plate with high toughness, plus good bendability and weldability, SSAB adds.
Access Expertise
In 1957, Alimak introduced a new concept
in raise drilling: the self-contained raise
climber, which enabled drillers to work in a
much safer environment that had previously
been possible. Today, Alimak Hek has built
on the rack-and-pinion concept for person-nel and materials handling, having delivered
over 30,000 elevator systems to construc-tion and industrial projects world-wide.
Alimak states that its elevators offer a good solution for underground as well as surface applications such as pelletizing plants, smelters, concentrators and other ore-processing plants. Its wire-rope hoist is suitable for carrying heavy loads at relative-ly fast speeds and is the primary means of vertical access for men and materials in an underground mine. Meanwhile, its rack-and-pinion elevators are ideally suited for providing the secondary, emergency vertical access required by mine safety regulations.
Elevators can be installed easily under-ground, it says, with lower costs than if a machine room were needed. Alternatively, in crushing plants, where the operator has to control equipment on different levels, an Alimak elevator may be a good option for moving quickly from place to place.
Teaching Operators
Oryx Simulations works with OEMs in the
mining, forestry, construction and other
industries to produce simulators for opera-tor training. However, using a simulator is
not just about optimizing and improving
operator training, Oryx points out, since it
is also about health and safety at work,
helps to eliminate costly mistakes and
allows operators to train on dangerous and
unusual situations, without injury risk.
At the end of last year, the company launched three new simulator packages, focusing on Atlas Copco’s L8, D65 and PitViper drill rigs to add to the underground and surface drill-rig simulators already on offer. All three are equipped with a fully functional Atlas Copco cab, with or without the company’s RCS system. Other Oryx simulators include Volvo CE wheel loaders and excavators.
Each training program includes a num-ber of exercises, from basic maneuvering to more advanced tasks. The difficulty increases step-by-step, ensuring that the operator knows the basics before facing more challenging exercises.
Fighting Fire with Fog
Few things are more unpredictable, or haz-ardous, in mining than equipment fires,
especially when these occur in confined
spaces. Fogmaker International’s fire-sup-pression system is designed to create a
water mist over a fire, depriving it of oxygen
and cooling the smoke gases and hot parts
of the engine.
Fogmaker has developed a high-pressure extinguisher that functions like a piston accumulator. When activated, the high pres-sure and the use of special spray nozzles cre-ates micro-drops with an average size of 5 µm. These are instantly vaporized by the heat of the fire, so that 1 liter of water cre-ates 1,700 liters of water mist. The rapid heat absorption achieved enables the Fogmaker system to provide enough cooling to put the fire out quickly and reduce the risk of re-ignition. The water mist also includes a foam additive to cover the flammable oil products that tend to collect in engine trays.
The company’s systems are available for a whole range of mining machines, as well as for other commercial and industrial applications.
Mineral Processing and Materials Handling
Smelter Focus
Kopar has extensive expertise in equipment
and services for non-ferrous smelters, as
well as many other applications. The com-pany designs and manufactures rotary and
steam dryers, converters, anode furnaces,
granulation plants, bucket elevators,
mechanical and pneumatic conveying sys-tems, and rotor and roller crushers. It also
offers engineering and other services
including pilot tests, project management,
erection, start-up, training, modernization,
and spare and wear parts.
Earlier this year, Kopar supplied and installed a nickel slag-handling system at Boliden’s Harjavalta smelter in Finland. The contract included supplying a bucket elevator, its elevator tower and a new belt conveyor, as well as removing the two older, shorter elevators that were being replaced.
The bucket elevator is used for dewa-tering nickel slag, with a nominal lifting capacity of 110 m 3/h of wet slag at 20% moisture. The elevator is 14 m long with forged and hardened double drag chains, while the belt conveyor is 36 m long with the same capacity.
In the past Kopar has delivered various pieces of equipment to the Harjavalta smelter, including a Peirce Smith converter for the copper-smelting line and pneumatic conveying systems for copper concentrate.
Pumps for Tough Jobs
Flowrox
has provided valves and pumps for
high-wear and aggressive processes in
more than 50,000 installations in mining,
metallurgy and mineral applications
around the world. Applications include
grinding and screening, hydrocyclone sep-aration, magnetic separation, flotation,
thickening, filtration, tailings handling and
systems such as sampling, dosing and
water treatment.
Its automatic and manual pinch valves are used for shut-off or control applications involving abrasive or corrosive slurries, powders or coarse materials, while its heavy-duty knife gate valves are used in processing wet or dry media with a design that ensures no downstream leakage. Meanwhile, Flowrox’s peristaltic and pro-gressive cavity pumps are designed for use in processes involving industrial transfer, and the dosing and metering of abrasive, corrosive, and other demanding slurry duties. Its check valves are used in back-flow, flood, and odor-control applications involving abrasive and corrosive media.
In June, Flowrox launched the largest hose pump in the world, the LPP-T100, which can handle up to 100 m3 /h at pres-sures up to 10 bar. Using Flowrox’s roller design, the pump delivers 31 liters each revolution, with the company saying that thickener underflow is a good example of an application for the new pump. The design of these hose pumps eliminates friction, maximizes hose life time and low-ers energy consumption, Flowrox adds.
In 2008, Flowrox supplied 400 auto-matic pinch valves to Gulf Industrial Investment Co. for its second iron ore pel-letizing plant in Bahrain. The pneumatical-ly actuated 100-150 mm valves are oper-ating in the pellet-coating and iron-ore slurry lines as well as in various side appli-cations, and apart from the control valves, have been working for three years without needing sleeve changes, Flowrox says.
It has also supplied 12 LPP-T 65 pumps for washing-liquid circulation duties to the Talvivaara nickel mine in Finland, handling water recycled from the filtration units. This wash water typically has a very high solids content, which is why hose pumps were chosen for this application.
Safer Mill-liner System
According to Metso, its new Megaliner Poly-Met shell liner maximizes mill availability
while improving worker safety, with rub-ber/metal composite sections weighing up to
60% less than similarly sized metallic liner.
Mill availability is improved through faster
liner replacement since Megaliner uses larg-er-than-average sections that can still be
placed with the same 6- to 8-axis liner-han-dlers used with many large autogenous
grinding (AG) mills. In terms of safety, liner
sections are bolted into position from out-side the mill, so workers do not need to
stand in the potential ‘drop-zone’ inside.
The system is suitable for large AG mills with large trunnions and where modern liner handlers are available. Each Mega-liner element integrates multiple lifter and shell plate rows, and covers an area of up to 4 m 2 . The growing population of large grinding mills and high utilization rates are driving the demand for large, high-quality grinding wear parts, and Metso points out that using large-sized liner assemblies cuts the number of pieces to be handled and shortens maintenance shutdowns.
In August, the company announced a €10-million investment in increasing its rubber mill lining production capacity by around 30%. The first set of new presses, in Metso’s plants in Chile, Sweden, Canada, Mexico and Peru, is scheduled to be in operation by the end of 2013, with the upgrade due for completion in 2015.
A wear-parts optimization project that Metso undertook for the Russian iron ore producer, KMARuda, has led to a 30% increase in grinding performance, the company reports. KMARuda operates an underground mine in the Kursk iron-ore province in southwestern Russia, produc-ing 4.8 million mt/y of very abrasive quartzite-hosted ore that is processed into 2.1 million mt of concentrate.
The operation now has a Nordberg C140 jaw crusher fitted with Metso MX jaws for high-wear applications. Secondary crushing is done by a Nordberg HP200 and two HP500 cone crushers, using extra-thick XT720 manganese liners, with the company getting up to 30% longer life from its liners than before. Fines produc-tion has been increased, so less grinding is needed, helping to increase throughput and cut per-ton energy costs, Metso says.
Metso also supplied KMARuda with six Sala VSMM350 vertical slurry pumps for underwater use, which has extended pump life from around 2,500 hours to up to 13,000 hours, as well as cutting energy costs by 25%-30%.
Water-treatment Range
Kemira offers a range of chemical extrac-tion and process solutions for the mining
industry, where water plays a central role.
For example, its products for iron ore and
nickel processing include depressants,
coagulants, flocculants, dispersants, grind-ing aids, surfactants, defoamers, acids,
briquetting binders and modifying agents.
For iron ore beneficiation, where the trend is toward processing lower-grade ores, Kemira offers a range of organic binders specifically designed for pellet agglomeration. These help maintain pellet porosity while helping with growth behavior and resistance to deformation, as well as giving cleaner pellet surfaces, the company notes.
Kemira’s products for nickel briquetting are designed to improve the agglomeration process as well as reducing dust from finely divided nickel. Compounds that can be treated include nickel oxide, hydroxide, car-bonate, nitrate and basic nickel carbonate.
Water-treatment products include coag-ulants and flocculants for fines thickening, dewatering and pond treatments, and latex and surfactant products for dust control.
Bulk-handling Systems
ASM i Askersund designs and produces
equipment for bulk materials handling,
including crushing, screening, sorting, stor-age and transporting systems. Its client list
includes companies from Russia, Korea,
the U.K. and Ireland, as well as Sweden
and Norway, with commodities being han-dled ranging from iron ore to clays, kimber-lite, fuels, concentrates and aggregates.
The company’s largest order to date, won in late 2010, has been to supply con-veying systems to Boliden for handling materials at its new electronics scrap-recy-cling plant at the Rönnskär smelter. ASM’s conveying system comprised some bridge conveyors, different types of weigh-ing and dosing machines, hoppers and buildings.
Flotation Reagents
Established in 1938 the Danish chemicals company, Cheminova, is an interna-tional producer of flotation reagents under
the Danafloat brand name. The company
has developed dithiophosphate mixtures
and mixtures of dithiophosphates with
mercaptobenzothiazole and thionocarba-mates which, it says, improve collection
performance.
Its process flexibility means that prod-ucts can be tailored to its customers’ requirements. It has a wide range of dithio-phosphate flotation reagents that are avail-able in acid and aqueous solution forms, the latter using sodium, potassium or ammonium hydroxide for neutralization. Cheminova also supplies a full range of xanthates and some frothers.
Conveyors for Northern Mines
Over the past few years, the northern
Finnish company, Paakkola Conveyors, has
won a number of contracts to supply mate-rials-handling equipment to some of the
major new projects in the Nordic countries.
For example, in 2010 it delivered a sub-stantial package of systems to Talvivaara,
including a 450-m-long bridge stacker-con-veyor, 6 km of overland belt conveyors car-rying 4,500 mt/h, a crushing system and a
crawler-mounted tripper car. The contact
covered engineering, fabrication, electrifi-cation, automation and installation of the
systems, with the stacker-conveyor and
crushing system using GPS positioning.
Having also won the supply contracts for conveyor, transfer and take-up systems for the Kevitsa mine, and nearly 5 km of conveyors at Kaunisvaara, earlier this year the company received two orders from Boliden for its Garpenberg mine. The first covers 750 m of belt conveyors and feeders for concentrate handling, while the second added five concentrate silos, five belt feed-ers and the support structures for them.
Paakkola Conveyors specializes in pro-ject management, the provision of convey-or systems with advanced technology, mod-ernization of existing systems and the sup-ply of aftermarket services.
High-intensity Technology
Outotecis one of the world’s foremost
providers of minerals and metals process-ing technology, as well as offering innova-tive solutions for the chemicals industry,
industrial water treatment and the utiliza-tion of alternative energy sources. Its prod-uct line covers the entire processing chain
and includes technologies for ferrous met-als and ferroalloys, alumina and alu-minum, copper, nickel, zinc, precious met-als, niobium, synthetic rutile, and various
industrial minerals. The company’s servic-es include spare parts, maintenance, plant
audits, modernization and debottleneck-ing, as well as operator training.
Outotec states that many of its solu-tions have been certified in the European Union as best available techniques (BAT). These include flash smelting and flash converting for copper and nickel, zinc direct leaching, electrolytic refining of cop-per, nickel and zinc, alumina calcination, and sulphuric acid production. As exam-ples, half of the world’s pyrometallurgical primary copper is produced using its flash-smelting technology, while its SX-EW sys-tems account for one-third of all electro-won copper.
At MINExpo, the company unveiled the newest version of its HIGmill high-intensi-ty grinding mill for fine, ultra-fine and regrind milling applications. The technolo-gy has been available for more than 30 years, and there are more than 260 installed units around the world, with mill powers of up to 5 MW.
Outotec says the typical HIGmill appli-cation is for regrinding concentrates, with the product fineness being controlled by adjusting the shaft speed, since all HIGmills are supplied with a variable-speed drive system to give plant operators opti-mum process and particle-size control. The particle-size distribution can be also meas-ured by an Outotec PSI on-line particle analyzer, with the shaft speed being adjust-ed to maintain a constant product size.
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Danish Mining & Quarry Group
While Denmark does not have any mines of its own, it is home to a number of highly specialized companies that focus on producing effective equipment and solutions for the international mining industry. Many of these companies are among the world leaders in their fields. Some are focused on traditional core mining technol-ogy while others offer ancillary services. Formed in 2005, the Danish Mining & Quarry Group (DMQG) is an export network for consultants, manufacturers, service providers and subcontractors that represents leading Danish com-panies of all sizes. Its primary goal is to promote its member com-panies on the international market, by planning and undertaking joint export campaigns, often linked to international trade fairs and exhibitions, and by providing a forum for Danish exporters and foreign buyers. The DMQG is part of the Danish Export Association, giving it access to a large pool of expertise. More information about the organization, together with a full membership list, can be found at www.dk-mining.com. |